Arthur: The Seeing Stone

Arthur: The Seeing Stone
Kevin Crossley-Holland
2002 Paperback 342 pages $6.99

I have no idea why I pick a book up, read a few pages, then put it down with a shrug, only to come back a month or so later, and gobble the book down almost without stopping. This happens to me all the time, and I have no idea why. I wind up stalling on a book, then coming back later and wondering what I was waiting for.

The Seeing Stone is organized in a series of vignettes about bookish young Arthur, fascinated by Merlin's teachings, and dreaming of the day that he will be allowed to train as a knight. His older brother is sometimes a bully, especially when Arthur's knightly skills like jousting fall short, and Arthur ends up in the mud.  Sound familiar? Comparisons to other retellings of the Arthurian legend are probably inevitable. Merlin plays a role of mystery, guiding Arthur toward glimpses of a magical destiny, or alternate history, of another Arthur living a parallel life.

Because the story was set up as vignettes, full of dreamy and slippery imagery, it was hard to get into the rhythm of the story at the start. Which might be why I picked it up and put it down a bit. But-- purely wallowing in the delights of the scenery and the magic brought me into the story. Although the magic was beautifully described, what appealed to me the most about the story was the ordinariness of most of Arthur's life. He was an ordinary kid, pestered by an older brother, worshiped by a younger sister, listening to his grandmother's fireside stories. I love how bound to his family Arthur is, and the warmth of them as supporting characters. I've never read Malory's original, but have dabbled in other retellings. Arthur always seemed heartbreakingly lonely to me.

How his seeing stone destiny worked got a little murky at times. Visions in the seeing stone built a parallel Arthur universe, more in line with the familiar stories of Arthur, son of Uther. As the story goes on, though, even the Arthur we're following around gets immersed in his visions; to the point where it's hard to tell which Arthur is which, or what the relationship between the two stories really is. Because this is a first book, I have faith that the next two volumes will make that clearer. Also-- I owe myself a reread of Mary Stewart's Merlin series.

Gods Behaving Badly- Review

Gods Behaving Badly
Marie Phillips
Back Bay Books, paperback $13.99 310 pages

The Greek gods are still with us. And crammed into a dilapidated flat in London. They squabble, have sex, have revenge, and have tried to adjust to 21st century life with varying degrees of success. Artemis is a dogwalker. Aphrodite runs a phone sex business. Eros has discovered Christianity and morality, much to his mother's dismay. Demeter works in the garden. Apollo's launching a talk show.

One thing they've all noticed- their powers certainly aren't what they used to be on Olympus. Their powers might be... running out. Which means that they have to resort to the aforementioned squabbling and grudges, just like, well, badly behaved people. An analogy to "Real World: Mount Olympus" wouldn't be misplaced.

Enter the adorable, painfully shy mortals, Neil and Alice, attending Apollo's talk show. A grudge gone wrong and then more wrong, an arrow to the heart, and an unfortunate camera angle means that Apollo's television career is doomed. And Alice has a new gig, cleaning house for the dysfunctional crew of gods.

I loved this book. I started reading it at the book swap, and was giggling (and blushing, did I mention Aphrodite's job!) almost immediately. The idea of Greek gods living in London and giving each other grief is funny enough. But the whole narrative is infused with a wonderfully droll, and, well, British sense of humor. It reminded me of Good Omens in all the best possible ways. Only with more overt raunch. It was terrific, somewhat fluffy, fun. Great stuff!

The Science of Marriage, or Weddings as a Spectator Sport

For Better: The Science of a Good Marriage
Tara Parker-Pope
Dutton Adult May 2010
$25.95 356 pages

I'm at "that age" when lots of my friends and family members in their twenties and thirties are getting married. I love going to weddings. It's a great big party with food, music, and two people promising to be good to each other. Weddings make me grin goofily and cry. (Often both at once, which is one of many reasons I don't wear mascara.)

Over the past few months, I've been reading a lot about marriage and relationship science, as well as smiling and sniffling at a few dear friends' weddings. Right now, weddings are a spectator sport for me, which makes reading about the science of marriage an interesting, if speculative, cultural study.

I love reading Tara Parker-Pope's writing in the New York Times, I think I might have alarmed her a little at BEA when I gleefully requested her autograph. I don't think she was expecting a fangirl.  Parker-Pope's writing throughout the book was wonderfully clear and conversational, exactly what I love from popular science writing, and had come to expect from her blog.

As with other books I've read on the subject, Tara Parker-Pope's  For Better: The Science of a Good Marriage seemed to have sound relationship advice, backed by a rich selection of interesting scientific studies. It's the kind of good advice that boils down to: be nice and respectful of each other. Whether you're talking about marriage, or any other kind of relationship, even friendship, it's a good idea to take away items like:

Don't roll your eyes. Showing contempt erodes love and trust.

"For every negative interaction you and your spouse have, it takes five positive interactions to build trust back up." There is a trend toward couples being each other's everything, best friend, psychological support, and I don't need a book to tell me that puts huge pressure on a relationship.  Being free of conflict in a relationship doesn't mean all is well- it's healthier to fight fair and respectfully, to get conflicts and needs out in the open, and solved or compromised.  (Drat! I like not arguing!)

Reading these as someone who's not married (though daydreaming about it someday) I can take this as good advice for all of my relationships, not just the romantic kind. Confession time- I'm not fond of arguing, and I'm an eye-roller. I may smile affectionately when I roll my eyes, and I may mean it as gentle humor, but there keep being studies saying that's bad news! I resolve to do better.

This post is dedicated to Chris and Rachel, who are getting married on Monday. And dedicated to the couples who will be able to plan weddings in California, now that Prop 8 has been repealed!