Tuesday, January 20, 2009

The Book of Names - Day 2

Continuing with my ten-year-old niece's thoughts about The Book of Names by D. Barkley Briggs on the second day of the January Christian Science Fiction & Fantasy Blog Tour:


Q. Have an opinion about Hadyn?
A. Even though he didn’t like his hard work, he found a way to make it fun by cutting the maze through the briars, and he was obedient to his father by not cursing. (Later in the book), he tried to comfort and protect his brother.

Q. Talk about some of the other characters.
A. Ewan: “He was adventurous, and he liked music. When something bad happened to his brother, he tried to save him.”

Sorge the monk: “When the boys wanted to go back to their world, he helped them. He’s loyal and kind.”

Eldoran: “He’s the leader of the monks—his personality seemed to kind of put him in charge. He was kind and considerate, and he listened quietly while the boys were explaining how they had gotten to that world.”

Archibald the king: “He’s kind of a neutral character. He’s trying to prevent evil from happening, but he also doesn’t seem much interested in helping the boys find a way home. After all, he wasn’t the one who brought them there.”

Asandra the mirling: “She captures these evil creatures called Watchers, so they can’t harm the people. At first, she seems quiet, she doesn’t really like to talk much. Later, she becomes friends with Hadyn and Ewan, and opens up about herself a little bit. Whenever there’s danger, she doesn’t get freaked out; she tries to help in any way she can. I think she was a little sad when Hadyn and Ewan had to leave her.”

Nemesia: “She’s the bad guy. She used to be a mirling, but I guess she wanted power, so she went to an island, and there was a tower there. She lived in the tower, and she stole children to make an army and make the whole world dark. She was plain mean, and she didn’t care about anybody.”

Flog the gnome: “He was grumpy, and he was the cook at the monastery where Sorge lives. He turns out to be quite helpful, even though he’s grumpy. He’s also a little silly, a little funny, silly-funny.


And, I might add, he has an interesting way of talking.

I'm still reading the book, and should finish it by tomorrow, in time for my last post for this month's tour. I liked the poem and the map at the beginning, but--I confess--aside from the opening sentence, the first page just didn't grab me. Maybe that's because it wasn't intended to get a grown-up's attention. Jamie, however, devoured the book like a bear raiding picnic baskets at the park, and would have consumed more if the second book had been available. (Corus the Champion is scheduled for release later this year; The Song of Unmaking is still in the works.)

Check out more about D. Barkley Briggs and his books at his blog, or read what other bloggers and writers have to say by visiting the sites listed in the left sidebar of this blog, under CSFF BLOG TOUR PARTICIPANTS.

4 comments:

BT said...

Sometimes you need a child's outlook on life - or in this case the opening page - to fully appreciate it. I love his character analysis.

Jeff Draper said...

Funny. I loved the first page.

Brandon Barr said...

Ha, I like your comparison with the bear :)

And I enjoyed the interview!

Keanan Brand said...

BT - Jamie is quite a kid. Still has a hint of a lisp, too, so hearing sophisticated speech in a child's voice is kinda funny.

Jeff - Ah, well, what can I say? Does the excuse of Literary ADD work? (laugh)

Brandon - She's voracious, all right. I keep a couple bookshelves stocked, just for her visits, and try to add new material whenever I can. I guess that means I'll be buying the next two books in Briggs' series!