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For some reason my internet music thingy is playing me Will Young. And it’s good. Sounds rather like the first Maroon 5 album. The good one, with the blocky red cover. As opposed to the second one, that was crap. The track’s called Cry, anyway. I am enjoying a Will Young song. Wonders never cease.
Been reading. Terrific book, actually. It’s called Temeraire, by somebody called Naomi Novik, and it’s about a Naval captain who has to leave the sea to go to join Britain’s aerial corps during the Napoleonic Wars. Yes, I did say aerial corps. They don’t fly planes, though; they fly dragons. It’s such a great idea. The historical detail is terrific, and the battles are written pretty well. She’s done her research right enough (although apparently she has slipped up once or twice, but I’m not well up enough on military history to know the more arcane details, so I’d never have known if I hadn’t been told. So chances are it won’t bother most people). Through all this historical detail and authentic early nineteenth century colour, though, it’s all based on the central conceit that the world is full of dragons. They’re at least as intelligent as humans - more so in some cases, depending on breed - and they have their own squadrons, and fly manoeuvres. It’s really cool. There’s three sequels already, apparently, and I’m going to have to get them now, as I’m really sold on this. A few years ago I read the utterly brilliant Jonathon Strange And Mr Norrell, which had Wellington and co using magic to help in the fight against Napoleon’s forces, and now here we have dragons. Fantastic! I spent altogether too much time studying the nineteenth century at school, and I don’t remember a single sorcerer or dragon, which is a damned shame. Goodness knows it would have improved many a lesson on the agrarian revolution, or the invention of mechanical looms.
Good characters - though the hero is horribly stiff and proper at times, and needs a good punch. Good support cast, too. The dragons are as individual in character as the humans, and very likeable. Their habit of attaching themselves to a particular human is rather endearing, and makes for lots of close knit little units of man or woman plus dragon, that are practically marriages. This does make the battle scenes hard to read at times, though. We’re told time and time again - shown time and time again, for that matter - that the humans and the dragons are devoted to each other; that the dragons are fully sapient, and the equal of men; that they love each other and mourn each other like human companions. And then there’s a battle, and the dragons are suffering horrible injuries, so you can feel the pain of their respective humans, who have to stand by and see it happen. It’s more effective than many stories of soldiers seeing their comrades wounded and killed because it really does play on love rather than "mere" comradeship. The bond between each person and their respective dragon is incredibly strong. Actually, rather amusingly strong in places. If the planned film goes ahead, and it keeps the spirit of the book, I can already imagine the slashfic. :D Our hero, Will Laurence, even throws himself into his dragon’s arms at one point, and constantly refers to him as "my dear." Captain Jack would surely approve. ;)
I really enjoyed this book, anyway. I must get hold of the sequels as soon as possible. I heartily recommend it, and if it is going to be filmed - Peter Jackson has been tagged as producer, which I can’t say that I’m wildly happy about, but hey ho; and the provisional release date is next year - then read it now. No film will properly capture the essential nineteenth centuryness of the text, after all, and it's all so well written. It deserves to be read, not just watched. It’s not as good as Jonathon Strange And Mr Norrell, but it’s more than good enough to be going on with - and dragons swooping majestically in the skies above Britain is a lovely image, and one that deserves to be encouraged. I like dragons. Dragons are good. And so’s this book.
Been reading. Terrific book, actually. It’s called Temeraire, by somebody called Naomi Novik, and it’s about a Naval captain who has to leave the sea to go to join Britain’s aerial corps during the Napoleonic Wars. Yes, I did say aerial corps. They don’t fly planes, though; they fly dragons. It’s such a great idea. The historical detail is terrific, and the battles are written pretty well. She’s done her research right enough (although apparently she has slipped up once or twice, but I’m not well up enough on military history to know the more arcane details, so I’d never have known if I hadn’t been told. So chances are it won’t bother most people). Through all this historical detail and authentic early nineteenth century colour, though, it’s all based on the central conceit that the world is full of dragons. They’re at least as intelligent as humans - more so in some cases, depending on breed - and they have their own squadrons, and fly manoeuvres. It’s really cool. There’s three sequels already, apparently, and I’m going to have to get them now, as I’m really sold on this. A few years ago I read the utterly brilliant Jonathon Strange And Mr Norrell, which had Wellington and co using magic to help in the fight against Napoleon’s forces, and now here we have dragons. Fantastic! I spent altogether too much time studying the nineteenth century at school, and I don’t remember a single sorcerer or dragon, which is a damned shame. Goodness knows it would have improved many a lesson on the agrarian revolution, or the invention of mechanical looms.
Good characters - though the hero is horribly stiff and proper at times, and needs a good punch. Good support cast, too. The dragons are as individual in character as the humans, and very likeable. Their habit of attaching themselves to a particular human is rather endearing, and makes for lots of close knit little units of man or woman plus dragon, that are practically marriages. This does make the battle scenes hard to read at times, though. We’re told time and time again - shown time and time again, for that matter - that the humans and the dragons are devoted to each other; that the dragons are fully sapient, and the equal of men; that they love each other and mourn each other like human companions. And then there’s a battle, and the dragons are suffering horrible injuries, so you can feel the pain of their respective humans, who have to stand by and see it happen. It’s more effective than many stories of soldiers seeing their comrades wounded and killed because it really does play on love rather than "mere" comradeship. The bond between each person and their respective dragon is incredibly strong. Actually, rather amusingly strong in places. If the planned film goes ahead, and it keeps the spirit of the book, I can already imagine the slashfic. :D Our hero, Will Laurence, even throws himself into his dragon’s arms at one point, and constantly refers to him as "my dear." Captain Jack would surely approve. ;)
I really enjoyed this book, anyway. I must get hold of the sequels as soon as possible. I heartily recommend it, and if it is going to be filmed - Peter Jackson has been tagged as producer, which I can’t say that I’m wildly happy about, but hey ho; and the provisional release date is next year - then read it now. No film will properly capture the essential nineteenth centuryness of the text, after all, and it's all so well written. It deserves to be read, not just watched. It’s not as good as Jonathon Strange And Mr Norrell, but it’s more than good enough to be going on with - and dragons swooping majestically in the skies above Britain is a lovely image, and one that deserves to be encouraged. I like dragons. Dragons are good. And so’s this book.