The Night Circus and the 2012 Mythopoeic Awards

One of finalests for the 2012 Mythopoeic Awards is The Night Circus, by Erin Morgenstern (Doubleday, 2011).  If you have not had a chance to read this unusual and fascinating book,  I highly recommend it.  While I enjoyed the plot very much - Morgenstern juggles crisscrossing the plot through time, with a deft touch - the elements that particularly linger are the sensory details.  Descriptions of the fanciful circus displays are very vivid and left me feeling like I had personally been to the strange black and white tents of the Night Circus. 


In addition, it is being adapted for film - which I can only imagine has the potential to be an absolutely beautiful film if done right.  Put it on your summer reading list today!    

The Hobbit

I remember when the trailer for The Return of the King came out.  There was a great deal of jumping around and shrieking.  This was repeated recently when all our cell phones beeped simultaneously and M, N and I all got messages from E to "check Facebook right now!"  She had posted a link to the trailer for The Hobbit, and even as we watched it, she called me - presumably to hear my high-pitched excitement.

I am the opposite of the commenter on the trailer felt that "it  doesn't look very 'Hobbity' to me .... more like a Lord of The Rings spin-off" (NZ Herald, December 22, 2011).  I am glad to see that the story is being treated seriously - I was a little afraid there would be too much focus on the potential slap-stick silliness.  One of my earliest memories of The Hobbit was listening to it on cassette tape when I was about 10 or 11 and sobbing uncontrollably when Thorin Oakenshield lay dying.  When they began the darkly beautiful rendition of "Under the Misty Mountains," I was relieved that there seemed to be adequate restraint in the balance of serious and silly with the dwarves.

Wonderful Little Film

Check out this lovely little film "Anchored" from Lindsey Olivares. It was her senior thesis project at Ringling College of Art and Design.