[Rachel]

Yep, "Beauty" is "Beauty and the Beast", but Robin did do a "Sleeping Beauty" retelling, called "Spindle's End".

I liked "The Hero and the Crown" quite a bit more than "The Blue Sword". That makes it sound as though I didn't like BS, but I really did; Robin's work is so fantastic that even my least favorite of hers would rank over most of the books I've read by other authors.

The Hero and the Crown was published before The Blue Sword.

I think that fairytale retellings would probably be my favorite type of fantasy. I seem to gravitate to them.
--Rachel

[ 11-20-2003: Message edited Rachel ]

[Soz]

Actually, The Blue Sword (1982) was published before The Hero and the Crown (1984). THATC is a prequel to TBS.

[Rachel]

Darn you, Amazon.com *shakes fist*

Got an e-mail from the library - "Sunshine" is in. [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]
--Rachel

[onionroach]

All this talking about RM books makes me want to read one. I love THATC more but I find myself rereading Blue Sword more than the other. Weird.

[Soz]

I never trust Amazon's info about publishing dates because it's often for the reprints, not the originals.

I think Sunshine is going to cause a lot of the same controversy Deerskin caused because it's not McKinley's "typical" style. I can't believe some libraries are shelving this in the YA section! [img]smilies/eek.gif[/img] It shows that a) they aren't reading the book first b) they are either pigeonholing McKinley or fantasy books in general as juvenile (most of the libraries I've been to shelve Anne McCaffrey in YA too, even though only three of her books are YA!)

[jjt]

McCaffrey in YA? That's odd and so not appropriate imho.

[Soz]

Originally posted by jjt: <STRONG>McCaffrey in YA? That's odd and so not appropriate imho.</STRONG>

I know and I even read the books when I was 13! Re-reading them as an adult made me realize how inapproriate they can be for some kids. The stuff went right over my head, but it could disturb others. I wouldn't want my 10 year old sister reading most of McCaffrey's books! [img]smilies/eek.gif[/img]


And now that I think of it, Le Guin's books were all shelved in YA too, including The Left Hand of Darkness and The Dispossessed, not just the original Earthsea Trilogy. I read these books as an adult and I still feel like I didn't totally understand them. I can't imagine if I had picked them up when I was 13- which is when I read the Earthsea books.

[ 11-21-2003: Message edited Soz ]

[onionroach]

My library doesn't even shelve the fantasy/sci-fi correctly. I've seen LKH books in general fiction with JD Robb in fantasy. And the George Lucas books are always shelved in general fiction. It boggles my mind. I have to keep repeating to myself that the branch I go to specializes in religion on fantasy. But it get annoying, especially when you are looking for a particular book.

[- Sudy -]

I can't wait to read Eragon by Christopher Paolini. I heard it was a pretty good book and i'll read it when I can get my butt to the bookstore.

[Lucky44]

I think my library had Dragonsong, Dragonsinger, and Dragondrums in YA, for sure, but I think there was also Moreta: Dragonlady of Pern as well. The White Dragon might have been, but I'm not sure.

I don't think the Pern chronicles are that bad. There's never anything really sexually explicit or anything. I think children would be in more danger of getting bored, with all the politics in the books, actually. But maybe that's just me. [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

[jjt]

I finished Dhampir yeterday. And rushed online to see when the next book was due out. [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img] I really enjoyed the book. The cover calls it a mix of Buffy and LOTR and I'd agree that it appeals to fans of both. But it's set itself up with some very 'real' characters who do things the way you would imagine those 'real' characters would do. So the characters won me over to this series completely. I'll be at the bookstore Jan 6th to pick up book two [of five]!

[Soz]

Originally posted by Lucky44: <STRONG>I think my library had Dragonsong, Dragonsinger, and Dragondrums in YA, for sure, but I think there was also Moreta: Dragonlady of Pern as well. The White Dragon might have been, but I'm not sure. I don't think the Pern chronicles are that bad. There's never anything really sexually explicit or anything. I think children would be in more danger of getting bored, with all the politics in the books, actually. But maybe that's just me. [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]</STRONG>

I know my interpertation of things is different than most people's, but I thought there was quite a bit of rape in the first few books that McCaffrey excused by trying to make it seem like "forced seduction" instead. I know that's how most sex scenes were written back then, but I wouldn't knowingly expose a young person of my acquaintance to Dragonflight or Dragonquest. I also thought there was a lot of sex in the books, and some people have even objected to Dragondrums because of its sexual content (although it is toned down from McCaffrey's adult books). And while I'm not homophobic, I know a lot of people were shocked when they realized that (male) green and blue dragonriders are almost all gay or bisexual. I probably wouldn't encourage my younger siblings and cousins to read the Pern books because their parents might get upset with me, but when I have my own children, I'll have them go into the series informed or maybe even read it with them and discuss the elements they might find upsetting.

Speaking of inapproriate books shelved in YA, I finished Sunshine and if my library had it shelved in YA, I'd be ranting to them about it now. It is clearly an adult book and should not be shelved in the YA area. It's very explicit in language, gore, and sex and not intended for young readers. I wasn't offended by the book, but I didn't like it much. I expected a whole lot better from McKinley and I'm very disappointed now. It also ended abruptly, IMO, and she says she probably will never write a sequel. I felt she wasted too many pages on the main character's whining and worrying, when she could have been expanding her interesting world and clearing up some of the mysteries she left hanging at the end. [img]smilies/mad.gif[/img]

[ 11-24-2003: Message edited Soz ]

[evaki]

Hi all [img]smilies/wave.gif[/img]

Sounds like an interesting discussion, unfortunately I have nothing to add as I have never read any AM. I'll be certain to put it on my list to check out in the future. I just jumped in to say I went a got my first Robin McKinley tonight. I checked the original publication dates inside the covers of The Blue Sword and The Hero and the Crown. BS was 1982 and THATC was 1984, but THATC is a prequel to BS. In the end the best order seemed to be the one the author wrote them in. I hope to get a little down time this holiday weekend (US Thanksgiving, for those of you not in the states) to spend with BS. Wish me luck, I'll let you know what I think.

[ 11-24-2003: Message edited evaki ]

[Rachel]

I couldn't get very far into Sunshine, and I'll probably return it to the library before reading it. I skimmed through a lot of it, though. I only saw one explicit sex scene, and it wasn't exactly sex. [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img]
--Rachel

[jjt]

Sunshine by Robin McKinley. it reminded me too much of Buffy and Laurell K. Hamilton's books.

Soz, I remember reading your post on this book a while back .. for some reason didn't realize it was vamp related. Sorry to hear it wasn't up to snuff.