Coming Soon: Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, the Miniseries
Posted on November 25, 2014 at 3:58 pm
Susanna Clarke’s novel Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell is one of those delicious stories that transports the reader to another world, so enthralling that it is difficult to leave.
The setting is historical, England in 1806, as the Napoleonic Wars are being fought on land and at sea. Most people believe that magic no longer exists, but two very different magicians know differently. Mr. Norrell is a scholarly and reserved man who becomes a celebrity overnight when he reveals his powers by making the statues in York Cathedral speak, and bringing back a young woman from the dead (though it is conditioned on her spending half of her time with the fairies). Jonathan Strange is young, handsome, intuitive, and daring. He becomes Norrell’s student, and they join forces to help England defeat France.
I was delighted to learn that the BBC is adapting the book into a miniseries we may see in the US as early as next year, starring Bertie Carvel (Les Misérables) and Eddie Marsan (The World’s End). Stay tuned for more information.
List: YA Books About Coming Out and Same-Sex Relationships
Posted on November 23, 2014 at 4:41 pm
My good friend Sandie is my go-to for YA literature as she is not only very knowledgeable but also very insightful, with superb taste. As a part of her series of books that explore issues of diversity, understanding, and identity, she has put together a list of the best YA books that explore LGBT issues. This is of course especially important for adolescents because that is when they first begin to try to understand their own sexuality and that of those around them. Most LGBT kids grow up in cis- and gender-confirming homes. So the opportunity for them to find characters in literature who can make them feel understood and less alone is vital. Many thanks to Sandie and the rest of Teen Lit Rocks for this resource.
Another #Epicfail for Barbie — And a Non-Barbie Alternative
Posted on November 22, 2014 at 8:00 am
Copyright Mattel 2014
Remember when Teen Talk Barbie got in trouble for saying “Math is hard?” Well, Mattel did not get the memo because a new Barbie book intended to encourage girls’ interest in STEM subjects like computer programming completely misses the point. Daily Dot reports that a new book about how great it is that Barbie is a computer engineer is really about how Barbie can do some game design but when it comes time to actual programming or dealing with a virus she needs boys to come over and do it for her.
“I’m only creating the design ideas,” Barbie says, laughing. “I’ll need Steven and Brian’s help to turn it into a real game!”
Mattel has apologized and withdrawn the book. They said “The portrayal of Barbie in this specific story doesn’t reflect the Brand’s vision for what Barbie stands for. We believe girls should be empowered to understand that anything is possible and believe they live in a world without limits. We apologize that this book didn’t reflect that belief. All Barbie titles moving forward will be written to inspire girl’s imaginations and portray an empowered Barbie character.” But it is mind-boggling that it was actually written, produced, and marketed. There’s a nice remix of the book online — Mattel should think about issuing this version instead.
Meanwhile, Lammily has produced a Barbie alternative who has a realistic body and has options that include cellulite, stretch marks, freckles, acne, glasses, temporary tattoo, scratches, bruises, cast, mosquito bites and dirt stains.
Historian Jill Lepore is one of my favorite writers and I am also a Comic-Con-attending fangirl, so I was thrilled to get a chance to hear Professor Lepore speak at the Smithsonian about her new book, The Secret History of Wonder Woman.
There are only three superheroes who have appeared for decades without any interruptions: Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. But like Superman and Batman, she has taken on many forms and cultural signifiers over the decades. She was way ahead of her time as a feminist symbol. She was from a matriarchal culture and exemplified independence and courage. But she was only permitted to join the Justice Society after a poll of comics readers, and, once she joined, she served as its secretary, sitting primly and taking notes.
Lepore’s focus was less on Wonder Woman as a character, a symbol, or a work of art but as the creation of an historic figure, one who was well known for his scholarship and invention, but who led a life of secrets that were reflected in his most famous creation.
Lepore considers her the “missing link” between feminism in the first half of the 20th century (women’s suffrage to Rosie the Riveter) and the second half (the rise of the women’s movement in the 70’s and the broader opportunities for women following the Equal Rights Act).
Wonder Woman was the creation of William Moulton Marston, a remarkably accomplished man who had both a law degree and a PhD in psychology from Harvard. Lepore described details of his life which were reflected in the Wonder Woman character and storylines. Marston was one of the inventors of the polygraph lie detector test, probably the inspiration for Wonder Woman’s lasso of truth. Those captured by her magic rope cannot lie. Marston was also a committed feminist. While some Wonder Woman fans have have noted the superheroine’s frequent appearance in bondage, Lepore is the first to connect this directly to the images used by early 20th century feminists in their pursuit of the vote, birth control, and other rights for women. Marston also lived with and had children with two women, his wife and a kind of “sister-wife,” who was the niece of birth control pioneer Margaret Sanger. This arrangement allowed his wife to pursue her career while the children were cared for by the “other mother.”
Marston believed that comics had a great power to communicate and explicitly intended Wonder Woman to carry his message of female empowerment. A story published in 1943 had her becoming President — a thousand years in the future.
What makes the book such fun is that most books on movies give a fairly general overview of the films its covering, Nell hones in on the specifics. Or rather, on one specific. She does discuss each film, of course, to sort of set the stage, though not as a mere recap but rather going into depth with behind-the-scenes tales, and an explanatory sense of why the movie is so worth attention — but then singles out that one special moment that (as the title says) always gets overlooked at the expense of others, or was so wonderful in a movie you might never have even heard of.
In some ways, the book could have been titled, “Remember That Scene Where…”
That’s the fun of the book, how it brings the joy of the movie-going experience to life. There’s nothing dry about her writing or appreciation of films. (Don’t forget, I did say she’s giddy about watching movies, sometimes two or even three in a day — after having met with corporate shareholders to analysis their situation earlier in the day.) And so what we get here is picking that one unique scene that helps put the whole movie in perspective, and help explain why it works so well. Why we love that film, or why we should see it. Through the focus of one great moment.
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