This is my contribution to the 12th Bookworms Carnival, themed on fairy tales. I was first going to pass the carnival, but then I came up with the perfect book to introduce to the readers of the carnival.
It is Ennen päivänlaskua ei voi by Johanna Sinisalo. The English title is more straightforward Troll : A Love Story, a direct translation would be Not before sundown (which is the title of the first English edition of the book) or something like that. I'll come to the origin of the title later, it's a fascinating thing in itself.
Let's start with the book first and I'll deal with the background later. The book starts with a simple assumption: trolls exist. The book switches with the story, told by different narrators, and all sorts of fragments of literature (web sites, nonfiction, fiction) about trolls, written as if the trolls were a natural thing, an animal amongst the others.
The story is about Mikael, a young photographer, who finds something strange in his backyard. It's a troll, and Mikael takes it home and adopts it. A bond, relationships starts to form between Mikael and the troll, and soon things get complicated, when primal forces mix with modern world and culture meets nature. Add to the mix a Filipino mail-order wife living downstairs and couple of other characters and it all gets rather interesting.
It's a fascinating story, with a strong sexual tensions - it certainly is a love story, as the English title has it. Sexuality is, of course, a recurrent theme in many traditional fairy tales, especially in the original versions. I don't know about the quality of the English translation (or any of the other translations), but if it's as good as the Finnish original, this is one captivating and charming book. Sinisalo is a master writer and can craft convincing alternate realities. After you read this book, you start to believe trolls might indeed exist...
Then some background. Johanna Sinisalo is a well-loved author in the Finnish science fiction circles. She started by writing short stories and has seven times won the Atorox, the Finnish award for the best science fiction or fantasy short story of the year. She's since worked in television, writing the most popular Finnish daily TV series. She's also writing the script for Iron Sky, the new movie from the people who made Star Wreck.
Ennen päivänlaskua ei voi won the Finlandia prize for the best novel published in Finland. That is a major award, and Sinisalo was the first science fiction author ever to win the award (and only one so far). That was a major milestone for the Finnish science fiction literature, even though Sinisalo doesn't really write pure science fiction anymore - nevertheless, she mixes reality and fantasy in a wonderful way and really enhances the Finnish literary world.
The book also won James Tiptree, Jr. award in 2004.
Then I promised to tell you about the title. It's from one of the best-loved songs for children in Finland, Päivänsäde ja menninkäinen (Sunshine and a troll). In the song, sun is setting when one of the sunshines is left behind and meets a troll. The troll immediately falls in love with the sunshine and wants to take her home, even though her shining is making him blind. The sunshine refuses, saying that the darkness will kill her, and she must hurry home before she perishes. The song ends in a sad acknowledgement of how some are children of light and some travel in darkness, and never the two shall be together. It's a really beautiful, sad and sweet and song and a perfect source for a title for this book.
Do you want to sell something with a web site, but aren't satisfied with your sales? You know your copy could use some editing, but aren't sure how to proceed. Worry not! Writing killer web copy is easy when you know the secrets of doing it right. In this book, Maria Veloso reveals the secret of writing web copy that sells, and all you need to do is to buy this book and you too can sell like a pro.
If this book works, that should motivate you all to go buy this book. Well, I don't know how effective the teachings of this book are, but Veloso certainly appears qualified (it's hard to find anything non-commercial about her in the web) and presents a clear, easy-to-follow formula of writing web copy. The ideas seem effective and Veloso's writing is enthusiastic - though at least to my eyes the book seems a tad pushy and aggressive in selling it's ideas, but perhaps I'm not just to used to the American style of direct marketing (I have a feeling that marketing in Finland is considerably less aggressive).
So, if you have web copy to write, reading this book won't hurt and will likely improve your copy, especially if you're interested in the advertorial style of copywriting and write for a web site that's purely dedicated to selling something. [ Web Copy That Sells - The Revolutionary Formula for Creating Killer Copy Every Time at Amazon.co.uk ]
Shogi is the Japanese version of Chess. It has some rather curious features, but perhaps the most shocking of them for players familiar with the Western Chess is the drops: a captured piece may enter play owned by the captor. That alone makes sure endgames are not boring wars of attrition!
The game can be fairly hard to learn, though, and not the least because of the pieces which are identified by Japanese calligraphy symbols. The same learning curve issue affects this book as well, because Fairbairn uses the Japanese symbols in his diagrams. That's the way to do it, I suppose, as everybody has to learn the symbols anyway to play the game, but it sure makes the book hard to read.
If one is willing to overcome that obstacle, Shogi for Beginners is a fairly thorough introduction to an interesting game. Fairbairn explains the rules in a (mostly) clear way and then continues to basic strategy: castles, openings, middle game, endgame and so on. Shogi isn't easy to learn, but if you're willing to put some effort to it, this book will certainly help. [ Shogi for Beginners at Amazon.com ]
From Booking Through Thursday:
Writing guides, grammar books, punctuation how-tos . . . do you read them? Not read them? How many writing books, grammar books, dictionaries-if any-do you have in your library?
Well, actually - I just placed a mooch for the classic writing guide, Elements of Style and am looking for some guides on writing for web, as I'm going to do some work like that soon. So, better get some new ideas! And who knows, perhaps my blogging for fun will profit from some lessons? I don't know, but I'm definitely curious to learn more.
I do like reading grammar books, for example the Eats, Shoots & Leaves was fun to read. I like reading about languages in general, I've read few books of the development of Finnish language and they've been all very interesting.
I don't have a Finnish dictionary, but I do have The Times English Dictionary and Thesaurus - it's a huge book, and I got it for just ten euros or so few years ago. Haven't read it a lot, though, because it's such a pain to go get it from the top shelf just to look up a word. I just type "define:word" in Google to find out how something is spelled and if the word means what I think it means (always best to be sure, especially since checking is so easy when you're online).
Since Trish brought up phone books: I so agree those are a complete waste of good trees. I haven't used one in years, and still I get two of each (no, make it four, since both consist of two parts) every year. Well, at least I don't have to wonder what to use to prop up the crib when our toddler has flu...
The bestselling author Sam Bayer is frustrated with how his latest book is turning out. Going back to his childhood roots in the small town of Crane's Village, he comes up with a much better book: he's going to tell the story of Pauline Ostrova, Crane's View's teenage beauty and oddball who was murdered when Bayer was a teen.
Bayer wants to tell her story, find out what really happened. He gets support from Frannie McCabe, the former juvenile delinquent, the current Crane's View police chief (he appears in other Crane's View books as well, so if you like him, read The Wooden Sea where he is the main character) and Veronica Lake, his fan and soon his lover. Veronica appears to be a perfect woman, exactly what Bayer needs - but that is just the first impression.
There are no supernatural elements this time, but plenty of suspense and surprising twists to hold the reader tight. This is some sharp writing. The plot is excellent and the characters are interesting and deep. In my opinion this is one of Carroll's very best works. [ Kissing The Beehive at Amazon.co.uk ]
Chinese Chess or Xiangqi is an interesting, fast-paced variant of Chess: similar enough to be fairly easy to learn, yet different enough to be interesting even to those thoroughly bored by Western Chess. It's clearly a game worth exploring, but books on the game are rather rare and hard to come by. Sloan's book is from 1980s and slightly dated, but the game hasn't changed, of course, so the lessons contained are still valid.
To be honest, the book could certainly be better. It does cover everything necessary: it introduces the pieces, explains the rules, explains strategy, has sample games... All good and well, yet the presentation could be clearer, the text a tad more captivating and I would really prefer if the sample games were included in their entirety. Still, it works, and to those who prefer reading books to reading web pages, this is still worth considering. The prices currently asked for the book in UK Amazon are way too much, however. It's not that good... [ Chinese Chess for Beginners at Amazon.co.uk ]
From Booking Through Thursday:
Quick! It's an emergency! You just got an urgent call about a family emergency and had to rush to the airport with barely time to grab your wallet and your passport. But now, you're stuck at the airport with nothing to read. What do you do??
And, no, you did NOT have time to grab your bookbag, or the book next to your bed. You were . . . grocery shopping when you got the call and have nothing with you but your wallet and your passport (which you fortuitously brought with you in case they asked for ID in the ethnic food aisle). This is hypothetical, remember....
This would be an annoying situation. After all, waiting without reading is a pain. I would likely have my iPod with me, that would help a lot - though with any luck, it would run out of power soon. I don't know, it might get desperate enough to get me to a airport bookstore. I'm fairly sure I'd find some paperback worth reading, some interesting enough mainstream novel I haven't read yet. Some cheap thriller or Dan Brown lookalike...
The other option would be, like Trish said, a magazine (I used to buy thick English computer magazines when travelling abroad), crosswords or sudokus. I don't usually do sudokus, but it might be just the trick for a situation like this. Crosswords depend on the availability of the right level - most crossword magazines sold in Finland are very easy and I find little joy in filling those mechanically. Then again, the hard ones tend to be too hard for me, I get maybe one or two words per puzzle. I'm a fall-between guy there.
This is a curious book, pleasing in many ways. In the bottom of it, Gun, with Occasional Music is a hard-boiled detective story. It's told in first person by a private detective, who becomes involved in a murder case that isn't quite as simple as the law enforcement would like it to be. There are temptresses, gangsters, corrupt law enforcement, all the basic building blocks.
However, there are also developed animals (one particularly nasty kangaroo, for example), legal drugs to keep the population happy, dystopian society where printed word is banned and asking questions requires a permit and all sorts of science fiction weirdness. The combination is slightly odd but as I said, rather pleasing.
Lethem has created a monster, but it's a good monster. The plot is filled with detective genre cliches, but it's not a joke or parody. Events unfold pleasantly quickly and the final twist is delicious. This was a quick read, but left me rather satisfied. (Review based on the Finnish translation.) [ Gun with Occasional Music at Amazon.co.uk ]
The Emperor doesn't rule over the Fourlands. He just protects them, while the god is away. Emperor is immortal and rules the Circle, a group of 50 immortals, who serve him to help the people to survive. All humanity is threatened by giant insects, who have been trying to conquer all lands for centuries. This is the setting, where we peek for a while.
The story is told by Jant, the Messenger of the Circle. He has wings like many other people in this world, but he's the only one who can fly. He also has a nasty drug addiction, giving him hallucinogenic visions of a different world.
The insects aren't the only problem: the immortals of the Circle can't always stand each other. I suppose defending humanity in a never-ending war against completely alien enemy takes its toll. There are several interesting plot lines, but not all of them are properly explored.
As it is, this book certainly has flaws. For example, of the 50 immortals less than ten make any kind of significant appearance. I wonder what the rest do? Well, despite the flaws the book has lot to like and even though the whole is somewhat less than the sum of its parts, I do recommend the books for readers who enjoy modern fantasy and like to explore different worlds. It's certainly an interesting world.
The book does end a bit abruptly, but I suppose the sequel (No Present Like Time) picks up where this one leaves the story. Apparently, this is actually a first part of a trilogy... So better prepare to pick up the sequels as well, if you end up liking this one. I know I'm putting the next part on my BookMooch wishlist. [ The Year of Our War (Gollancz S.F.) at Amazon.co.uk ]
This small book by the game design guru Sid Sackson describes over 60 card games from around the world. The selection is interesting and there are many interesting and important games listed. Some of the games are hopelessly common, though - I see little point in describing games like Cribbage, Rummy and Old Maid. That is space better used for more unusual games.
What's perhaps most interesting is the section of new games. There are four games included there, two by Sackson himself and two by his friends. These are certainly unusual and worth taking a look at. Despite the lack of historical information and the flaws of the selection, this small book is a worthy addition to any card game book library. It also has one of the clearest explanations of Skat I've ever read. [ Card Games Around the World (Dover Books on Magic) at Amazon.co.uk ]
