https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghihTDNuMDA It seems like finally, spring has sprung up here in cold, foggy Scotland! The sun is shining, Arthur's Seat is glistening in the sun, and I feel super cool in my sunglasses (alright, maybe not that cool, but still). There's not much that can beat a walk through a sunlit Edinburgh, except maybe having an … Continue reading Clarinda’s Tea Room (Edinburgh)
‘I can’t do magic, sir’, Christopher said. 'So can’t a lot of people. Some are born that way,’ Dr. Pawson bawled. 'Do better than that, Chant. Show me. Don’t do some magic and let me see.’ Yes yes yes! Here, at the end of February, we have made it to my absolute favourite Diana Wynne … Continue reading The Lives of Christopher Chant – Chrestomanci 4
The note said: SOMEONE IN THIS CLASS IS A WITCH. Wooh! It's week 3 of our Chrestomanci series, and we are back in school, baby! A lot of the Chrestomanci stories are school stories, and I would say the best of them are. This one is the schooliest of the novels though, as … Continue reading Witch Week – Chrestomanci #3
Wooh, welcome to the second installment of Chrestomanci month*! So if you follow us on Facebook, or Twitter, or Instagram (we are so modern and down with it), you may have noticed that this post came with its own personal drama. Don't worry though, the creative juices are flowing, and the book is still fresh in my mind! Also … Continue reading The Magicians of Caprona – Chrestomanci #2
Wait, is that Hogwarts? Why yes, yes it is. Welcome to Februari on the blog, where we'll be going through one of the best fantasy quartets ever: Diana Wynne Jones's Chrestomanci series. Diana Wynne Jones was a brilliantly funny, creative and engaging children's fiction writer, and she is definitely not famous enough. This was one talented lady, and … Continue reading Charmed Life – Chrestomanci #1
Subtitle: I am so confused! Is the brain a map that leads down twisted paths and into hidden corners? Then when we die, the map is lost but perhaps some explorer could wander through that strange landscape and find out the hiding places of our misplaced memories. We made it! This week's review marks the … Continue reading Children of the Mind – Ender’s Quartet #4
Alright, it's week 3 in Ender's sci-fi month, and the Star Wars hype is calming down as we reach the climax of the Ender's Quartet! Pooh, so here is where it is starting to get too difficult to write concise summaries for the stories. The story continues from where we left off in Speaker for the … Continue reading Xenocide – Ender’s Quartet #3
No human being, when you understand his desires, is worthless. No one's life is nothing. Even the most evil of men and women, if you understand their hearts, had some generous act that redeems them, at least a little, from their sins. Ooh I love this one. Although Ender's Game is about children, and is … Continue reading Speaker for the Dead – Ender’s Quartet #2
At last he came to a door, with these words in glowing emeralds: THE END OF THE WORLD He did not hesitate. He opened the door and stepped through. 2016 has been marked already by the release of Star Wars, the Force Awakens. Honestly, I've never been a fan, but after having seen … Continue reading Ender’s Game – Ender’s Quartet #1
An impossibility is just a possibility you don't understand. It's Christmas!! Well, okay, so it kind of isn't. Not yet at least. But with everything decorated so prettily, and the trees, markets and Glühwein, I can't help but feel absolutely festive already. So in light of my Christmas-y mood, I decided to take matters into … Continue reading A Boy Called Christmas
Tea & Tales 