Nation at the National Theatre

Is it all a load of fantasy?

There are two ways of looking at the production of Nation now showing at the National Theatre. First, you can see it as what it is being advertised as by the National … that of a “spectacular family show”, you can just take it as this, and forget all your pre-concieved ideas of what a good piece of theatre is about. Or you can see it with a critical eye, and look beyond the visual affects and see the chaos that lies beneath.

How does someone take a piece of fantasy and craft it in such a manner that it is relayed in a theatrical sense, without it coming across as sheer nonsense? The National Theatre has actually had quite a good track record for setting new heights in their work of fantasy adaptation, one look at the popular adaptation of the Phillip Pullmans series, ‘His Dark Materials’ that graced the stage and went on a long tour proves that it can be done – and well.

So what went wrong here?

After several days mulling over my thoughts; for this production is not an easy one to digest; it comes in waves of information, in visual delight and a complicated script – I have concluded that perhaps it lies with the actual adaptation of text. Mark Ravenhill, one of our clear playwrights of the 21st century, whose previous work I have applauded time and time again, was given this mammoth task. How do you adapt a Terry Pratchett fantasy novel into a National Theatre “spectacular family show”, or more basic than that, into a working playscript?

Idenity is a big theme in Nation

Ravenhill at times captures the essence of Pratchetts story, with strong notions of what identity is between two different worlds, that of the British Empire and a ‘Barbarian Island’. Of course this is one of the themes running through the play, sorry, I mean ’spectacle’… yet somehow Ravenhill just doesn’t fulfill the text in such a way that it translates well. It doesn’t bring the true magic of fantasy storytelling to the stage, instead… it brings something that for me, falls flat.

I think it’s safe to say that after the first half there are far too many questions that have been raised, and failed to be answered. Whilst I understand that plots are meant to be developed, it’s almost like Ravenhill has opened a can of worms and hasn’t quite caught them all yet to work into the story/plot.

Of course it’s not just Ravenhill’s writing that lets this show down – the musical interludes and songs are shocking. I’m sorry, but was there any need for the songs? They seemingly attempted to add a flare of musicality to the production, but failed to get anywhere with actors who clearly are not meant to be singers. It was such a shame that some of the ensemble singing wasn’t stronger, hell, there was a big enough cast for it to be!

One form of puppetry in Nation

The devices used in Nation are too extreme and too many, a revolving stage, puppetry, visual affects, projectors and exploding scenery to name but a few. Whilst I understand that part of translating this fantasy world comes across through the visual aspects, there seemed to be no limits on how far the direction was taken with the design. Melly Still the director of Nation really did let her imagination go wild with help from Mark Friend on set design, but has she not learnt to also know when the imagination runs away from logic?

Some of the visual material was fantastic, no denying that – especially that of the underwater video projections which were very stunning (a big thumbs up to Jon Driscoll and Gemma Carrington, projection designers on this). Equally the way that the boats were represented on large cloth material (although done countless times before), actually brought a fresh burst of creativity to the mix, but this alone can’t bring the performance from the depths of “EEK”.

Emily Taaffe and Gary Carr

The acting was good, but not amazing, with Emily Taaffe as the British castaway figure of Daphne and Gary Carr as Mau the Island new-born Chief leading the production for the best part. Although admittedly I couldn’t quite believe that Taaffe was meant to be playing a 14 year old girl.. I’m sorry but my imagination couldn’t fathom this idea. Other notable praise for ‘good’ acting goes to an ensemble of energetic characters of natives, puppeteers and fine men and women.

Still as director has worked as best she could in this complex plot and miss-matched songs, to create a visually striking performance, but anything beyond this it lacks. It really is a shame. So whilst the National Theatre promote this as ‘family spectacle’ and whilst I’m sure it is enjoyable for children – for those of us who are looking at the National Theatre and thinking you represent our nation’s theatre… might just be disappointed.

Nation runs in the Oliver Theatre and is booking until 28 March 2010, see the National Theatre website for methods of booking.

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you’re celebrating.

Although eating lots of turkey and stuffing, etc., is a good enough reason by itself to have Thanksgiving, I particularly like the spirit of being thankful.

This year, more than ever, I’m grateful for writing. I’m grateful for the worlds I get to visit, the characters I come to know, the fun I have inventing and creating, the joy of a great turn of phrase. I’m grateful for the enjoyment writing gives me.

I’m also grateful for other writers, those who I’ve met on blogs, both who leave comments on mine and who write blogs of their own. Writers I’ve met through the Society of Childrens Book Writers & Illustrators. And the writers who have gone before me, carved out paths to publication and given me fantastic books that I can not only delight in reading, but also learn from. Some of my favorites right now: the books of Terry Pratchett, Suzanne Collins, Rick Riordan, Michael Buckley …

And, of course, I’m grateful for my husband, family and friends who continually encourage me.

What are you thankful for?

Write On!

Just finished reading The Truth by Terry Pratchett, another of his Discworld series. I feel completely embarrassed to discover that he’s been one of the most popular novelists in the UK (probably only barring J.K. Rowling, really) for decades.

It’s a bit how I felt when I didn’t really get the Stones until my twenties. Oh, sure, I liked the Stones, but I didn’t really get them. Then one day I was listening to Miss You on one of those wretched cross-country road-trips where you can only get bullshit classic rock, and it hit me like a ton of, well, stones: “Oh, you —-ing idiot, there’s a reason this band is considered one of (if not) the greatest ever. Because they are. I mean, that bassline alone…!”

Sometimes wisdom takes its sweet-ass time while you’re embarrassing yourself.

The point is, Terry Pratchett can write like very few people can. The fantasy version of Douglas Adams (although Pratchett is actually a few years older than Adams would have been- they were contemporaries) but with more a humanist beauty to his writing- even his evil-doers have a sympathy and forgiving humorous tick to them. And even though many of his endings tie their knots just so, it never feels contrived, forced or trite. It feels as it should be.

That’s quite the slight of hand. And he’s so very English. Which is why he was knighted, I suppose.

In the past couple of years, I’ve read The Truth, Guards! Guards!, Going Postal, Soul Music, and Making Money. Only 33 more to go!

Terry also was diagnosed with Alzheimers in  2007. Anyone wishing to make a donation in his name can do so at Match it for Pratchett.org.

There was a small part of Tiffany’s brain that wasn’t too certain about the name Tiffany. She was nine years old and felt that Tiffany was going to be a hard name to live up to. Besides, she’d decided only last week that she wanted to be a witch when she grew up, and she was certain Tiffany just wouldn’t work. People would laugh.

(Terry Pratchett, The wee free men, Doubleday, 2003)

( Not the cover as I have, but I couldn’t find the cover I have.)

8 Cds, aprox running time 8 hours and 20 mins.

Read by Nigel Planer

Isis Audio Books

On the Back cover:

How difficult could it be to make sure that a servant girl doesn’t marry a prince?

For the witches Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg and Magrat Garlick, traveling to the distant city of Genua, things are never simple. For one thing, all they’ve got is Mrs Gogol’s voodoo, a one eyed cat and a second-hand magic wand that can only do pumpkins. And they’re up against the malignant power of the godmother herself, who has made Destiny an offer it can’t refuse.

I really enjoyed listening to this installment of Discworld. In Witches abroad you get to go travelling  to far-flung Genua with Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg and Magrat Garlick. Magrat Garlick ( the wet hen) has inherited the job of fairy Godmothering and has been given a mission to save a young servant girl from marring a prince. In this adventure, Greebo , the cat, helps the witches in a way a cat is not usually able  to do!

I think this is my favourite adventure for the witches so far!  I was listening to this as I was doing my daily housework chores and I couldn’t help but laugh out loud and I had finished my chores quicker then I had ever finished them before! If you haven’t read or listened to any of the Discworld novels  I would definitly recommend them!

****

Pocket-globe chest

Jon Evans in 2008 talked on Tor.com about a spectrum with surreal fantasy at the far left, categorized by Marquez and Allende and systematic fantasy moving to the right categorized by books like ‘Little Big’.  He went on to say that the far left uses magic to illuminate and explore their characters and their struggles in our real world.

Plenty of people before me have agreed and disagreed with these sentiments and being an ingenue both in blogging (practically a virgin) and as a writer, I have only a basic opinion.  Terry Pratchett said in 2002 in an interview with Linda Richards on January Magazine.com that ‘magic realism’ is a polite way of saying you write fantasy.’  I am a fantasy writer.  My characters are affected by legend-based enchantment which reveals their strengths and weaknesses.  Their journey is a struggle through a world based on the sixteenth and seventeenth century Europe when for Mr.Average, life was dangerous and short.  Perhaps Mr.Evans should have redefined his argument to ‘real struggle in our contemporary world.’  Either way, I offer up two paras and ask: magic realism or fantasy?

Extract from The Stumpwork Robe (isbn: 9781849233262)

Ana left Adelina not long after and hastened down to the door of the Inn to take a step outside.  The glitter of snow and ice was so sharp her eyes closed to slits and she was momentarily blinded, walking carefully across the cobbles that separated her from the Celestine Stairway.

The road was empty of movement, sinister snow clouds sliding backwards and forwards over the sun, the wind taking cruel bites at anyone’s exposed skin.  Most journeymen had eschewed the frosted Stairway for the warmth of taverns and inns.  An ugly gust sent a flurry of snow flying up the walls and buttresses and baffled away at Ana’s unprotected ears.  She shrank back to the shelter of the porch and as she gazed at the grey and white striated distance, she heard footsteps shushing toward her – the four beat of an animal pushing through the snowdrifts.

Her hair prickled on her neck, each individual follicle rising and separating, goosebumps racing up her arms as she tried to discern the whereabouts of the sound.  To the left there was nothing, then to the right.  Only hard shadows against the corners of buildings, impenetrable blocks of dark where neither shade nor movement could be detected.  The padding came remorselessly on and she turned her head again, her feet horribly rooted through the snow to the very surface of the mountain.

A black shape detached itself from the corner and two amber eyes moved closer.  A giant shaggy dog as dark as doom approached quietly, its eyes burning into Ana’s

piercing her heart.  She gasped with horror as the gaze slid into her soul.  A tiny corner of that life-source within her crinkled a little more, as it had done when her father died.  The Black Dog, the Barguest, harbinger of the victim’s end, had marked her and she spun away, her hand scrabbling at the latch of the door, shoving it open and then slamming it behind, to lean against the portal, a shaking hand to her mouth.  She winced as a shadow passed outside, rippling across the bubbled glass of the window.  Violet, the tavern cat, arched a hackled back, spat and then ran hissing into the bar as if the Barguest would enter their tidy, happy world.

Extract from The Last Stitch (isbn: 9781849238182)

He led her at great speed to a mirror that would surely shatter, but launched at the glass anyway.  His senses swam as he barged through, but he swiftly mesmered any pain from Adelina’s passage and opened his eyes to see soft orchard colours – almond pink, leaf-bud green, apple blossom white, apricot blush, palest yellow peach.  His mouth watered at the thought of the ripe fruits and he stared at the masked faces of Others who pranced to the beats of the dance. And then he looked at Adelina, her black robe gone, her face a study of amazement as she fingered the heavenly silk of the stumpwork robe.  Sink me, unhurt and magnificent! And then he looked down at the cut velvet of his own garb  – the soft gold of a gooseberry.  How apt!

Both books are available on Amazon.com, Amazon.com.uk, B and N online and heaps of others.

So I was flipping through a magazine today and they had a page of photos of Twilight-themed goods available to buy online. One of these was a wall transfer that said:

It wasn't quite the same as this particular decoration, as it was in gothic script and had the '...' after 'Edward,' but this one is close enough.

 Yep. “I’m just a Bella, waiting for my Edward…” Oh how I lolled.

So I got to thinking about Twilight, which led to thought on vampires in general, and then I came across a general vampire meme, and I thought: I need to blog about this. So here we go, Ace’s Vampire Meme.

Ace’s Vampire Meme!

Why do you think people are fascinated by vampires?

The thing about vampires is that they appeal to our subconscious. People often associate vampire with death, or with sex, but it’s more than that. Vampires are dead, powerful, faster and stronger than us, dangerous, and often gorgeous and alluring.  They appeal to people because they’re like we are, only better. They’re also the perfect predator. Vampires represent the mysterious, the erotic, the dangerous. They’re all about the repressed or the darker side of our psyche. They’re dangerous, alluring, sexually desirable and aware, near-invulnerable, and they can do anything they like without fear of the consequences. They appeal to us because they are an outlet for all the things in our subconscious that we cannot let out.  In the past 15-20 years there’s been a lot of tortured-soul vampire stuff; from Angel in Buffy or Edward Cullen from Twilight to name the two most well-known examples; and that’s another aspect that appeals to people. Lots of people have some dark secret, some dilemma or addiction that is mucking up their life, and that’s what the ‘vampire as a tortured soul’ stuff really is. It’s a metaphor. So much vampire stuff is a metaphor for something.

 Coolest vampire stuff out there?

Well, obviously Buffy has to be on this list, which in a way is kind of a shame, because it deviates quite a bit from the established vampire mythos of pop culture. Vampires as soulless, ugly demons? Who steal their names from Doctor Who and look like Dark Lords from Harry Potter, only less cool? (You don’t know what I’m talking about, check out this guy. Totally Voldemort with a nose. And with no fashion sense, obviously.) All the same, Buffy is nonetheless a good show and doubtless reinvigorated the vampire mythos for a new decade and a new generation.

My personal favorite part of the vampire pop culture is the Betsy Taylor series of novels by MaryJanice Davidson, about a blonde valleygirl-type airhead who dies and wakes up Queen of the Vampires, much to her horror and dismay. The earlier ones are strongly comic supernatural romance, but the later ones are a lot stronger on plot and a little bit darker as Betsy reluctantly takes on the responsibility of being the Queen.

Finally, Carpe Jugulum (‘Seize the Jugular?’) by Terry Pratchett is awesome, for parodying the vampire genre even as it tells a great story. 

 Since everyone is asking this question; Team Edward or Team Jacob?

*frowny face* Honestly, I don’t particularly like either of them. Let’s go Team Alice. She’s bouncy and fun and slightly eccentric, and the actress who plays her in the movie is pretty, and hot.

Favorite vampire stereotype?

The true predatorial vampires, that is the dangerous killers vs. seducer type, probably, and the ‘Gothic Lolita’ female vampire you see a lot in manga; that is, flirty and feminine and kind of goth, but with frills and lace and cuteness. If they’ve combined gothic vampire dress with cute feminine dress and hairstyle, it’s probably a ’Gothic Lolita’ vampire.

A sketch of a 'Gothic Lolita' vampire... is it just me, or does she look vaguely like Britney Spears?

When  4 horses do not touch the ground, when Ice giants walk this earth, when hell freezes over, when hells weather is a top secret…secret.

Then Rincewind will rise again.

It actually took me less than a week to finish this one. I enjoyed it a lot.

To be total honest the whole lamp part was a bit lame (but I guess its cause I don’t really particularly like any Alladin-like dudes, the real thing is not excepted either)

The return of Rincewind is accompanied by the return of chaos and confusion in all levels of reality…and in some levels of imagination as well. And when death goes away….it always has the last saying…it naturally comes with the job anyway.

4/5

I have amongst my souvenirs, a signed copy of a Terry Pratchett Book, that also contains a line drawing of a Javelin.

Many years ago, when I heard Terry Pratchett talking about his breakthrough into reading and writing, he mentioned that he learned to read, sitting in the back of a Jowett Javelin. He courteously added the very accurate drawing to the signed book.

Waterstone’s Synopsis:

It’s the Discworld’s last continent and it’s going to die in a few days, except…Who is this hero striding across the red desert? Sheep shearer, beer drinker, bush ranger, and someone who’ll even eat a Meat Pie Floater when he’s sober. A man in a hat whose luggage follows him on little legs. Yes, it’s Rincewind, the inept wizard who can’t even spell wizard. He’s the only hero left. Still…no worries, eh?

This has become one of my favourite Discworld books. It is number 22 in the series and features the Wizards – the Wizards on holiday in fact! While trying to find someone who knows about geography they stumble through an open window onto a hot island. This window closes and they are stuck. Meanwhile, Rincewind is loose and trying to escape from whatever it is he is expected to do, as usual.

I loved this book. There were moments in it that I was crying with laughter – such as when the wizards trying to explain sex to a god. The wizards just lack common sense and magic, and it was so funny reading about them on a desert island and their attempt to get back to Unseen University. And there is the fact that they are stuck on the island with a woman….they are like hormonal teenage boys – very funny. And of course Rincewind always makes me laugh. He manages to save everyone in all his adventures, but essentially he does this by running away and being scared; and drinking beer.

I really enjoyed this book and got through it very quickly. We get a visit from Death in the book too which always makes me laugh – his wit is hilarious. The book is full of adventure and humour, as well as gripping storylines – I really wanted to know if they wizards would make it back in an edible boat – and amazing descriptions. Without fail Pratchett always transports me to the Discworld with no trouble and I love it. This is highly recommended.

9/10

Waterstone’s Synopsis:

Discworld goes to war, with armies of sardines, warriors, fishermen, squid and at least one very camp follower. As two armies march, Commander Vimes of Ankh-Morpork City Watch faces unpleasant foes who are out to get him…and that’s just the people on his side. The enemy might be even worse. “Jingo”, the 21st in Terry Pratchett’s phenomenally successful “Discworld” series, makes the World Cup look like a friendly five-a-side.

This is book 21 in the Discworld series and features the Watch. After finding an unoccupied area of land, Ankh-Morpork finds itself at war to claim this land – even though it is deserted and not particularly impressive. Everyone seems to have their own agenda and different ways of conquering and taking the land as their own.

I much preferred this book to the previous Watch book, Feet of Clay. I found the storyline more gripping and the characters amused me a lot more. The Watch are an amusing group of individuals – not all human, and they have many different talents. Carrot, the human raised as a dwarf always cracks me up. He is so sensitive and literal, and Detritus the troll was hilarious. Listening to him going “I’m gunna be thick” just made me laugh. His approach to politics – intimidate to get results amused me a lot.

I found this book back to Pratchett’s high standard. His writing style whisked me off to the Discworld and took me on an adventure as the Watch fought for politics which I enjoyed. The book was funny, full of fantasy and adventure and an enjoyable read. I love this series and cannot get enough of it.

8/10

Doesn't Mind Snakes (From 1 Mississippi, BackStroke Books, Karin Gustafson)

You  know those moments in which your life has exceeded all maximum legal occupancy rates and weights and is crashing straight down some shaft?

Or maybe it’s a question of balance.  In your case, it’s so off, that you’ve long passed the tipping point and are now crashing at the perfect tilt to cause maximum cranial damage.

Or perhaps there’s no direct crash.  Perhaps your life is overflowing to the point that the only way to save the levees is to swallow as much sea water as possible.

As if there weren’t already enough pressure, you suddenly remember an important appointment.  Because it had so completely slipped your mind, this moment of recollection  is fraught with anxiety.  You are certain, at first, that you have already missed the appointment.  In the next moment, you realize, with bare relief, that the important appointment is tomorrow.  But this hardly makes you feel better, because there’s no way that you’ll be ready even by the next day.  The anxiety that had gripped your heart shifts to your stomach.

What is worse is that you are going through this whole litany in the middle of a subway car rather than in one of those classic late-to-school, naked-in-class, day-of-the-test dreams (from which you could conceivably awake.)  

What do you do?    What are your options?

1.  Call in sick and stay home in bed obsessively reading Twilight.

2.  There are many much better books in the world;  call in sick and obsessively read one of those.

3.  Don’t just call in sick, actually get sick.  (This may even get you two or three days off the hook.)

4.  Consider computer games.

5.  Or baking.  If you do bake, make sure to save some treats for your boss.

6.  Stop waiting till 8 or 9 pm for your one glass of wine per day.

7.  Who said you had to stop at one?

8.  Finally, remember the wisdom of Nanny Ogg,  a Discworld persona  created by the incomparable Terry Pratchett.  In Carpe Jugulum, Nanny, a witch, and her colleague, Magrat Garlick, with newborn baby in tow, engage in a hazardous escape from (you guessed it) a vampire takeover which has defeated Granny Weatherwax.  As their rickety coach gets stuck in a flooding rainstorm, the baby’s diaper begins to smell, and Magrat complains of their plight, Nanny offers the comforting thought that their situation could be worse.

“How could it be worse?” Magrat asks incredulously.

“Well,”  Nanny says, “there could be snakes in here with us.”

Be thankful that New York City subway cars, by and large, do not house snakes.

(Sorry, by the way, for paraphrasing Pratchett from memory.   If you don’t know his many many wonderful books, check them out!)

And if you are stressed, long for the soothing of watercolors, don’t mind snakes, and would really really like to learn to count (with elephants), check out 1 Mississippi by Karin Gustafson on Amazon, or at the ManicDDaily homepage.

” Εν αρχή, δεν υπήρχε τίποτα, και μετά εξερράγη” ( Για την θεωρία του Big Bang)

” H πραγματική βλακεία πάντα νικάει την τεχνητή νοημοσύνη”

”Αυτό το πράγμα δεν μπορούσε να συμβαίνει, απλά γιατί τέτοια πράγματα δεν συμβαίνουν. Οποιοδήποτε  στοιχείο ενάντια σε αυτό, μπορούσε να αγνοηθεί με ασφάλεια”

”Οι ηλίθιοι είναι ικανοί να κάνουν πράγματα, που οι έξυπνοι άνθρωποι ούτε καν θα τολμούσαν να τα σκεφτούν”

Αλλά, ποιός είναι ο Τerry Pratchett?

( Να σημειώσω εδώ, για όσους ενδιαφέρονται, ότι έχω κάνει μιά σύντομη ανάλυση του ωροσκοπίου του, με ειδική αναφορά στην σπάνια ασθένεια  – μορφή του Alzheimer – που παρουσιάστηκε το 2007, στο μπλόγκ μου στην αγγλική )

http://thecatandastrologer.wordpress.com/

- Τα παραπάνω είναι λίγα δείγματα από τα πολλά – και πανέξυπνα , που γράφει στα βιβλία του ο συγγραφέας του φανταστικού – και όχι μόνον – Terry Pratchett.  Δεν είναι άλλωστε τυχαίο το ότι έχει πουλήσει πάνω από 65 εκατομύρια βιβλία ως τώρα , και τα έργα του έχουν μεταφραστεί σε 35 γλώσσες – και βέβαια και στα ελληνικά.

Eχει γράψει άπειρα έργα – η πιό γνωστή σειρά του είναι το ” Discworld”,  που αποτελείται μεχρι στιγμής, απο 37 βιβλία, το πρώτο από τα οποία ήταν το ”Colour of Magic”, και ακολούθησαν το ” The Light Fantastic”, και πολλά άλλα. Οι φανταστικές του – από κάθε άποψη -  ιστορίες , όπου αναμειγνύονται βαμπίρ, μάγισσες – καλές κυρίως – λυκάνθρωποι, τρολλς, και άνθρωποι , σε μιά ημι-ήρεμη συνύπαρξη, πάνω στον επίπεδο κόσμο του που τον κρατούν στην πλάτη τους 4 ελέφαντες που στέκονται πάνω σε μιά γιγάντια χελώνα(!), είναι γεμάτες περιπέτεια αλλά και τρελλό χιούμορ, που σε κρατάνε κολλημένο στο βιβλίο!

Πολλά έργα του έχουν γίνει ταινίες στην Αγγλική Τηλεόραση, όπως το ”Hogfather” , στο βίντεο που ακολουθεί, όπου και απεικονίζεται και το Discworld.

- Για να αναφέρω μόνο δύο από τις πάμπολλες εξαιρετικές κριτικές που έχουν γραφτεί γι’ αυτόν απο τους κριτικούς :

”Ολα σε μια ιστορία του Pratchett μπορούν να μεταμορφωθούν σε κάτι άλλο – απο το αστείο σε μιά βαθυστόχαστη παρατήρηση, απο ένα καθημερινό γεγονός σε καθαρή και ζωντανή φαντασία” ( The Times)

ή

”είναι διασκεδαστικός σε οποιαδήποτε μορφή, και η εντυπωσιακή του ευρηματικότητα κάνει την σειρά του Discworld μιά από τις διαχρονικές χαρές της λογοτεχνίας” ( Sunday Mail)

Δυστυχώς, χτυπήθηκε από την ασθένεια το 2007, μια ασθένεια που σιγά-σιγά καταστρέφει τα κύτταρα του οπίσθιου φλοιού του εγκεφάλου, με αποτέλεσμα προβλήματα στην όραση και την κίνηση, αρχικά, αλλά και απώλεια μνήμης και άλλες αρνητικές συνέπειες. Ομως, ο Terry Pratchett είναι σκληρός και αποφασισμένος να πολεμήσει όσο το δυνατόν την αρρώστεια. Αυτό άλωστε φάινεται και από το ωροσκόπιο του. Συνεχίζει να γράφει βιβλία, αν και δεν μπορεί να γράψει πιά ο ίδιος  – και γιά το σκοπό αυτό χρησιμοποιεί γραμματέα, αλλά και τα διαθέσιμα μέσα της τεχνολογίας.

Και του ευχόμαστε όλοι οι θαυμαστές του ‘Καλή δύναμη’ και να μας χαρίζει για πολλά χρόνια ακόμα τις διασκεδαστικές του περιπέτειες!

”TERRY PRATCHETT’s garden is as full of meandering paths, sudden dead ends and hidden gems as one of his Discworld novels. Copper-hued fish navigate their way through a weed-choked pond, a tray of Venus flytraps sits in a greenhouse that overflows with chillies the length of a child’s arm, and beady-eyed tortoises quietly crouch in a herbarium.

Pratchett himself is slight, dressed all in black. His famously luxuriant beard has been trimmed. His study looks like a medieval chapel, complete with cartoon-like cobwebs and wizardly paraphernalia: there’s a giant bronze lectern, Saturn hangs above a desk, a candle drips into a skull and a cat skulks amongst his papers.

Now 61, Pratchett was knighted this year and has been awarded the Order of the British Empire for services to literature. He is best known for the 37 books set in his fantasy kingdom of Discworld. A flat planet, balanced atop four elephants which are in turn perched upon a giant turtle flying through space, Discworld is like Lord of the Rings 500 years on – humans, werewolves, vampires and goblins live side by side semi-peacefully.”

So begins Sanjida O’ Connell  her recent article on Terry Pratchett in ”’New Scientist”.

Surely, Terry Pratchett, the British Fantasy fiction author, needs no further introduction. After all, he has sold over 65 million books in 35 languages. In the ’90s he was the top selling UK author, and his ” Discworld” series alone- the series that made him famous – consists of 36 + books, but has written many other books, a number of which have become TV films , e.g. ”The Colour of Magic”,and ”The Hogfather”. He has become a Knight of the Order of the British Empire in 2009, for his services to Literature.

His wit is unbeatable, mixed with a good dose of science fantasy, history and lore. And who else, but Terry Pratchett, could have written, or said, things such as the quotes below?

” The trouble with having an open mind is that people will insist on coming along and trying to put things in it ”

” Geography is just Physics slowed down, with a couple of trees stuck in it”

”In ancient times, cats  were worshipped as Gods. They have not forgotten this.”

”Education was like a communicable venereal disease – It made you unsuitable for many jobs, and you had the urge to pass it on”

- Let ’s now look at  Pratchett’s astrological chart -  the time of birth is not known – and see what it can tell us about the attributes of his personality as it has emerged from his books, his interviews , and other events of his life.

Terry Pratchett was born on April 28, 1948, in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, UK. The chart below is his natal Solar chart in the inner circle, with his secondary progressed chart for 2007, when he was unfortunately diagnosed with having posterior cortical atrophy(PCA), arare form of Alzheimer’s disease, that affects first vision and motor nerve activity.

Terry Pratchett-Natal and Sec.Prog.2007

In his natal chart, we see the close conjunction of the Sun with Mercury in Taurus, thus the Mercurial qualities in his work and personality. He published his first story at 13 in the school magazine, was a journalist at first and later concentrated on his books, producing on average two books yearly. This Mercury-Sun conjunction is squared by the very strong conjunction of the three  planets in Leo – Pluto, Saturn , Mars. ( I believe that, although Mars is a  9 degrees away, this is still a conjunction, and thus all its planets are squaring the Sun-Mercury conjunction).

This very strong combination shows his devotion to his writing and the  intensity of it. His books are full of the mystical, the magical and his deep knowledge of all things metaphysical comes up in his work. Death – with a capital D – is a prominent character in many of his books – quite characteristic of a person with this planetary configuration.

Although the exact position of the Moon cannot be known due to the lack of the exact time of birth, it is within the range of  1 to 13 degrees of Capricorn ( 7 degrees shown in the chart), and is therefore in trine to the Sun-Mercury conjunction, showing the harmony within himself and the ease of communication and  excellent wit. At the same time , the Moon is squaring Neptune – and only Moon-Neptune can have such a rich fantasy world.  And Terry Pratchett, with the aid of Mercury ,  so successfully communicates his fantastic creations to large numbers of people through his writings!

The Sun-Mercury conjunction is at 150 degrees ( inconjunct) aspect to Neptune, reinforcing  his ability for  imaginative creations, as well as  being responsible for his ” humanism, both in a sentimental regard for his characters’ good fortune, and in that his writing is generous-spirited and inclusive.” as the ‘Guardian’ writes.

And, of course, Venus, ruler of his sunsign, is in close conjunction to Uranus , and opposition to Jupiter, showing his love of computers, computer games , but also the new and the original, and being an indicator of his great humour.

If we look at the progressed chart of the year 2007, what is most prominent is the conjunction of prog. Mercury and prog. Venus ( Of course, there are other indicators, but I should like to concentrate on this for now). This was , as mentioned above, the year when he was diagnosed, as having PCA. That was following an initial wrong diagnosis of having had a stroke in the last couple of years. Taking into account that the first symptoms are some impairment in vision and motor nerve activity – both Mercury -related activities – Mercury becomes important.

It is also noteworthy that both Mercury and Venus had turned retrograde a few years back. Mercury turned retrograde when he was  44 , in 1992, and Venus a few years before that. This disease is probably one that starts at an earlier stage, is slow  in development, thus it might have started when Mercury became retrograde at 7 degrees of Cancer, in opposition to the natal Moon.

Terry Pratchett announced that he was diagnosed with the disease on Dec.11, 2007. At the time, Transiting Pluto and Jupiter were about to enter Capricorn and oppose the progressed Mercury-Venus conjunction , and transiting Mars had turned retrograde in Cancer, in opposition to natal Moon, close to conjuncting  the progressed position. Terry’s strife had started. He is determined to fight the disease , continue to write his books with the aid of electronic media, and also help other people with the same condition – he has donated one million pounds for the research into the disease to help further investigation into this condition.

And I, amongst the millions of his fans, wish him ‘All the Best’ in his fight, and may he have many more productive years!

Reviews. How hard can they be? Quite difficult, actually, which is why I do my own version of the things, carefully avoiding a lot of intelligent musings on a variety of literary stuff. In short, I don’t know how, so I cheat. But I do know not to just list the plot, step by step, or to tell the end in detail.

I never did get round to reading the Striped Pyjamas, because I hated being told the ending in the Guardian review. Didn’t even see it coming. These days I squint carefully at a review if the book is still waiting to be read hereabouts. In fact, I was a little annoyed at being told too much about Running Wild a few weeks ago, too.

The Guardian review of Terry Pratchett’s Unseen Academicals seemed to be only a list of what happens. Couldn’t work out if the reviewer even liked it. I wonder what people get paid for that kind of thing? I could easily summarise novels in 600 words for payment. I’ll even throw in 100 words of opinion if required.

The other question can be what to review. I was very pleased to see that the Halloween issue of the Guardian covered two of my selected Halloween books. Generally we don’t seem to attach importance to the same books.

What length? The Guardian does a crime column with about four crime novels very briefly reviewed. Barbara from Scandinavian Crime Fiction recently felt that that was just too brief. But better than not at all, I feel.

Crime and children’s books; always forgotten or ignored. Except here, naturally.

Terry Pratchett is one of this nation’s favourite authors. He was our biggest selling and most shoplifted writer until very recently. His books are mostly set on a flat, disc-shaped world that rests on the back of four giant elephants… Oh and those elephants stand atop the great world turtle, A’Tuin.

If you are a Discworld fan, that makes perfect sense. If you aren’t, you should probably give one a go. Nation isn’t set on this world. It is set in a world very similar to ours, and very different in its own ways.

It follows the story of Mau. Mau has left the Nation in order to become a man. He has travelled to a place where he must survive long enough to make the journey back. If he makes it back, he shall be a man. Women shall through themselves at him, and he will be respected.

In some distant strand of the multi-verse, that is where the story ended.

As Mau sails home and prepares himself for his welcome back feast, an immense wave rips through the ocean, and indeed his beloved Nation. Everyone is dead, leaving Mau alone on this mass grave that was once everything he had.

The first few chapters of the book offer few laughs. They are instead very melancholic and nightmarish. Mau is seemingly possessed by death itself, as he militantly buries the bodies of his loved ones.

It is at this point the theme of identity is addressed. Mau hasn’t been welcomed back as a man, yet he is no longer a boy. So what is he? Well he is very angry. For the next portion of the story, we turn to passionate God hating and arguing with invisible granddads, who conveniently disappear later on in the story.

Soon enough other surviours from surrounding islands begin to turn up, but not before we are introduced to our heroin, Daphne (aka Ermintrude). She was onboard the ‘Sweet Judy’, a large canoe as Pratchett puts it, which was caught in the wave and swept through the Nation’s jungle.

Daphne is a character far too rich for a novel of this size. Her back-story, whilst interesting and multi-layered is perhaps a little confusingly told and a bit flabby. Pratchett clearly had a lot of ideas about this character, but not the word count to express them all.

As the book moves toward a conclusion, we see a major antagonist dealt with as hastily as he was introduced, and we see an ending that is anything but concise. The irony with this book is that it is trying so hard to make points, it becomes a mess of insights and unexpanded comments. Sadly, in the end, ultimately pointless.

It is good fun however, so worth a read, but as the story progresses it becomes strikingly similar to several Discworld plots. It’s not bad and it’s not a masterpiece. It is colourful, funny and average.

It is slightly embarrasing to have failed to go to the theatre for six months only to return for the National’s christmas kids show. That said they usually put on a bloody good show: there version of His Dark Materials was excellent and I have fond memories of Alan Bennett’s The Wind In The Willows. You certainly get a good bang for your buck in terms of seeing your ticket price on stage. Unfortunately, last night that was about all you got.

This year’s production was Nation, adapted from Terry Pratchett’s novel by Mark Ravenhill. I had been looking forward to buying Nation when it came out in paperback, the first time this has happened with a Pratchett for a while. Now, either Nation is the worst and least Pratchett-y novel Pratchett has ever written or Ravenhill has written a bad adaptation. Since it falls prey to many pitfalls that can happen regardless of source material – too much has been crammed in; events are too compressed; awful, pointless songs have been inserted at random – I suspect the latter.

Two young adults, Mau (Gary Carr) and Daphne (Emily Taaffe), both find themselves isolated following a devastating tsunami. In Mau’s case, the other inhabitants of his South Pacific island (the Nation) are drowned; in Daphne’s case, she is shipwrecked on Mau’s island on the way from Britain to see her Governer father. They very quickly meet, overcome the language barrier and become firm friends and proto-lovers, all the while engaging in Post-colonisalism 101. There are a couple of good culture clash jokes but there was also an awful lot of standing around Declaiming and Enunciating and Acting. Ravenhill totally misjudges the balance of humour and serious comment present in all Pratchett novels, instead coming up with a wet liberal lesson with occassional pantomime flourishes. (It terms of both direction and design it often resembled a sort of Beginner’s Guide to The Royal Hunt Of The Sun.)

Most of the panto (and most of the fun) comes from Milton (Jason Thorpe), the ship’s parrot, who is given to blurting out mild swears and inapproriately repeating other characters’ lines. You can’t go wrong with a swearing parrot, particularly in a theatre full of kids, but it isn’t going to sustain you for two and a half hours. Instead we have an extremely leisurely meander through various subplots which never really cohere. Some of these – such as those involving Locaha, god of the underworld – are nicely done but too often they are reliant on underpowered set pieces. Others are utterly superfluous: presumably in the book The Gentlemen of Last Resort play a reasonable role but here they are just wheeled on, unexplained, and wheeled off. All they manage to do is set up a very silly panto finish in which Daphne’s dad is coronated. This unexpected comic scene was a welcome burst of fun but was immediately undercut by a scene made of pure sap that framed the play as a myth.

Den aningen galne sonen var uppe i ottan på onsdag morgon för att flyga över till London på ett dygn. Han skulle gå på teatern, och det är precis sådant beteende som skadar ozonskiktet, men ibland behöver man lite galenskap, också. Han mötte sin mamma vid tåget, och efter en långpromenad genom stan hamnade vi på National Theatre vid Themsen, där kvällens föreställning ägde rum.

Terry Pratchetts senaste barnbok Nation har dramatiserats som årets barnteater på National. De har ju haft en rad lyckade sådana ett tag nu. Gemensamt för alla böckerna är att man kan inte riktigt räkna ut hur i all världen någon kan skriva om handlingen till att fungera på en scen. Men det kan de.

Den som inte läst Nation, kan börja med att göra det. Sedan kan jag rekommendera National Theatre för er som kvistar över till London då och då. Förra årets succé War Horse går fortfarande på en annan teater i London, och är väl värd att titta på. Åtminstone för folk som har vett att ta med sig en näsduk eller två.

Nation börjar med en tsunami för att bli av med hela öbefolkningen utom huvudpersonen Mau. (Så det kan givetvis vara värt att fundera på vem som kan ha problem med en sådan start.) Flickan Daphne lider skeppsbrott på ön, och sedan får dessa två barn som först inte kan prata med varandra, försöka klara sig själva, och senare alla andra som hamnar på ön, sökande efter hjälp.

Det är mycket humor och mycket mod, precis som i Terrys bok. Mau är fin att titta på, i sitt nästan nakna tillstånd, och Daphne som är en proper viktoriansk liten flicka, går snart omkring i bastkjol. Och skeppspapegojan är helt underbar. Man skulle kunna tro att få rollen som papegoja skulle kännas som ett nederlag, men han är fantastisk!

(Foto © Johan Persson –  Emily Taaffe som Daphne)

As a job description ‘parrot’ can’t strike an actor as the most marvellous of parts to land, but as with all previous birds at the National Theatre, this parrot is almost the best in the whole play. Almost. The vultures aren’t exactly lovely, but cleverly done. But as I said, Milton the parrot, played by Jason Thorpe was loved by all.

And for all ladies currently swooning over a certain vampire actor, I can recommend Gary Carr, who is Mau in Nation. As Daphne, the young English girl says when she encounters Mau the first time, he really is a very fine specimen. Unfortunately the very lightly clad Mau wears trousers in the second half.

Melly Still and Mark Friend have done a great job of making the NT stage into a tsunami wrecked tropical island that’s believable, and Mark Ravenhill has adapted Terry Pratchett’s Nation in an imaginative way. After seeing several children’s novels adapted to the stage at the NT, I’ve stopped worrying about how it can possibly be done. It can. It’s as simple as that.

Mau is left alone on his (alternate) Pacific island after the tsunami strikes, and Daphne (or Ermintrude as she is called at first) is washed ashore off her English ship. They learn to understand each other as they go along, and as the island collects more survivors from elsewhere. Mau learns how to be a chief, despite his young age, and Daphne, played by Emily Taaffe,  becomes adept at making beer and spitting in it, and in helping babies being born, which is unusual for a 19th century girl whose father is 139th in line to the throne. She gives up her stays and switches to a straw skirt.

It was clear from the shocked gasps from the audience when *** that many hadn’t read the book, whereas your witch was able to be quite calm about it.

The novel has been changed a little, but I surprised myself by being surprised at how touching the end is. While providing entertainment and fun, Nation also gives us something to think about.How we live, how to make choices, how to run a country whether you are an island chief or the King of England.

And the parrot is great. Did I already mention that?

(Photo © Johan Persson – Jason Thorpe as Milton the parrot, Emily Taaffe as Daphne and Gary Carr as Mau)

Terry Pratchett is one of my favouritest authors EVAH!  His Discworld series is a sublime mixture of laugh-out-loud humour (real laughing out loud, not the ridiculously overused LOL garbage) and wry observations of humanity.  His characters are real people…well, animals sometimes…with quirks and foibles, but you can’t help loving them.  Even his villains are likable.  It’s true!

So, in honour of me having just finished Pratchett’s latest book, Unseen Academicals, I am holding a trivia contest.  One randomly selected winner who can correctly answer the following two-part question will win a $10 gift card to Barnes and Noble.  The contest will go until 8:00 pm Eastern tonight (19 Nov) and I’ll announce the winner sometime after that.  Sound good?  All righty then.  Away we go!

What is the name of Pratchett’s villain who uses “ing” in place of more colourful curses and in what book does s/he appear?

Leave your answers in the comments section.  Comments are held for moderation so they won’t appear instantaneously.  Good luck!

EDIT: Contest closed with no entries.  Huh.  Either $10 isn’t enough or the question was too hard.  I’ll do another contest next week with an easier question, but not a bigger prize.  $10 is all I can afford right now.  Starving artist, you know.

It was my second tsunami of the week. (Although you have to wait until tomorrow for the first one. Wrong order, I know, but it can’t be helped.) It’s funny how things just happen like that. With madness running in the witch family, Son dug himself out of his Uppsala bed pretty early (3.15 GMT, as he kept pointing out) and flew over to London for Random’s preview evening of Nation at the National Theatre last night. (For carbon footprint purposes this didn’t actually happen…)

Lovely evening. Free drinks and nice company, and the play was very good, too. But if you want to know more, you’ll have to head over to Culture for your theatre review. It’s a wonder how anyone can produce a stage drama featuring a believable tsunami from a novel never intended as anything other than a book.

Exhausted from wandering all over London in the afternoon, Son and I headed for north London and the house of Sally Gardner, for beds for the night. I’m still absolutely amazed that someone would offer accommodation on such very short acquaintance, but I always knew children’s authors are the loveliest bunch of people. Arriving at the unsociable hour of the middle of the night, Sally served us tea – which she turns three times in the pot like her grandmother – and digestive biscuits, both of which were real life savers.

Two dachshunds and friendly conversation in the kitchen of a house that needs to appear in a house magazine, was a nice way to finish our day. It’s that arty north London kind of thing, which impresses peasants from the north of England.

This morning I packed Son off to his plane, and hung around for a while, but when the mouse catcher arrived I took my leave. ☺Pure coincidence.

(Photo © Johan Persson – Jason Thorpe as Milton the parrot, Emily Taaffe as Daphne and Gary Carr as Mau)

Good Omens (1990), Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman

Do you think any current author is of the same caliber as Dickens, Austen, Bronte, or any of the classic authors? If so, who, and why do you think so? If not, why not? What books from this era might be read 100 years from now?

I think posterity will be quite different in a century from now. With the ease and accessibility of books and, yes, even eBooks, nearly everything published is going to survive the years. Fan culture, instead of English teachers and literary critics, will dictate what texts survive the most visibly. A book is no longer a last manuscript languishing in an antique shop- it’s widespread and, importantly, can be digitized. If the data is destroyed, the copies of the book remain, and vice versa. I’m sure there are plenty published contemporaries of Austen and Dickens who have faded into oblivion. I don’t think that’s going to happen for books published now and in the future.

I’m not quite sure if I can make an assessment concerning what will survive the best, but I’ll give it a shot.

I hope Neil Gaiman’s works will be well read, especially American Gods, Anansi Boys, and Good Omens, which he co-wrote with Terry Pratchett. Since The Wizard of Oz is still such a cultural touchstone (China Glaze, a nail polish company, just rereleased a nail polish collection based on it), I think that Gregory Maguire’s Wicked will survive along with it, especially if the musical remains popular. As I’ve said, fan culture will dictate what lives the most visibly, and in that case, Harry Potter will be read often. As well it should- every kid needs a good, long fantasy series.