Amber+F

// Here be the page of ** Amber Mae Percival Wulfric Brian Geschke Francis **//. Alright, guess which names aren't mine. And the reference.

'Books are wholly inadequate substitutes for humans and humans are wholly inadequate substitutes for books' ~ Michael Sullivan in 'The Fur', by Nathan Hobby

My literature canon consists of (in no order):


 * The Wind Singer** //by William Nicholson//
 * Milkweed** //by Jerry Spinelli//
 * The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time** //by Mark Hadden//
 * His Dark Materials** //by Phillip Pullman//
 * Harry Potter** //by J.K. Rowling//
 * The Man from Snowy River** //by Banjo Patterson//
 * Stop All the Clocks** //by W.H. Auden//
 * The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock** //by T.S. Eliot//
 * Hating Alison Ashley** //by Robin Klein//
 * The Picture of Dorian Gray** //by Oscar Wilde//



**The Wind Singer** //by William Nicholson// This is a satire on exams and various political ideals, set in an amazing, surreal world. This book has been a major influence on me, particularly in terms of the society. The main city runs on a system of examinations, where the smartest, hardest working people move up in society and the lazy, stupid people move to the bottom. This is immediately reminiscent of the school exam system, but also reminds me of a form of communism. In some ways it seems like a really good system and in other ways it is a complete failure, but there is unlikely to ever be a system of government without some failings. The characters and settings I adore, particularly in the salt caves and the desert warships. But I must cease, or I will spell it all out for you. [|Here is a review of it which also sums things up fairly well, I believe.] There are two sequels, 'Slaves of the Mastery' and 'Firesong', but I have not read these for a very long time and don't remember much about them.



**Milkweed** //by Jerry Spinelli// A beautiful account of the holocaust from the eyes of [|(yet] [|another)] young boy who doesn't really get what's going on, or why, but is a victim of it all. This is the story of his life; it is touching and beautifully written. This is a weeper. It talks about things like faith and belief (like in angels, oranges and mothers), the way that events affect you and how you and other people have to then deal with that, family, love, heroes, why people are persecuted and labelled. [|Here is how Wikipedia introduces it:] Milkweed is a [|2003] [|historical fiction] [|novel] by [|American] author [|Jerry Spinelli]. The book is about an orphaned boy without a name living in [|Warsaw, Poland] in the years of [|World War II] during the [|Holocaust]. Over time, he learns that he is a Gypsy but he is taken in by a Jewish group of orphans, so he must avoid the German troops (or "Jackboots") while living off the streets with Uri and the other orphans that he runs into. The story's narrator is actually the boy in the future living in America recalling his past experiences.[|[1]][|[2]] Despite being a [|historical fiction] novel, Doctor Korczak, a minor character in the story is based on a real person called [|Janusz Korczak].

**The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time** //by Mark Hadden// This is the story of a boy with Aspergers (though that is never stated explicitly during the novel) investigating the murder of his neighbour's poodle, and discovering a lot more along the way, about his parents and himself. You are removed from your body and put within his mind and point of view for the duration of the novel, and that feeling lingers afterward. A lot of what stuck with me were the questions of truth and trust. Most people believe in certain grey areas when it comes to telling the truth, such as white lies and metaphors, however Christopher sees things in a very black-and-white way. He cannot actually make himself lie, and when he finds out certain things which had been concealed for him he loses all trust in his father. (Admittedly, that was a very big lie.)

"Usually people look at you when they're talking to you. I know that they're working out what I'm thinking, but I can't tell what they're thinking. It is like being in a room with a one-way mirror in a spy film."
 * Quotes:**

"The word 'metaphor' means carrying something from one place to another . . . and it is when you describe something by using a word for something that it isn't. This means that the word 'metaphor' is a metaphor. I think it should be called a lie because a pig is not like a day and people people do not have skeletons in their cupboards. And when I try and make a picture of the phrase in my head it just confuses me because imagining and apple in someone's eye doesn't have anything to do with liking someone a lot and it makes you forget what the person was talking about."

"All the other children at my school are stupid. Except I'm not meant to call them stupid, even though this is what they are."

**His Dark Materials** //by Phillip Pullman// Beginning with 'Northern Lights', then 'The Subtle Knife' and 'The Amber Spyglass', this trilogy transverses various universes and contemplates ideas such as religion and God, sin, what is good and evil, your soul, sacrifice, and betrayal. It is highly original and the universe(s) well-built, the story is involving and intense, and the characters very well written. There is a bit of controversy about these books, almost wholly in their portrayal of the Church and religion. When it was made into a movie, a lot of this was left out or euphemised, in order to avoid alienation. Apparently this didn't work very well because the fans of the books (yself included) thought it took out too much of the spirit and key themes, while Catholic organisations didn't like it anyway in case people would then read the books and become atheist. However, the author was expecting more controversy. He said: "I've been surprised by how little criticism I've got. Harry Potter's been taking all the flak... Meanwhile, I've been flying under the radar, saying things that are far more subversive than anything poor old Harry has said. My books are about killing God."

"'That's the duty of the old,' said the Librarian, 'to be anxious on the behalf of the young. And the duty of the young is to scorn the anxiety of the old.' They sat for a while longer, and then parted, for it was late, and they were old and anxious."
 * Quotes:**

"Why do they do these things to children, Pan? Do they all hate children so much that they want to tear them apart like this? Why do they do it?" - Lyra



**The Harry Potter Series** //by J.K. Rowling// This is a series which has reached an entire generation and taught them to read. The initial books in particular are wildly original, with enough interest to carry on to seven books, and more. Also, they were written so that they were children's books while the characters were children, and as the characters developed the readers (and author, though probably unintentionally) could develop with them. I've always thought that was cool, except that now all the books are out it doesn't work so well anymore, as they are so captivating people would much rather just read all the way through. There are all sorts of questions raised in these books, cheifly (in my mind) the question of fate. There is a high involvement of prophesies in these books, mainly the ones about Harry, and the nature of these is discussed. Is Harry choosing his fate, or is he being directed? Does he have control over his life or is it all just happening to him? Why is he the only one who can defeat the Dark Lord? Is he?

// "It is our choices that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities." - Dumbledore //
 * Quotes**:

//Harry: "But why's she got to go to the library?"// //Ron: "Because that's what Hermione does. When in doubt, go to the library."//

// "If you want to know what a man's like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals." - Sirius Black //

**The Man from Snowy River** //by A.B. "Banjo" Patterson// Australian heritage in a poem. Environmental issues aside, use of the high country for cattle grazing is an undeniable part of Australian history. The Jackaroo comes from this, and brumbies, and various stereotypes and typical Australian images. As an epic story of heroicism and the underdog proving his metal, intermingled with vivid descriptions of the bush scene, this is definitely a classic. Banjo Patterson's songs and poetry have long been favourites of mine: I also like 'Mongrel Grey'. Here is an example of some of the vivid imagery in 'The Man From Snowy River' (I couldn't resist using the whole stanza): //"Then fast the horsemen followed, where the gorges deep and black// //Resounded to the thunder of their tread,// //And the stockwhips woke the echoes, and they fiercely answered back// //From cliffs and crags that beetled overhead.// //And upward, ever upward, the wild horses held their way,// //Where mountain ash and kurrajong grew wide;// //And the old man muttered fiercely, 'We may bid the mob good day,// //No man can hold them down the other side.' "// [|The full text can be found here, along with a good introduction.]

**Stop All the Clocks (Funeral Blues)** //by W.H. Auden// A meaning clear as day, of emotions eternal as time. Love and grief are such human emotions, so integral to our phsyche and identity; this poem conveys them so well, and so simply. [|Here is the text.]

**The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock** //by T.S. Eliot// I love this poem first and foremost for the words it uses. The use of language in this poem is absolutely delicious. The descriptions are lovely, for example these lines: '//When the evening is spread out against the sky/Like a patient etherised upon a table'.// I just want to draw a picture of this poem. [|The text can be found here] [|This is what Wikipedia says about it:] The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock, commonly known as Prufrock, is a poem by [|T. S. Eliot], begun in February 1910 and published in Chicago in June 1915. Described as a "drama of literary anguish," it presents a [|stream of consciousness] in the form of a [|dramatic monologue], and marked the beginning of Eliot's career as an influential poet. With its weariness, regret, embarrassment, longing, emasculation, sexual frustration, sense of decay, and awareness of mortality, Prufrock has become one of the most recognized voices in 20th-century literature,[|[1]] and is the quintessential urban zeitgeist of the 20th century. [|Here is a fairly interesting analysis of different aspects of the poem, mainly in terms of the story it tells]



**Hating Alison Ashley** //by Robin Klein// Stories set in dodgy Melburnian suburbs are as thickly intwined in the identity of Melbournians as the suburbs themselves. Here is one with strong undercurrents about friendship and striving for perfection and superiority. The statements it makes about these are important. Erica Yurken is completely convinced of her superiority of everyone at her school, including the teachers. Alison Ashley is a new girl who seems to be completely and utterly perfect, which Erica finds hard to be superior to. Erica is one of those well-written characters that are extremely annoying but you want to succeed anyway (like Scarlet O'Hara). Actually, all the characters in this are really well written. I particularly admire Erica for being able to find a new dream when the one she's practically based her life around crumbles.



**The Picture of Dorian Gray** //by Oscar Wilde// Themes of the nature and importance of aesthetics, and of influence, pervade this novel. Sometimes it seems like every other line is quotable. This is the story of Dorian Gray, who is enthralled by a painting of himself done by a painter who is in turn enthralled by him. He is rather negatively influenced by the painter's friend into believing that life should be lived in pursuit of enjoyment, and sells his soul to the devil in return for eternal youth and beauty. He then goes and leads an entirely indulgent life. The painting ages and shows the marks of his sins. This philosophical, theme-based nature of this story carries on afterwards, and there are references to this book sprinkled through everything. I find it more thought provoking than enjoyable, though I do enjoy it too.