The Pedant formerly known as Pony.
Mind you, the stuff for the girls was just as depressing. It seemed to be nearly all horses. Most of them were grinning. Horses, Death felt, shouldn’t grin. Any horse that was grinning was planning something.
Welp, my childhood just got a lot more sinister in retrospect. I will never be able to look at my old My Little Pony collection the same way again. XD
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Getting an education was a bit like a communicable sexual disease. It made you unsuitable for a lot of jobs and then you had the urge to pass it on.
She’d become a governess. It was one of the few jobs a known lady could do. And she’d taken to it well. She’d sworn that if she did indeed ever find herself dancing on rooftops with chimney sweeps she’d beat herself to death with her own umbrella.
As one of the few people on the planet who hates the Mary Poppins movie, I can’t begin to express how much I love Susan right now.
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Something began when the Guild of Assassins enrolled Mister Teatime, who saw things differently from other people, and one of the ways that he saw things differently from other people was in seeing other people as things (later, Lord Downey of the Guild said, ‘We took pity on him because he’d lost both parents at an early age. I think that, on reflection, we should have wondered a bit more about that.’)
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Once upon a time, this classic mystery about the disappearance of some schoolgirls and one of their teachers in 1900s Australia had a final chapter that explained the disappearances. Lindsay’s publisher told her to cut it because it ruined the novel’s mystique. And cutting the last chapter turned out to be a stroke of genius. Thanks in part to Lindsay’s enigmatic foreword in which she tells readers to decide for themselves whether the events in the book are fact or fiction, people absolutely obsessed over the mystery. They scoured old newspapers for reports of missing girls and pestered Lindsay for answers to the point where interviewers were asked to avoid the question. She eventually gave the final chapter to her agent with her permission to have it published after her death. Which was a good move on her part. It probably saved her from a ghastly amount of next-level pestering once the answers were out there.
You see, Lindsay’s agent did publish the final chapter after her death, and I have to agree with the publisher who cut it. It 100% ruins the story in a serious “I know it was the sixties, but what was this woman smoking?” kind of way. So yay for the publisher. Pat on the back.
On the other hand, not all of the clues that tied in with that what-was-she-smoking ending were edited out, making it obvious that the real ending was cut. The book didn’t feel open-ended so much as it felt unfinished. So once again I find myself finishing a classic and finding it an okay book while being much more fascinated and satisfied by the story behind the story.
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For the last month I've been alternating between super sick and super busy, so I haven't been around much. The good news is I'm not dead yet (probably). The bad news is I have hardly any time to read and post reviews and my Festive Task plans are pretty much out the window. But I'm not giving up on the Hogfather buddy read. I've been looking forward to that since this time last year and I've finally got a copy in my possession.
And while I'm here with a picture of one of my double-stacked book cubes, I'm going to use it to complete a task and pretend I meant to do it all along. So behold! As per Door 4: Guy Fawkes Night Task 4, this is how I "order" my books:
Books I've meant to read for ages stacked in front of books I've meant to read for longer ages and mixed in with books I've bought recently and books I've already read. Oh, and plushies and knick-knacks stuffed in every available cranny, partly because I never grew up and partly because I'm hoping they'll cushion the blow should a bookcase ever fall on my head.
Task completed. Woo! Feels good. XD
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Task 2: Try a flavor of Kit Kat other than chocolate and report back if you liked it.
Whoever decides what flavors of KitKat the stores carry in my little town currently has a definite thing for white chocolate and mint. I don't like white chocolate and I'm allergic to mint, so my options were sadly limited. I tried the Cookie Dough Chunky KitKat. I didn't hate it, and eaten all together it did taste vaguely like there's cookie dough in it, but I ate a piece of the "dough" by itself and I have to say, whoever came up with that recipe is eating some weird-ass cookies.
Task 4: If you like Japanese food, treat yourself to a favorite dish.
Sushi and sashimi are some of my favorite Japanese foods. The closest I can get are the "sushi" rolls at one of the local fish & chip shops. They're pretty good, considering. I treated myself to a crispy calamari roll last week, and now I'm craving another one.
Book: Read a graphic novel or a book set in a school or academic setting.
I read Scrapped Princess Volume 1. (The review's for all three volumes, but if I can use the other two volumes for other tasks I will absolutely do that.)
Pictured: My yummy lunch, a questionable KitKat, a nostalgic graphic novel, and one of my Pokemon plushies because I felt like it. And also because I love how judgmental it looks. Judgy Ninetails is judging you. Judgy Ninetails is judging us all.
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I never read the Scrapped Princess light novel series, but I did like the anime, and this three-volume manga brought back all the warm, fuzzy feelings I had for it. The stories weren’t taken from the anime (that I can remember – it’s been fifteen years or more since I saw it), and it was nice to see some new-to-me adventures with Shannon, Raquel, and Pacifica. My main complaint is that the art in the action panels is a little hard to interpret, but I often have this problem with black-and-white illustrations of action scenes, so this could be entirely a me thing.
Well. I don’t know what I was expecting. It’s a 1970s fantasy novel written by a man whose major series I gave up on eight books in because I got tired of his characters. I guess I just had to see if Jordan was really capable of writing a complete novel that clocks in at a measly 352 pages. (Spoiler: He was.)
It was mildly entertaining, but the main points of interest for me were the bits and pieces I recognized that would later reappear, far more developed and polished, in Wheel of Time. Here we can clearly see the seeds that would later grow into the Aes Sedai and their Warders, the Aiel and their Wise Ones, and so on. I guess what I’m trying to say is that this book was more fun for me as a WoT Easter Egg hunt than as an actual fantasy novel. As fantasy novels go, I thought it was pretty average.
I’m sticking my notes here under a spoiler tag. They’re not terribly spoilery (the last one is the only spoiler, really), and I didn’t get very far before I got bored documenting every time something ripped me out of the story. But if you want to know why it took me ten days to get through this book, these notes will give you a good indication.
(show spoiler)
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Thanks to all who participated in Task 1: Pick Your Ponies. The race is over, results are in, and points have been won! Please be sure to record your task participation and any bonus points in the Task Reporting Form which can be found on any official Holiday post, such as the main Door 3 post which you can find here.
Now, on to the results!
"Aaaaaaand they're off!"
After a tense photo finish, a protest filed by the race Stewards (not the jockeys), and a dramatic shuffle on the podium (assuming horse racing does podiums, IDK), the standings are as follows:
1st: Vow And Declare
2nd: Prince of Arran
3rd: Il Paradiso
Last: Rostropovich
The following BookLikers have scored a point for picking a winner:
Mrs. Claus' Tea House: Vow And Declare
Portable Magic: Prince of Arran
Moonlight Murder: Prince of Arran
Nighttime Reading Center: Il Paradiso
Congratulations!
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If you’re looking for info on this book’s plot, I’m afraid you’re in the wrong place, as it’s unlikely I’ll be able to do much more than gush and sqee incoherently. You see, in my bookish universe, Becky Chambers is the Empress of Warm Fuzzy Blanket Sci-Fi. I love her writing so much that I have trouble articulating my feelings for her books. Even though she’s writing about spaceships, aliens, sentient AIs, and spacefaring people, the sci-fi elements never distract me from the story. It’s the personal journeys of the characters that take center stage, and I’m never ready for the books to end. They really are warm fuzzy sci-fi blankets straight from the dryer. Who doesn’t want to wrap themselves in that?
Maybe Chambers’ version of humanity’s future is too idealized (which feels funny to say considering in the Wayfarers universe humanity had to flee Earth after thoroughly trashing the planet and beg handouts from more technologically advanced species to survive), but in the flaming dumpster fire that is present-day Earth, I really appreciate some idealistic optimism. I appreciate it a lot.
CORRECTION: Cup Day is Door 3 this year, please pardon the goof and my further breaking of MbD's spiffy formatting.
Please excuse the caps. It's my first Festive Tasks guest post. I'm a tad excited. Ahem! This is a partial opening of Door 3, Melbourne Cup Day, because there's no challenge in picking your ponies after the race is over!
Task 1: Pick your ponies! MbD Darth Pedant will post the horses scheduled to race; everyone picks the three they think will finish (in any order).
Darth Pedant here. By dint of being a former pony (and possibly living in the correct country and time zone for the task), I've been asked to step in for MbD to announce the field for the Melbourne Cup, the Race that Stops a Nation. (That's no joke. Australia literally declares State and National holidays for sporting events.)
The rules for the task are the same as last year:
Anyone playing the 24 Tasks of the Festive Season who wishes to participate in this task, pick your three favourites to place 1st, 2nd and 3rd and tell us in the comments below. It's not necessary to name them in order; as long as any of the three horses you chose finish in the top 3, you win! Each person will receive one point for each horse they chose that finished in the top 3. A point will also be awarded to the person whose chosen horse came in last.
If anyone chooses a horse that's been scratched before race time (rare), they may choose a replacement horse up until the deadline - please EDIT your original comment to choose a new horse; a new comment may, if there are a lot of participants, get lost in the shuffle. Alternatively, you may name your three horses and a replacement choice right from the start - just make sure to specify in your comment which of your picks is the alternate.
The race that stops a nation begins at 3:00pm, November 5th Australian EDT. This equates to:
USA EST: 11:00pm November 4th (deadline: 10:30pm)
USA PST: 8:00pm November 4th (deadline: 7:30pm)
EU CET: 5:00am November 5th (deadline: 4:30am)
UK GMT: 4:00am November 5th (deadline: 3:30am)
The deadline to submit your guesses will be 2:30pm AEDT on the day of the race (the 5th).
The winners will be announced as soon as results are in, and in the event that someone here guesses all three correct horses (their 3 come in 1st, 2nd and 3rd), that person will receive 1 free book - print or digital - of their choice, valued at up to $25USD.
Below are the horses in this year's race, in no particular order (because the order kept changing when I refreshed the page, argh, why are sports?). It's not as pretty as when MbD does it, but I did my clueless best with the fancy html template she gave me. (My best not to break it, that is. I partially succeeded. Yay.) Comments are not mine; I found them here along with the jockey silks and much more detailed horse bios. Or if you, like me, are utterly clueless about the world of horse racing, here's a helpful guide written just for us, courtesy of MbD's impressive Google Fu. (And by helpful I mean "helpful".)
Cross Counter (GB)
W: 57.5KG
TAB Odds: $13
Why he can win: Proven world-class stayer who won the 2018 Melbourne Cup.
Why he can't win: A likely 6-6.5 kilogram weight increase and history suggests it is extremely difficult to win the Melbourne Cup twice.
Mer De Glace (JPN)
W: 56KG (1KG penalty)
TAB Odds: $8
Why he can win: Damian Lane was so confident in his staying power and speed, he convinced the owners to have a crack at the Melbourne SC.
Why he can't win: Will carry more weight than all but one of the past 12 Cup winners and has never been tried at 3200m.
Mirage Dancer (GB)
W: 55.5KG
TAB Odds: $26
Why he can win: Sir Michael Stoute has a very high opinion of him and he has some good form around some absolute stars..
Why he can't win: Has a tendency to be placed in Stakes races, rather than winning.
Southern France (IRE)
W: 55.5KG
TAB Odds: $26
Why he can win: Has some form around gun European stayers Stradivarius and Kew Gardens.
Why he can't win: The Melbourne Cup will be his first start in Australia.
Master of Reality (IRE)
W: 55.5KG
TAB Odds: $17
Why he can win: Has elite staying form and with great stable.
Why he can't win: Difficult to win the Melbourne Cup if the horse is first up in Australia.
W: 55KG
TAB Odds: $17
Why he can win: Owner Lloyd Williams has won the Cup six times before, once in conjunction with trainer Joseph O'Brien when they triumphed with Rekindling in 2017.
Why he can't win: His form this season has been patchy.
Mustajeer (GB)
W: 55KG
TAB Odds: $17
Why he can win: He was dominant in the Ebor and is racing in peak form as a 7YO.
Why he can't win: The Ebor hasn't supplied many Cup winners and he's yet to be tried over 3200m.
Hunting Horn (IRE)
W: 55KG
TAB Odds: $26
Why he can win: He has form around the best horses around the world and will make his own luck
Why he can't: He doesn't win very often
Rostropovich (IRE)
W: 55KG
TAB Odds: $51
Why he can win: At his best, he is a top class performer, and he was only beaten five lengths in last year's race
Why he can't: He just doesn't seem to be in the same form as he was 12 months ago
Twilight Payment (IRE)
W: 55KG
TAB Odds: $34
Why he can win: Has the right trainer/owner combination for Cup success.
Why he can't win: Seven year-olds have won the Cup just 11 times in the race's history.
Prince of Arran (GB)
W: 53KG
TAB Odds: $17
Why he can win: Horse thrives in Australia and ran a great 3rd in last year’s race.
Why he can't win: Hard to imagine it can make up 3-4 lengths on the likes of Cross Counter as a seven-year-old.
Finche (GB)
W: 54KG
TAB Odds: $10
Why he can win: Horse with clear upside and is proven at the 3200m distance.
Why he can't win: Query about an injury that ruled him out of the Autumn and has to make up 3-4 lengths on the likes of Cross Counter and Marmelo.
Raymond Tusk (IRE)
W: 54KG
TAB Odds: $17
Why he can win: Has produced a commendable effort behind another serious challenger in Mustajeer at York.
Why he can't win: Will be his first start in Australia.
Downdraft (IRE)
W: 53.5KG
TAB Odds: $17
Why he can win: He's progressive and has already shown some decent form in Australia
Why he can’t win: He has failed to show up at top-level in Europe and there is a query over that Moonee Valley Gold Cup form
Surprise Baby (NZ)
W: 53.5KG (1KG penalty)
TAB Odds: $13
Why he can win: He's an in-form stayer and one of the top fancies for the Cup.
Why he can't win: A local hope, he has a lot of competition from serious internationals.
Magic Wand (IRE)
W: 53.5KG
TAB Odds: $17
Why she can win: She's has top class form in Ireland and the USA
Why she can’t win: The 3200m is a big query
Neufbosc (FR)
W: 53.5KG
TAB Odds: $201
Why he can win: Hard to make a case but that second to Kew Gardens is good European form
Why he can’t win: Has showed nothing this campaign to indicate he is going well enough to consider
Sound (GER)
W: 53.5KG
TAB Odds: $201
Why he can win: Does boast a 3200m win in Germany
Why he can't win: He hasn't shown enough in Australia to think he can be competitive in a Group 1 handicap
Steel Prince (IRE)
W: 52.5KG
TAB Odds: $34
Why he can win: Tough, consistent galloper who is proven at the track and over long distances. .
Why he can't win: Yet to be tested against elite company.
Constantinople (IRE)
W: 52.5KG
TAB Odds: $7
Why he can win: Clearly has abundant talent and profiles very similar to last year’s winner.
Why he can't win: Genuine query at the 3200m distance .
Il Paradiso (USA)
W: 52.5KG
TAB Odds: $11
Why he can win: Has form around gun European stayer Stradivarius, who was only beaten for the first time in almost two years on October 19 2019.
Why he can't win: Has not win at Stakes level.
Vow And Declare (AUS)
W: 52KG
TAB Odds: $10
Why he can win: Consistent stayer who enjoys further distances as shown by his fighting second in the Caulfield Cup.
Why he can't win: He still has to make the final field for the Melbourne Cup.
Youngstar (IRE)
W: 52KG
TAB Odds: $51
Why she can win: Her best form is right up to this and she has been to the 3200m before
Why she can’t win: She was beaten last year and is not in the same form this time around
The Chosen One (NZ)
W: 52KG (0.5KG penalty)
TAB Odds: $67
Why he can win: He is still a horse on the way up and he gets in with an excellent weight
Why he can't win: The 3200m at top level is a query based on both his pedigree and the way he finished off the Caulfield Cup.
Who did you choose and how/why? Tell us in the comments below.
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Task 3: Write an epitaph for the book you most disliked this year.
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I did it! I slipped in one more sneaky bingo before the end!
Diagonal:
International Woman of Mystery
It's the evening of the 31st here, so I'm calling it. I didn't do quite as well as last year, but I did a lot better than I thought I would considering my workload in September and early October. I'm pretty darn pleased with the results, and I'm ready to stop neglecting my other hobbies now. I miss them a little bit.
Thanks as always to Moonlight Reader and Obsidian Blue for hosting Halloween Bingo. You're both the best!
Princess Porg is here to help me sign out and wish you all a Happy Halloween!
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This is an okay true crime book that was probably better in the author’s native language, but a less-than-perfect translation can’t be blamed for some of the problems I had with it.
The beginning is a disorganized mess. It ping-pongs from subject to subject, covering everything from how the victim’s grandfather made the family fortune to the life story of the volunteer who helped crack the case, and a lot of the details the reader is bombarded with don’t feel even a little bit relevant. When the city of Zurich is mentioned, the author even pauses to note the year it was founded. And ye gods, the repetition! This book did not need to be over 300 pages long.
Speaking of the author, his intrusions in the beginning are frequent and sometimes condescending (unless he was trying for humor, maybe?). A man is missing. His daughter Sara doesn’t report it for several days. Those she discussed the matter with told her to wait and see if he showed up. She’s behaving oddly, not like a missing person’s relative usually behaves, like she doesn’t think her father’s coming back. The missing man didn’t get along with the daughter’s boyfriend, Martin, and they’d recently had a fight over money and property. A month later, the missing man’s other daughter call the police because she thinks something’s fishy and the police aren’t doing enough. The author lays all this out (in bullet points), and then says:
In a crime novel, this would have been enough to secure the convictions of both Martin Törnblad and Sara Lundblad.
No. No it wouldn’t. What terrible crime novels are you reading? That’s barely enough to pique an amateur sleuth’s interest in the laziest of cozies. A little later on, the author says:
Anyone who thinks the police can throw together an investigation team comprising interviewers, technicians, detectives, and administrators in an afternoon and launch a murder investigation based on a missing-person report, just to be on the safe side, has spent too much time watching TV.
Again, what terrible crime dramas are you watching?
The organization gets better (and the author intrusions decrease) toward the middle of the book, but it could have been half the length if it had refrained from detouring and covering the same ground multiple times.
(Read for Halloween Bingo Truly Terrifying Square)
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In an uncharacteristically strategic move, I decided to read The ABC Murders for the Serial/Spree Killer square instead of 13, handily netting me two more bingos in the fifth column and corresponding diagonal. They'll probably be my last, unless I can slip in one more sneaky bingo before the end.
Fifth Column:
International Woman of Mystery
Diagonal:
Hercule Porgot sends his regards and would like to inquire the reason I've shoved a detestable bubble pipe in his mouth. (Because I could. Obviously.)
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I thought I had read this book before, but either I was wrong or this is one of those books that feels like new every time you read it. I was on the edge of my seat, figuratively speaking, and stayed up past my bedtime to finish it, and other such murder mystery reading clichés. I knew how it ended, but that made no difference. I still physically tensed up as I read. THIS is why Christie endures as a master of mystery. It’s one hell of a ride, even when I know where she’s taking me.
(Read for Halloween Bingo Serial/Spree Killer Square)
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