Elijah David

Arielle tagged me in the Book Sacrifice Tag, and it looked like fun, so here we go. #1: An Over-Hyped Book Situation: You are in a bookstore when the zombies attack. Over the loudspeakers you hear the military announce that over-hyped books are the zombies' only weakness. What over-hyped book will you chuck at the zombies? Go Set a Watchman should not have been published. It's based on (or is) an early draft of what eventually became To Kill a Mockingbird and it should have been left to rot wherever it was dug up from. Harper Lee thought it had vanished and never said she wished it hadn't. It isn't a good novel, and it is a tarnish on Harper Lee's legacy. #2: A Sequel Situation: You are caught in a torrential downpour and you're probably the type who melts when you get wet. What sequel are you willing to use as an umbrella to protect yourself. Clariel by Garth Nix. It's technically a prequel, but it was the first *new* book in the Old Kingdom serie...

I've talked before about stories being more than "just" fiction. The topic came up again recently in a couple of conversations with some friends of mine, and I thought of another angle for the Christian who enjoys stories in all their forms. There's a spectrum of responses to the idea that stories have the power to affect us. On one extreme lie the folks who say that stories are dangerous and should be avoided at all costs unless they are safe and uplifting, free of all the bits that might make us uncomfortable or indicate anything beyond surface-level sin. On the other end sit the folks who say stories don't affect us in any way, so let's all just enjoy the show, you bunch of kill-joys. (Incidentally, there's a third group which occupies a place at either end of this; this group acknowledges the power of stories, but believes stories can only affect us positively and therefore should be enjoyed without thought or worry.)* The best stance, from my expe...

Currently Reading: Ladyhawke by Joan D. Vinge                               The Neverending Story by Michael Ende (reread)                               Royal Assassin by Robin Hobb Currently Writing: Merlin Book 2                              Wizard of Oz retelling (outlining and prewriting) When I was in grad school, one of the major topics we discussed in any given writing class was the idea of transgression or subversion -- working against or around the status quo. The discussion always made authors who transgressed against the commonly held ideas of society seem like the cool, rebellious kids at school that everyone wants to be acknowledged by. Except I never did. Maybe I'm the odd man out on this one, but I never saw the appeal in what appeared...