mmusante's books from LibraryThing

The Books of Great Alta: Comprising 'Sister Light, Sister Dark' and 'White Jenna' (Books of Great Alta) by Jane Yolen

Mon, 07 Jul 2008 09:47:38 -0400

mmusante's review: "It seems like I'm hitting a lot of books that have a new take on the 'Wizard's familiar' concept. His Dark Materials had daemons for everyone, and it was done in a very cool way. In the world of Great Alta that Jane Yolen created, there is a group of women who have figured out how to gain a familiar even when the rest of the population have not. It's an interesting take on the idea (if I may explore it for just a few sentences here). The link seems to be mostly one-way, from the main character to her 'dark sister'. We kind of learn about how it works through the eyes of Jenna, our protagonist. Her dark twin (Skada) has to teach her how things work, and even still Jenna is not nearly aware of Skada's thoughts and feelings. Conversely, everything Jenna experiences, even when her twin is not present, Skada automatically knows. It's a curious relationship. As a book (or a pair of short books, actually), the story is unevenly told. We start off learning about the sisterhood, and Jenna's role as the heroine. She's confined to her little village along with her peers and then, fairly suddenly when she comes of age, she's tossed out into the outside world to fend for herself. Unfortunately, it's handled in a way that it's hard to *care* about this new outside world. So much detail and attention is given to the insular world of the sisterhood that, once the story opens up, it's as if we're reading a separate book. And this is before we've reached the second book of the combined novel. Jenna finds one person to care about, and so we can care indirectly that way, but the politics of the kingdom in which she finds herself are ill-defined and reach only the level of caricature. On the plus side, the books have a world-building aspect that is interesting: poems, myths, and legends are presented to us, and then the story is told that underlies those three elements. I found that aspect of it very well done. The relationship between Jenna and Pynt, one of the girls that Jenna grew up with, is also handled very well and was one of the more enjoyable aspects of the books. The story of how the sisterhood came to be, and Jenna's role within it, was far more interesting than the mustache-twirling villain she ends up fighting against."
Orb Books (1997), Paperback, 448 pages

His Dark Materials Trilogy: "Northern Lights" WITH "The Subtle Knife" AND "The Amber Spyglass" (His Dark Materials) by Pullman; Philip

Fri, 07 Dec 2007 15:20:29 -0500

Scholastic UK (2007), Edition: reissue, Hardcover, 1024 pages

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Book 2) by J. K. Rowling

Fri, 02 Nov 2007 07:27:13 -0400

Bloomsbury Publishing Plc (1999), Paperback, 256 pages

The Grass Is Singing (Paladin Books) by Doris Lessing

Fri, 02 Nov 2007 07:26:47 -0400

Flamingo (1989), Paperback, 208 pages

The Dark Is Rising Sequence (Dark Is Rising) by Susan Cooper

Thu, 11 Oct 2007 15:27:31 -0400

Bodley Head Children's Books (2007), Hardcover, 752 pages

Beguilement (The Sharing Knife, Book 1) by Lois Mcmaster Bujold

Tue, 02 Oct 2007 23:23:12 -0400

Eos (2007), Mass Market Paperback, 384 pages

Diaries 1969-1979: The Python Years by Michael Palin

Tue, 02 Oct 2007 23:22:40 -0400

Thomas Dunne Books (2007), Hardcover, 672 pages

The Algebraist by Iain M. Banks

Wed, 12 Sep 2007 11:27:00 -0400

Orbit (2004), Hardcover, 544 pages

Stardust by Neil Gaiman

Thu, 16 Aug 2007 06:24:38 -0400

Harper Perennial (2006), Paperback, 250 pages

More Than Complete Hitchhiker's Guide: Complete & Unabridged by Douglas Adams

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 21:32:38 -0400

Longmeadow Press (1987), Hardcover, 624 pages

After the King: Stories in Honor of J.R.R. Tolkien

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 21:31:32 -0400

Tor Books (1993), Paperback, 448 pages

Life With Unix: A Guide for Everyone by Don Libes, Sandy Ressler

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 21:31:23 -0400

Prentice Hall (1989), Paperback, 346 pages

Compilers: Principles, Techniques, and Tools by Alfred V. Aho, Ravi Sethi, Jeffrey D. Ullman

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 21:31:10 -0400

Addison Wesley (1986), Hardcover, 796 pages

C++ Programmer's Handbook, The by Paul J. Lucas

Mon, 23 Jul 2007 21:30:59 -0400

Prentice Hall PTR (1992), Paperback, 128 pages

TRIANGLE (Star Trek (Numbered Paperback)) by Sondra Marshak, Myrna Culbreath

Sun, 22 Jul 2007 15:58:51 -0400

Star Trek (1983), Paperback

To Dream in the City of Sorrows (Babylon 5, Book 9) by Kathryn M. Drennan

Sun, 22 Jul 2007 15:58:41 -0400

Dell (1997), Paperback, 337 pages

Robots of Dawn (Robot City) by Isaac Asimov

Sun, 22 Jul 2007 15:58:20 -0400

Del Rey (1984), Mass Market Paperback

True Names...and Other Dangers by Vinge

Sun, 22 Jul 2007 15:58:09 -0400

baen (1987), Paperback

A Good Day to Die (Star Trek: I.K.S. Gorkon, Book 1) by Keith R.A. DeCandido

Sun, 22 Jul 2007 15:57:58 -0400

Star Trek (2003), Mass Market Paperback, 290 pages

Honor Bound (Star Trek: I.K.S. Gorkon, Book 2) by Keith R.A. DeCandido

Sun, 22 Jul 2007 15:57:45 -0400

Star Trek (2003), Mass Market Paperback, 288 pages