Sylvia left her childhood home to avoid revealing a secret that she instinctively knew her watchful grandmother would not accept. Now, years later, she returns to help her grandmother bury her grandfather. Though she plans to leave again as soon as possible, she finds herself drawn once more into the same tangle she fled before, only this time she is unable to extricate herself. The mysteries of the wood behind her grandmother's house, the secrets of her past, and the secrets of those she's known her entire life all become entangled with tradition and the world of the fairy, threatening to reveal the truth she's held close all these years and risking the well being of those she loves.
Impression: I loved Solstice Wood. Though written in a style that is unusual for McKillip, the writing still retained her ability to draw you into the story. Not as poetic as most her books, it still had its own kind of poetry that was expressed in the story itself rather than in the way it was written. McKillip also chose to use several different characters to tell the story rather than remaining in Sylvia's perspective throughout the novel, and yet the story remains Sylvia's. And yet, it also belonged to the other characters, who were all touched in some way by the pull between tradition and the wonder of the unknown. Rich description made the story easy to "see", and I am a reader who loves to just sit back and immerse myself in the vision of the author rather than be forced to create my own ideas of a story's sights and sounds and smells.
I did suspect part of the ending before I came to the conclusion, but this actually did not detract from the story at all. The plot was solid, the ending still had its twists, and waiting to see if the other characters would realize what I knew as a reader was part of the enjoyment. McKillip has a way of making you care about her characters, ALL her characters. While I wouldn't say that Solstice Wood is my favorite McKillip book, it was a thoroughly enjoyable read and I highly recommend it.
Brenden Vetch is a gardener, a gardener chosen by the ancient wizard Od to go to her school. Little does he realize that his presence, and that of an illusionist by the name of Tyramin will stir up the fears of a king who controls the use of magic in the kingdom of Numis. Little does the king know that his own daughter practices forbidden magic, magic she was born with, and magic she must reveal before she can marry his most trusted adviser. When an illusion goes awry, Brenden flees in fear, and the king's daughter disappears, the king and Valoren, his adviser, fear the worst and seek to capture those who would endanger the kingdom. What they find at the end of this search is something neither man expected.
Impression: While the usual rich language seems toned down here, McKillip hasn't lost her ability to enchant a reader. She draws you into the kingdom of Numis and the lives of the characters there, and skillfully keeps the reader guessing as to what's truly going on until the end. It's a skill I've seen in all her books, where nothing is quite what it seems but all the threads are there, leading to an ending that is neither predictable nor surprising. You can't see it coming, but can see where it came from. With Od Magic, I actually did guess some of the truths of hidden identities, but it wasn't disappointing to do so because there's always another mystery to unravel.
I enjoyed how there was a feel of a mystery to it, a mystery in the story, a mystery in the characters. And I loved the theme of seeing beyond the boundaries of what's in front of us, being willing to explore the wild and unknown. As with many of McKillip's novels, there's so much depth here that the story will need to be read again and again to appreciate all the layers within it. It is a beautiful novel that I highly recommend.
Here's the tale of the Wicked Witch of the West, from infancy to death, and not in the way you may know it. Born to an intenerate preacher and his aristocratic wife, though the true identity of her father may be somewhat in question, she goes to a prestigious girls' school, but does not graduate. Elphaba, as the witch was named at birth, instead sets herself against the Wizard of Oz when her head mistress tries to recruit her as a supporter of the order of things as they are in Oz, and leaves school to pursue her goal of deposing him . . . until the death of her sister brings her into contact with one Dorothy.
Impression: I initially couldn't put this book down. The first section on the Witch's childhood was actually very interesting. Unfortunately, the same writing that made the opening so interesting get tedious and dull for an entire novel, especially when there's not a whole lot going on action wise. Even where there was action was often rendered much less interesting than it could have been by explaining the action exposition. The book picks up a little towards the end, Maguire's changes in the story we know make sense, but it's not enough to make the novel worth the read. I know a lot of people have said this is a wonderful book, but a wonderful book doesn't take me 3 months to get through. Wicked was more a novel full of promises that it just didn't meet.
This book asks the question "what happened during Shakespeare's lost years?" and comes up with an answer of a fantasy nature. A young wil comes home one night to find his wife and daughter gone, and his search for them will take him to the lands of the fairy and back again.
Impression: I should have read the description, I don't know why I didn't. Maybe I did at the time I added it to my amazon.com wishlist. Regardless, this was not what I expected when I actually read it. The writing is good enough, and the idea of fantasy touching Shakespeare's life in a way a littl more direct than just in his head is intriguing. However, for a short read, it took me awhile to get through it. And while relatively engaging and interesting, I doubt I'll read it again. I think one of my favorite things about it was the various quotes from several of Shakespeare's plays that appeared sprinkled through out and well woven into the book.
I've placed this book on my bc.com book shelf (you can see the entry for it here) and have already chosen a place for it's release. My oldest will be taking it with her to release at her high school.
Update: It only took her 3 days to remember to find a place to drop it off. lol It's finally out in the wild.
