"You are here to be swallowed up"

[eldritchhobbit]

Here's the promotional blurb from the oh-so-soon to be released The Intersection of Fantasy and Native America, From H.P. Lovecraft to Leslie Marmon Silko, which I co-edited, and which includes my former Mythcon Scholar Guest of Honor keynote speech (with its call for further cross-disciplinary study) as the opening chapter:

A number of contemporary Native American authors incorporate elements of fantasy into their fiction, while a number of non-Native fantasy authors incorporate elements of Native America into their storytelling. New insights can be gained by comparing fantasy texts by Native and non-Native authors. Nevertheless, few experts on fantasy study American Indian texts, and few experts on Native American studies consider the subject of fantasy. Editors David D. Oberhelman and Amy H. Sturgis have assembled an international, multi-ethnic, and cross-disciplinary group of scholars to consider the meaningful and extraordinary ways in which fantasy and Native America intersect. These scholars examine classic texts by American Indian authors such as Louise Erdrich, Gerald Vizenor, and Leslie Marmon Silko, as well as non-Native fantasists such as H.P. Lovecraft, J.R.R. Tolkien, and J.K. Rowling, among others. In so doing, these essayists pioneer new ways of thinking about fantasy and Native America, and challenge other academics, writers, and lovers of literature to do the same.

I'm incredibly pleased with the excellent essays we received, and I can't wait to share them with readers when this volume is published. It won't be long now! It's a matter of mere weeks.


* In other news, I've updated two of my lists on young adult dystopias. Again! Here they are, FYI:


Young Adult Dystopias

1950s
Star Man's Son, 2250 A.D. (a.k.a. Daybreak, 2250 A.D.) by Andre Norton (1952) [O]
Vault of the Ages by Poul Anderson (1952) [O] [R]
The Future Took Us by David Severn (1958) [O]

1960s
The Time Quintet by Madeleine L'Engle (1962-1989) (original trilogy: dystopian elements) [O] [R]
The City Underground (a.k.a. Surreal 3000) by Suzanne Martel (1963)
The Changes Trilogy by Peter Dickinson (1968-1970) [O]
The Tripods Series by Samuel Youd (as John Christopher) (1968-1988) [O]
The Day of the Drones by A.M. Lightner (1969)

1970s
The Sword of the Spirits Trilogy by Samuel Youd (as John Christopher) (1970-1972) [O]
Andra by Louise Lawrence (1971)
The Far Side of Evil by Sylvia Engdahl (1971, revised edition 2003) [O]
The Guardians by Samuel Youd (as John Christopher) (1971) [O]
Out There by Adrien Stoutenburg (1971)
Sleep Two, Three, Four! A Political Thriller by John Neufeld (1971)
The Morrow Duology by H.M. Hoover (1973, 1976)
House of Stairs by William Sleator (1974) [O]
Outside by Andre Norton (1974)
The Pale Invaders by G.R. Crosher (as G.R. Kestavan) (1974)
Wild Jack by by Samuel Youd (as John Christopher) (1974) [O]
The Girl Who Owned a City by O.T. Nelson (1975) [O]
No Night Without Stars by Andre Norton (1975) [O]
Noah's Castle by John Rowe Townsend (1975)
Ransome Revisited and The Travelling Man by Elisabeth Mace (1975, 1976)
Z for Zachariah by Robert C. O'Brien (1975) [O]
City of Darkness by Ben Bova (1976)
The Missing Person's League by Frank Bonham (1976) [O] [R]
No Man's Land by Simon Watson (1976) [O]
The Delikon by H.M. Hoover (1977)
Empty World by Samuel Youd (as John Christopher) (1977) [O]
I Am The Cheese by Robert Cormier (1977) [O]
The Ennead by Jan Mark (1978) [O]
The Justice Trilogy by Virginia Hamilton (1978-1981)
Keep Calm (a.k.a. When the City Stopped) by Joan Phipson (1978)
The Tomorrow City by Monica Hughes (1978)
A Quest for Orion and Tower of the Stars by Rosemary Harris (1978, 1980)
The Awakening Water by G.R. Crosher (as G.R. Kesteven) (1979)
Beyond the Dark River by Monica Hughes (1979)
Dark Wing by Carl West and Katherine MacLean (1979)

1980s
The Creatures (a.k.a. King Creature, Come) by John Rowe Townsend (1980)
A Rag, A Bone, and Hank of Hair by Nicholas Fisk (1980) [O]
Red Zone by Tom Browne (1980)
This Time of Darkness by H.M. Hoover (1980) [O]
The Green Book by Jill Paton Walsh (1981) [O]
The S.I.L.V.E.R. Series by Tanith Lee (1981, 2005) [O 1st]
The Voyage Begun by Nancy Bond (1981) [O]
The Vandal by Ann Schlee (1981) [O]
An Alien Music by Annabel and Edgar Johnson (1982)
The DNA Dimension, Fusion Factor (also published as It's Up to Us), Zanu, and Me, Myself & I by Carol Matas (1982, 1986, 1987)
The Huntsman Trilogy by Douglas Hill (1982-1984) [O 1st]
The Last Children of Schewenborn (also spelled Schevenborn) by Gudrun Pausewang (1983) [O]
Waiting for the End of the World by Lee Harding (1983)
After the Bomb and Week One by Gloria Miklowitz (1984, 1987) [O]
Brother in the Land by Robert Swindells (1984) [O]
The Colsec Series by Douglas Hill (1984-1985)
The Danger Quotient by Annabel and Edgar Johnson (1984)
The Devil on My Back and The Dream Catcher by Monica Hughes (1984, 1986) [O 1st]
Futuretrack 5 by Robert Westall (1984) [O]
Guardians of Time by Peter Baltensperger (1984)
The Shepherd Moon by H.M. Hoover (1984)
Beyond the Future by Johanne Masse (1985)
Children of the Dust by Louise Lawrence (1985)
Earthchange by Clare Cooper (1985)
Quest Beyond Time by Tony Morphett (1985)
Strange Tomorrow by Jean E. Karl (1985)
The Time Keeper Trilogy by Barbara Bartholomew (1985) [O 1st]
The Winter Trilogy by Pamela F. Service (1985-2008) [O 1st]
Wolf of Shadows by Whitley Strieber (1985) [O]
The Keeper by Barry Faville (1986)
The Others by Alison Prince (1986)
Taronga by Victor Kelleher (1986) [O]
The Fire Brats Series by Barbara Siegel, Scott Siegel, and Barbara Steiner (1987-1988)
The Makers by Victor Kelleher (1987)
Orvis (a.k.a. Journey Through the Empty) by H.M. Hoover (1987)
The Paperchaser and The Catalyst by Penny Hall (1987, 1989)
The Sword and the Dream Duology by Janice Elliott (1987, 1988)
The Obernewtyn Chronicles by Isobelle Carmody (1987-2008, ongoing) [O 1st]
Cityscape by Frances Thomas (1988)
Escape to the Overworld by Nicole Luiken (1988)
Eva by Peter Dickinson (1988)
The Lake at the End of the World by Caroline Macdonald (1988)
Children of Time by Deborah Moulton (1989)
The Glimpses by Laurence Staig (1989)
I Feel Like the Morning Star by Gregory Maguire (1989) [O]
The Last War by Martyn Godfrey (1989)
Plague 99 (a.k.a. Plague) and Come Lucky April (a.k.a. After the Plague) by Jean Ure (1989, 1992) [O 1st]
Why Weeps the Brogan? by Hugh Scott (1989)

1990s
Invitation to the Game by Monica Hughes (1990) [O]
Smart Rats by Thomas Baird (1990) [O]
The Survival Squad by Floyd Priddle (1990)
A Time of Darkness by Sherryl Jordan (1990)
The Eye Witness by Caroline Macdonald (1991)
The Crystal Drop by Monica Hughes (1992)
The Dark Future Series by Laurence James (1992)
Dead Water Zone by Kenneth Oppel (1992)
Future Thaw by Audrey O'Hearn (1992)
River Rats by Caroline Stevermer (1992) [O]
The Baby and the Fly Pie by Melvin Burgess (1993)
Guardian of the Dark by Beverley Spencer (1993)
The Giver Trilogy by Lois Lowry (1993-2004) [O] [R]
The Last Oasis by Sue Pace (1993) [O]
Winter of Fire by Sherryl Jordan (1993)
The Disinherited (a.k.a. The Patchwork People) by Louise Lawrence (1994)
The Electric Kid by Garry Kilworth (1994)
The Parkland Series by Victor Kelleher (1994-1996)
Time Ghost by Welwyn Wilton Katz (1994)
The Tomorrow Series by John Marsden (1994-1999) and The Ellie Chronicles (2003-2006) [O] [R]
The His Dark Materials Trilogy by Philip Pullman (1995-2000) (dystopian elements) [O] [R 1st, 2nd]
Fall-Out by Gudrun Pausewang (1995)
Foundling (a.k.a. Found) by June Oldham (1995) [O]
Galax-Arena and Terra-Farma by Gillian Rubenstein (1995, 2001) [O 1st]
Waterbound by Jane Stemp (1995)
Into the Forest by Jean Hegland (1996) [O] [R]
Cave Rats by Kerry Greenwood (1997)
The Scavenger's Tale by Rachel Anderson (1997) [O]
Shade's Children by Garth Nix (1997) [O]
The Virtual War Chronologs by Gloria Skurzynski (1997-2006)
The Ark Trilogy by Stephanie S. Tolan (1998-ongoing) [O 1st]
Evan's Voice by Sallie Lowenstein (1998)
Forbidden Memories by Jamila Gavin (1998)
Off the Road by Nina Bawden (1998) [O]
Originator by Claire Carmichael (1998)
The Shadow Children Sequence by Margaret Peterson Haddix (1998-2006) [O] [R 1st]
Bloodtide and Bloodsong by Melvin Burgess (1999, 2005) [O 1st]
Cloning Miranda, The Second Clone, and The Dark Clone by Carol Matas (1999, 2001, 2005)
The Copper Elephant by Adam Rapp (1999)
The Copper Elephant by Adam Rapp (1999)
The Cure by Sonia Levitin (1999) [O]
Fabricant by Claire Carmichael (1999)
The Hermit Thrush Sings by Susan Butler (1999)
Star Split by Kathryn Lasky (1999) [O]

Contemporary
Floodland by Marcus Sedgwick (2000) [O] [R]
The Heaven and Earth Trilogy by Richard Harland (2000-2003) [O 1st]
Incognito by Claire Carmichael (2000)
The Last Book in the Universe by Rodman Philbrick (2000) [O]
Songs of Power by Hilari Bell (2000)
The White Fox Chronicles by Gary Paulsen (2000)
Hole in the Sky by Pete Hautman (2001)
Memory Boy by Will Weaver (2001) [O]
Mortal Engines Quartet and prequel (a.k.a. The Hungry City Chronicles) by Philip Reeve (2001-2006, 2009) [O 1st]
The Noughts and Crosses Series by Malorie Blackman (2001-2008)
The Remnants Series by K.A. Applegate (2001-2003)
Violet Eyes and Silver Eyes (sequel Angel Eyes pending) by Nicole Luiken (2001)
The Wintering Trilogy by Stephen Bowkett (2001-2002) [O 1st]
Bootleg by Alex Shearer (2002)
Feed by M.T. Anderson (2002) [O] [R]
The Fire-Us Trilogy by Jennifer Armstrong and Nancy Butcher (2002-2003) [O 1st]
Green Boy by Susan Cooper (2002)
The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer (2002) [O] [R]
The Books of Ember by Jeanne Duprau (2003-2008, ongoing) [O 1st] [R 1st]
The Dirt Eaters by Dennis Foon (2003)
The Lionboy Trilogy by Zizou Corder (2003-2006)
The Silver Sequence by Cliff McNish (2003-2005)
The Bar Code Tattoo by Suzanne Weyn (2004) [O]
The Big Empty Series by J.B. Stephens (2004-2005)
Bringing Reuben Home by Glenda Millard (2004)
Epic and Saga by Conor Kostick (2004, 2006)
How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff (2004) [O] [R]
The Pack by Tom Pow (2004)
Sharp North and Blown Away by Patrick Cave (2004, 2005) [O]
The Supernaturalist by Eoin Colfer (2004) [O] [R]
Thinner Than Thou by Kit Reed (2004)
The Truesight Trilogy by David Stahler, Jr. (2004-2007) [O 1st]
Useful Idiots by Jan Mark (2004) [O]
The Destiny of Linus Hoppe and The Second Life of Linus Hoppe by Anne-Laure Bondoux (2005)
The Diary of Pelly D and Cherry Heaven by L.J. Adlington (2005, 2007) [O 1st]
The Goodness Gene by Sonia Levitin (2005) [O]
Hunted by Alex Shearer (2005) [O]
Maddigan's Fantasia by Margaret Mahy (2005)
Pure by Karen Krossing (2005)
Surviving Antarctica: Reality TV 2083 by Andrea White (2005) [O] [R]
The Secret Under My Skin and The Raintree Rebellion by Janet McNaughton (2005, 2006) [O 1st]
Siberia by Ann Halam (2005)
Stolen Voices by Ellen Dee Davidson (2005) [O]
The Traces Series by Malcolm Rose (2005-2o08, ongoing) [O 1st]
The Uglies Series by Scott Westerfeld (2005-2007) [O 1st] [R 1st]
GemX by Nicky Singer (2006) [O]
Ads R Us (a.k.a. Leaving Simplicity) by Claire Carmichael (2006) [O]
The Caretaker Trilogy by David Klass (2006, 2008, ongoing)
Life As We Knew It, The Dead and the Gone, and This World We Live In by Susan Beth Pfeffer (2006, 2008, 2010) [O 1st] [R 1st]
Rash by Pete Hautman (2006) [O]
The Six of Hearts Series by Jack Heath (2006-ongoing)
The Declaration and The Resistance by Gemma Malley (2007, 2008) [O] [R 1st]
Escape from Genopolis and Fearless by T.E. Berry-Hart (2007, 2009)
Fearless by Tim Lott (2007) [O]
First Light by Rebecca Stead (2007)
Hybrids by David Thorpe (2007)
Incarceron by Catherine Fisher (2007) [O]
The Inferior by Peadar ó Guilín (2007) [O] [R]
The Rule of Claw by John Brindley (2007) [O]
The Silenced by James DeVita (2007) [O]
Silverhorse by Lene Kaaberbøl (2007)
Tug of War by Catherine Forde (2007)
Unwind by Neal Shusterman (2007) [O]
The Witness by James Jauncey (2007)
The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary Pearson (2008) [O] [R]
Bad Faith by Gillian Philip (2008) [O] [R]
The Carbon Diaries 2015 and The Carbon Diaries 2017 by Saci Lloyd (2008, 2009 forthcoming)
The Cure by Michael Coleman (2008)
The Compound by S.A. Bodeen (2008) [O] [R]
Daylight Runner by Oisín McGann (2008)
Exodus, Zenith, and Aurora by Julie Bertagna (2008, 2009, third book pending) [O 1st]
Gone and Hunger by Michael Grant (2008, 2009) [O 1st]
The Grassland Trilogy by David Ward (2008-ongoing) [O 1st]
The Hunger Games and Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins (2008, 2009) [O] [R 1st]
In the Company of Whispers by Sallie Lowenstein (2008)
The Knife of Never Letting Go: Chaos Walking, Book One and The Ask and the Answer: Chaos Walking, Book Two by Patrick Ness (2008, 2009) [O 1st]
The Last Free Cat by Jon Blake (2008)
Little Brother by Cory Doctorow (2008) [O] [R]
The Lost Art by Simon Morden (2008)
Neptune's Children by Bonnie Dobkin (2008) [O] [R]
The Other Side of the Island by Allegra Goodman (2008) [O]
Shift by Charlotte Agell (2008) [O]
The Sky Inside and The Walls Have Eyes by Clare B. Dunkle (2008, 2009) [R 1st]
Truancy and Truancy: Origins by Isamu Fukui (2008, 2009)
Bones of Faerie by Janni Lee Simner (2009) [O] [R]
Candor by Pam Bachorz (2009)
The Enemy by Charlie Higson (2009)
The Forest of Hands and Teeth and The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan (2009, 2010 forthcoming) [O 1st] [R 1st]
Furnace: Lockdown and Furnace: Solitary by Alexander Gordon Smith (2009)
Genesis by Bernard Beckett (2009) [O]
Last Midnight by Parker Peevyhouse (forthcoming in 2009)
Libyrinth by Pearl North (2009) [O]
Lifegame by Alison Allen-Gray (2009)
The Maze Runner by James Dashner (2009)
Dark Life by Kat Falls (forthcoming in 2010)

Note:
Books translated into English are listed by the original date published.

Note to self:
[O] = Own
[R] = Read (or Re-read) Recently




Ahtezak, Janice. "The Visions of H.M. Hoover." Children's Literature Association Quarterly. 10 (1985): 73-76.

Applebaum, Noga. Representations of Technology in Science Fiction for Young People: Control Shift. New York: Routledge, 2009. (forthcoming)

Braithewaite, Elizabeth. "'When I Was a Child I Thought as a Child…': The Importance of Memory in Constructions of Childhood and Social Order in a Selection of Post-Disaster Fictions." Papers: Explorations into Children's Literature. 15:2 (September 2005): 50 (8).

Brians, Paul. "Nuclear War Fiction for Young Readers: A Commentary and Annotated Bibliography." Science Fiction, Social Conflict and War. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1990. 132-150.

Butts, Dennis. "The Adventure Story." Stories and Society: Children's Literature in Its Social Context. Dennis Butts, ed. New York: St. Martin's, 1992. 65-83.

Crew, Hilary S. "Not So Brave a World: The Representation of Human Cloning in Science Fiction for Young Adults." The Lion and the Unicorn. 28 (2004) 203-221.

Deane, Paul. "Science and Technology in the Children's Fiction Series." Lamar Journal of the Humanities. 16:1. (1990): 20-32.

Esmonde, Margaret. "After Armageddon: The Post Cataclysmic Novel for Young Readers." Children's Literature: The Annual of the Modern Language Association Group on Children's Literature and the Children's Literature Association. Philadelphia: 1977. 211-220.

Hintz, Carrie. "Monica Hughes, Lois Lowry, and Young Adult Dystopias." The Lion and the Unicorn. 26 (2002) 254-264.

Hintz, Carrie and Elaine Ostry, eds. Utopian and Dystopian Writing Children and Young Adults. New York: Routledge, 2003.

James, Kathryn. Death, Gender and Sexuality in Contemporary Adolescent Culture. New York: Routledge, 2009.

Kennan, Patricia. "'Belonging' in Young Adult Dystopian Fiction: New Communities Created by Children." Papers: Explorations into Children's Literature. 15:2 (September 2005) 40(10).

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Mendlesohn, Farah. "The Campaign for Shiny Futures." The Horn Book Magazine. (March/April 2009) Online here.

___. The Inter-Galactic Playground: A Critical Study of Children's and Teens' Science Fiction. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Co., 2009.

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Information on the Millennial Generation - USA

The Gallup Student Poll National Report - 2009
Dr. Shane J. Lopez, Senior Scientist in Residence

"Millennial Students: What Do We Know and What Does It Mean for Admissions?" - 2007
2007 College Board National Forum
Richard A. Hessel and John H. Pryor

"A Snapshot of American High Four Decades: "A Snapshot of American High Schoolers Across Four Decades: 1976; 1985; 1994; 2001" - 2006
Connie Flanagan and D. Wayne Osgood
The Network on Transitions to Adulthood Analysis of Monitoring the Future Data

"The Generation Gap Revisited" - 2004
Tom W. Smith
The Network on Transitions to Adulthood
"Generation Gaps in Attitudes and Values from the 1970s to the 1990s."




* And speaking of young adult dystopias, the blog of Gillian Philip, the author of one of my favorite recent YA dystopias, Bad Faith (2008), is now available via LJ here: gillianphilip.


"Life will break you. Nobody can protect you from that, and living alone won't either, for solitude will also break you with its yearning. You have to love. You have to feel. It is the reason you are here on earth. You are here to risk your heart. You are here to be swallowed up. And when it happens that you are broken, or betrayed, or left, or hurt, or death brushes near, let yourself sit by an apple tree and listen to the apples falling all around you in heaps, wasting their sweetness. Tell yourself you tasted as many as you could."
— Louise Erdrich, The Painted Drum: A Novel

Comments

[estellye.livejournal.com]

Wonderful news about the book! I'm looking forward to it. The blurb is excellent.

I LOVE that quote!

[peadarog.livejournal.com]

Yes, and the part you took as a title for your post was really striking too. Congrats on your forthcoming book :)

[eldritchhobbit.livejournal.com]

Yes, and the part you took as a title for your post was really striking too.

Ha! And then you discovered Cthulhu and the Elder Gods weren't even mentioned once in the whole post. What false advertising! :)

Thanks so much for the kind congrats.

[eldritchhobbit.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much! I really appreciate it. :) This one means a very great deal to me.

I actually thought of you when I picked that quote. It reminded me of the wise things that you say!

[groovekittie.livejournal.com]

Ooh, I can't wait to see that collection you edited! Sounds fascinating! I've always been curious to read Native America in fantasy since I see a lot of potential in it, but at the same time, I'm always so wary of it since it's religion y'know? I'm more respectful of it as religion in fantasy than I am of Christianity or other European originated religions in fantasy. Horrible of me, but it's closer to me, I suppose. Even though I'm fairly agnostic. lol I just keep getting images of my kohkom yelling at me ... and she was Catholic! My Grandma was traditional though. She was Mohawk though.

I'm not making sense, am I? lol Sorry. I'm just making statements with the assumption that you know my history. :P I'll shut up now. :")

PS ... love your new site! I see you went with Wordpress! Did it give you any problems? I just added some new plugins to my sites! I even have favicons now! :D :D :D Email me if you have any questions! :D Maybe I can help you out.

[eldritchhobbit.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much for your kind words about the new book! What really gets me is that great contemporary fiction that a broad cross-section of literature lovers would adore often gets shelved only in the "Native American Lit" sections of bookstores and libraries, or studied only by Native American studies scholars -- pigeonholed, in other words -- because the author is Native American, when these works also deserve to be read by a wide audience and studied by a wide range of academics from a variety of directions. So I hope this will serve as a step in the right direction.

I understand what you mean about showing the proper respect toward the religious beliefs underlying these works; I hope you'll find we struck the right tone. I think works can be analyzed on a number of different levels: much as The Chronicles of Narnia can be analyzed as a children's fantasy, even though we know C.S. Lewis believed in the God he intended Aslan to represent, I think readers can consider, say, Drew Hayden Taylor's The Night Wanderer as a serious contribution to the global tradition of vampire literature, without discounting or being disrespectful of the serious Anishinabe context that Taylor gives the story. Does that make any sense?

I'm also excited to see scholars comparing similar story elements in classic works by Native and European authors (say, quest in the books of Silko and Tolkien, for example) not only because it gives us new insights into these story elements, but also because it may encourage readers of one of the authors to sample works by the other one, as well. That's my hope, anyway! I think everyone should read Tolkien - and Silko, too! LOL.

Thank you so much for your kind words about my site! I ended up liking WordPress, perhaps mostly because I bought the Thesis theme, which comes with a huge community that provides incredibly helpful technical assistance. The times I had questions or problems, I got help almost immediately. So that was lovely, since it was a steep learning curve for me. (And it continues to be; I intend to keep adding and improving things as I learn more. And that means I may very well take you up on your kind offer of helping me with questions! Thank you! *g*) Go you and your plugins!

[groovekittie.livejournal.com]

Oh man, you always say what I'm thinking, but it sounds so much SMARTER! lol That's why you're the prof and I'm the ... well, I'm the one standing over here in awe. lol

Y'know I'd heard of The Night Wanderer and I meant to pick it up! Have you read it yet? Is it any good? I've read a few of Hayden's other books (he's such an arrogant ass in real life from what my sister says lol), and he always makes me laugh, I'm curious to know what this book would be like.

Another type of fantasy/horror story that would be amazing to read would be the story of the wintigo. In the Cree stories, he is a flesh eater who is all-powerful. The only way to kill him is to cut his head off. But it's super touchy because, again, it's a religious thing. Not just a ghost story. You can't even tell the story at certain times of the year. My sister was doing a documentary on it ... don't know if she finished it though.

And yay for WP! I am loving it the more I use it. I was using Drupal before, and as much as I loved it for certain things, I'm really enjoying WP now. Actually, Drupal was way easier to customize, but WP is way easier to manage. Like waaaaaaaaay easier. lol It's like made for lazy people/beginners. People like me (lazy people) and you (beginners)! :D

[eldritchhobbit.livejournal.com]

I beg to differ: you sound plenty smart to me! :)

I really liked The Night Wanderer; in fact, I've chosen it as one of several novels my students can pick for their final reading in my forthcoming Fall 2009 class on History and the Gothic Imagination. I thought it handled the subject of identity well, especially in the "coming of age" context of the book, and I thought it balanced specific contemporary issues and sweeping historical perspective very nicely. I'd love to hear what you think. It's a shame the author isn't more likeable!

I would love, love, love to know more about your sister's documentary. Seriously!!! That sounds fascinating.

I'm glad to hear you're liking WP more than Drupal (which was another of the ones I was seriously considering). I definitely need something beginner-friendly. I swear, some of the content management systems I looked into had descriptions I couldn't even follow; it was like I needed a Beginner's Guide to the Beginner's Guide. LOL!

[groovekittie.livejournal.com]

I wish I knew how it was going! lol I'll ask and let you know.

I'll check out that book! Thanks!

[eldritchhobbit.livejournal.com]

Thanks! :)

Hey, may I ask you a favicons question? Does creating favicons interrupt your use of icons in LJ in any way? Or are the two totally separate things? I'd like to have a regular icon when I comment on my non-LJ friend's posts on other platforms, but I don't want that to interfere with my LJ icon usage. Yes, I am utterly clueless. ;) Thanks for your patience with me!

Also, have you read Indian Killer by Sherman Alexie? That book represents the big hole in my Alexie knowledge, and I've heard wildly varying things about it. I'd be interested to know your opinion if you've encountered it.

I hope you have a great weekend!

[groovekittie.livejournal.com]

Hey, may I ask you a favicons question? Does creating favicons interrupt your use of icons in LJ in any way? Or are the two totally separate things? I'd like to have a regular icon when I comment on my non-LJ friend's posts on other platforms, but I don't want that to interfere with my LJ icon usage. Yes, I am utterly clueless. ;) Thanks for your patience with me!

Well, you see, a favicon is that little picture in the address bar next to the URL. Like for Gmail it's the red M with the envelope behind it, or Twitter's teal 't', or Facebook's blue square and the off-center white 'f', and LJ's blue pencil. Most site's design their own and use it as an identifier so that their links are easily marked in your "favourites" or bookmark folders in your browsers, therefore making it easy to visit their sites again.

As for the other one, I think you might want to consider getting an OpenID account and then setting up a default icon there. :)

[eldritchhobbit.livejournal.com]

D'Oh! *slaps forehead* See how much I know? LOL! Thanks so much for explaining this. You're right, I was confusing that with the OpenID default icon. I'm so impressed that you know and can do all that kind of stuff. *does the "not worthy" bow*

BTW, I just posted the Table of Contents for the book. :) Thanks again for being interested!

[groovekittie.livejournal.com]

I'm so impressed that you know and can do all that kind of stuff. *does the "not worthy" bow*

Hahaha As if. lol Just a nerd is all.

Yay! *runs over to look*

[vyrdolak.livejournal.com]

I'm more respectful of [Native American beliefs] as religion in fantasy than I am of Christianity or other European originated religions in fantasy.

Here are a couple of non-Christian European religion-based books you may not be familiar with: Emil Petaja's The Stolen Sun (not fantasy but sf, based on Finnish mythology) and Isadore Haiblum's The Tsaddik of the Seven Wonders (17th-18th century Judaism).

And don't disrespect the Norse Gods!!!

[groovekittie.livejournal.com]

Hahahaa! Man, those Norse Gods got it all over science! My mistake! :D :D :D

[eldritchhobbit.livejournal.com]

LOL! :D

[cookiefleck.livejournal.com]

Congrats!

You got me to wondering... what percentage of YA readers are actually young adults?

Wow, that quote. A keeper.

[eldritchhobbit.livejournal.com]

Thanks so much!

I think you make a good point about YA readers: I know Paul Raven recently brought this up at Futurismic. There's a great deal of "crossover" reading, especially today (there are entire blogs based solely on encouraging adults to read YA books), so just because books are marketed to young adults, that doesn't mean that adults in significant numbers aren't the ones reading them.

I do love that quote! I'm glad you like it, too.

[groovekittie.livejournal.com]

I think this is a very valid question. I look at all the people who are actually reading the Twilight series ... I know all of 3 teenagers who are reading the books and probably 30 adult women ranging in age from their early 20s to late 40s. Most of them in the latter part of that age group.

I'm trying to decide what that says about the emotional age of the women in my community. lol Or if it's an indication of society as a whole. :P

[eldritchhobbit.livejournal.com]

Oh! I just found the other reference I was looking for: it's The Crossover Novel: Contemporary Children's Fiction and Its Adult Readership by Rachel Falconer (2008). Here's the synopsis from Routledge: "Why are adults reading children's fiction? The Crossover Novel delves into the heart of the controversy over 'crossover fiction'--the fiction that has crossed from children to adult readers over the millennial decade, and continues to do so today. This book argues that the popularity of cross-reading cannot simply be attributed to clever marketing or to the 'dumbing down' of adult readers, as some have claimed. Crossover fiction may be understood as an extension of 'kiddulthood,' the celebration of youth culture in a modern, capitalist society that places a premium on speed, flexibility, and lightness. In other respects, however, as Falconer persuasively argues, it can be understood as capitalism's antithesis: the expression of a desire for personal rootedness and for communally shared truths."

I haven't looked at this in detail yet, but I thought it might be of interest.

[cookiefleck.livejournal.com]

Just read Raven's article and I suspect he's correct. Thanks for the link.

And he brings up some interesting points. To what extent is escape into fantasy/YA reading tied to social interaction problems. I suspect a high correlation. And to take it a specific step further, I think there are large numbers of women who not only find entertainment but "safety" in their chaste written or onscreen male fantasy "relationships" - often with rather childlike-appearing characters/actors.

What I call candy reading has its place, and I do more of it than I should (not YA books or heaven help us romance novels - but I do read fan fiction), but I worry about the insidious charm of easy gratification (at the expense of thought-provoking) that's seemingly taking over.

dawnland

[cinda-cite.livejournal.com]

there are plenty of dawnland mythic stories. are any of these dealt with among the essays?

Re: dawnland

[eldritchhobbit.livejournal.com]

There's no essay devoted to those stories, but I believe at least one of the essays brings up Joseph Bruchac and his contemporary take on them.

[serpentcoils.livejournal.com]

I know my favorite Lovecraft story was always The Mound... The image of the Native American woman (? it's been awhile) with a fire burning far off in the distance, enticing the curious...

[eldritchhobbit.livejournal.com]

Oh, I love "The Mound"! Truly haunting stuff.

Have you read this post about it? Kind of neat, I think.

[gamgeefest.livejournal.com]

Interesting! I've been contemplating writing a story involving Native American legends. I'll make a note to check this out of the library.

[eldritchhobbit.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much!

If you don't mind a book for younger readers, you might be interested in Virginia Schomp's 2008 book The Native Americans, which is part of the Marshall Cavendish Myths of the World series. I was pleased to be brought in as a scholarly consultant on the book, and I really like how Schomp clearly identifies the origin and context of each of the tales she relates. She also intentionally includes stories from all across North America, not just one region. It might be a fruitful springboard for further reading, if nothing else.

[gamgeefest.livejournal.com]

I will look into that one! I've read a few books, one with myths from various regions, and another called "The White Stag" (I think) focusing on the Deleware tribe myths.

[thrihyrne.livejournal.com]

CONGRATULATIONS! I know this is an especially personally fulfilling project for you. I'm so pleased the essays are great, though of course they would be if they'll be in the publication.

And in looking at your listings of things, I must admit that the first thought that occurred to me was thinking of the html coding you must have done, and remembering when you had your wrist surgery. :( Hope that all is well in wrist and typing!

(((hugs))) and I still don't know how you do all you do. You're an amazing woman. I've bookmarked your new website, too, just haven't had an opportunity to go strolling around through it.

[eldritchhobbit.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much! It is indeed an especially meaningful project for me.

Hope that all is well in wrist and typing!

Aw, thank you! The carpal tunnel is completely fixed (yay!) and the arthritis is under control, so it's all good.

And thanks so much for bookmarking my site! I hope you like it. *hugs*

[sunnysky.livejournal.com]

so i must know - what did you think of bones of faerie? after all the amazing reviews it got, i was a bit disappointed that it was more of a short story than a novel.

[eldritchhobbit.livejournal.com]

I really liked the richness of the post-apocalyptic setting -- it was clever to pair the magical elements with a recognizable, if changed, geography -- and the way it blended the traditional coming-of-age tale with the story of these two lost peoples and the new world growing up in their wake. I thought the contrast between how the communities dealt with the emerging magic of the children was very striking and moving. But I agree: it felt more like a short story. It's not that the story itself didn't feel resolved - it did - but it seemed more fable-like, painted in broad, impressionistic strokes, than deep and complex, like a "sink-your-teeth-into-it" novel. I could almost imagine it in an anthology rather than standing alone. Does that make sense?

[sunnysky.livejournal.com]

absolutely. i agree with everything you said! i'm rather hoping there will be a prequel of some sort, where we'll learn more about the actual war - although, the last time we wanted that, we got the star wars prequels, & i dare say most of us were better off with whatever we imagined!

Thanks you for your work.

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