Literary obsessions, take 452

[mrissa]

So I was thinking about Lloyd Alexander's Westmark trilogy, because I do that a lot. Because it's such good stuff and hits so many of my buttons. Because I am bitterly opposed to total orderings, but The Kestrel is pretty close to the very best book if there was a very best book. And I had recently wanted to press these books upon at least half a dozen people.

Then I thought, hey, most libraries in the US have these books. (I have no idea about other countries.) They are readily available for purchase. It would not be hard for people to get their hands on them to read them and talk to me about them. And they are short, so people who would otherwise be interested in this sort of thing could read them without much investment of time or emotion. So I was wondering whether there was interest in that kind of discussion here on my lj after a suitable time for finding and reading them, and I was wondering what a suitable time for finding and reading them might be.

(Brief description for those of you who are unfamiliar: Ruritanian fantasy, if revolution came to Ruritania. No magic that I recall. YA. Very political and somewhat bloody in spots--bloody, not so much gory, if that distinction makes sense.)

[Poll #1342952]

Comments

[carbonel]

I can't reread the Westmark books (except the first one, which I acquired from papersky at the Farthing Party and is in a different place) until I have my living room back, because right now my dining room is filled with many of the things that should be in the living room, most importantly (in this case), the couches, which are completely blocking the A–C bookshelves.

Why, yes, my dining room is full of bookshelves. Aren't everyone's?

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Not everyone's is; mine, for example, has only two bookshelves because of the two pianos.

Anyway, I was thinking of doing them with separation between them, so getting at the first one first would be the most relevant bit.

[tanaise.livejournal.com]

While I adore Lloyd Alexander over all, I can not reread this series because of the SPOILER in the last book. I hate hate hate authors who SPOILER in the last book. Thus, I have not re-read this series since middle school when I first read it.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Perhaps you might e-mail me which spoiler you mean by SPOILER? The thing is, I can think of more than one thing a person might object to (though clearly I don't object strenuously enough to any of them to refrain from obsessive rereading).

[cathshaffer.livejournal.com]

Oh, sounds awesome! I hated to have to say I need a month to get/read the book, but I am busy that way, alas. *sigh*

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Hey, if I didn't want to know what actually worked for people, I wouldn't have asked.

[dd-b.livejournal.com]

I don't believe I've read anything of his. He's one of the authors where I have the impression, from his fans, that I shouldn't be getting too excited.

[rosefox]

He's one of the authors where I have the impression, from his fans, that I shouldn't be getting too excited.

Can you unpack this a bit?

(I am a very picky, critical reader. I really like Prydain. I think Westmark is pretty much the best series ever, comprising three of the best books ever.)

[merriehaskell.livejournal.com]

I reread these a few years ago. My heart can't take another one so soon. But I would like to Look On.

[the_rck]

I'd be very interested in reading what other people have to say about the books, but I think that I'd find them too anxiety inducing for a reread right now. Reading discussions about a book that I can't read tends to be at enough of a remove for me to be fine and even to have thinky thoughts.

[mamapduck.livejournal.com]

Don't cry or faint. I've never read them. So yes, I'd like to do this but hope re-readers will be careful about the spoilage of later installments.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

I will try to make that a rule: that discussion of Westmark can include spoilers for Westmark only, that discussion of The Kestrel can include spoilers for Westmark and The Kestrel but not The Beggar Queen.

[pixelfish.livejournal.com]

I loves all the Lloyd Alexander differently. I loves Prydain because it was my first introduction to LA, I love the non-dynastic tendancies of Westmark (vive la revolution!) and I love Vesper's snark and the unreliable narration of Brinnie.

[madmanatw.livejournal.com]

I've read them and would be interested in seeing such a discussion, but I only own the first one at the moment. I remember thinking the first book was absolutely amazing and thinking that from there the series went to just ok, but perhaps I need a reread.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

And if you think so on a reread, that'd be interesting to discuss, because I like the latter two far better than the first one.

[pmrabble.livejournal.com]

So, which chocolate SHOULD I obtain for next week's Nielsen 5/Sibelius 2 concert? (Osmo!)

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

I am tucking some FazerMints in my purse, because both Sibelius 2 and Fazer's chocolate shop were anti-tsarist entities. (Osmo indeed! We're going next Saturday.)

Also, FazerMints are good.

[wshaffer.livejournal.com]

You know, I read and loved the Prydain books when I was a girl, but I think I entirely missed out on the existence of the Westmark books. I'm not sure how this happened.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

You can see how he's Lloyd Alexander still. But they're very different.

[cadithial.livejournal.com]

As an fyi, no Barnes and Nobles in our local area have any of the Westmark trilogy. He's also not on Fictionwise.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Dakota Country Library has two copies checked in right this very minute.

[pameladean]

I've been meaning to read these for a long time, so this is a grand idea.

P.

[elsue.livejournal.com]

I have at least one of those, haven't read; I've read (and largely enjoyed) the Prydain ones. My favorite, though, is Timecat.

[rushthatspeaks.livejournal.com]

I have not read the Westmark books and would like to.

I checked 'don't know' in the favorite series question because actually my favorite among the Lloyd Alexanders I've read (which is nowhere near all of them-- no Vesper Holly either) is a singleton: Time Cat.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

No Vesper Holly either? Oh dear.

Well, we'll see how much fun I have with the Westmark one, then.

[columbina.livejournal.com]

My answer to the third question is inadequate. I read the Prydain books when I was young and was quite unimpressed by them, for reasons which are not germane here; however, I gather from context that the Westmark books are rather different, possibly in many respects. So: dunno. Let me dig one up somewhere and see what I think.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Very different. Yes.

[txanne.livejournal.com]

I loved all the Prydain books and reread them obsessively, until I finally got my hands on the last one. Then they were cold and did what they did ARGH. And I haven't read any of the Prydain books since. (I was in the fifth grade. This is a window on my character.)

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

I am nothing like as firm here as I am on the ending of Silver on the Tree (last five pages do not exist LA LA LA I CAN'T HEAR YOU DO NOT EXIST LA LA LA). But I do see what you mean.

[intrepida.livejournal.com]

I think the Vesper Holly books are the only Lloyd Alexander I've ever read. (Snarky 19th century teenage girl archaeologist? Yes indeed.) I don't think I'd have time to take part in this, but I might look up the Westmark books in the future.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

I recommend them to you specifically, in addition to my general recommendation.

[aedifica]

Once I get my hands on each book I'll read it fast, but finding time to get my hands on it will take a bit. So I voted for a month.

I haven't read the Westmark books in a very long time. This should be fun!

[dichroic.livejournal.com]

I would like to reread them, but haven't decided if I want to do so enough to order them. (Though bookstores here do carry some Alexander, so if I'm in one of the big ones I'll keep an eye out.) I've recently reread The Marvelous Misadventures of Sebastian and am curious how close The Beggar Queen is to it.

[redbird]

Can you provide titles and a recommended order for reading them, please?

[batwrangler.livejournal.com]

Westmark, The Kestrel, and The Beggar Queen, in that order. :)

Theo was a devil.

[batwrangler.livejournal.com]

I read them ages ago and should probably reread them. :)

Re: Theo was a devil.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Sure you should!

[avocadovpx.livejournal.com]

It makes me happy that you have 60 responders to the last question, and none of them think your synaesthetic project is crazy.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

It's not synaesthetic, alas, but historical.

[fiddledragon]

I just need enough warning so that I may arrange to pick them up from the library :)

[landofnowhere]

I'm interested enough to come out of lurking... :-)

Unfortunately, I'm in Cambridge, UK for the year, and none of the libraries here (public, university, or university sci-fi society) have any of the Westmark books. I do own copies of two of the three books back in the US, but that doesn't do me much good. I guess I'll probably end up buying used copies on amazon.co.uk or elsewhere...

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Wow, I'm sorry the libraries there are Being Difficult. Good luck finding copies!