meganbmoore (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
meganbmoore) wrote2010-07-24 09:39 pm
meganbmoore) wrote2010-07-24 09:39 pm
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The Night of the Solstice and Heart of Valor by L.J. Smith
These books fall under the “I read these when I was 12 and was in love and then couldn’t remember who the author was when I lost my copies” category. I’m pretty sure that they are the source of my lifelong love for Morgan le Fay, as well as why I always have a moment of confusion when Arthur-returned figures are male.
In The Night of the Solstice, Alys, Janie, Charles and Claudia Hodges-Bailey are loyal-but-not-really-close siblings ranging in age from about 8-15. When a fox belonging to their mysterious neighbor, Morgana Shee, asks though Claudia to rescue her mistress, they go on a quest into the Wildworld (faery) to rescue her. The book starts of looking like it may take the Narnia route with the youngest sibling encountering the otherworld and the rest not believing her, but the similarities are quickly dispelled, though, for the most part, the plot is somewhat standard for “kids find fairyland,” though the world is a bit darker than I remember others being. What’s noteworthy is that it’s the sisters who get the more active, traditionally heroic roles, and Charles who keeps getting distracted by Beautiful Others, and doesn’t always keep his mind on things. This may be highlighted by the end, where the siblings get their dearest wish granted. Alys gets a horse meant for heroes, Jane gets to be an apprentice sorceress, Claudia gets to talk to animals, and Charles gets a container of krypton, because that’s the closest thing there is to kryptonite. These are fairly stereotypical girl/boy wishes, but spun in a way that the stereotyped girlie wishes are the ones that lead to importance and heroism, and the boyish wish has no practical use. Also, when they meet Morgana, unlike most adults in similar situations, she doesn’t praise them for their bravery and ingenuity and risking their lives, but goes “Oh blippetty blip I have five minutes to save the universe and I have to make sure you kids don’t die in the crossfire? Gaaah!”
I think I read the sequel Heart of Valor first when I was younger. At the least, it’s the one that I remembered. This is where Smith gets into Arthurian legend, and I think it’s the first time (one of the few times) I saw a positive take on both Morgan and Guenevere at the same time. Smith’s version of Arthurian myth is closer to the pre-medieval myths than the better known medieval adaptations, and she delves further into more specific Celtic mythologies, as well as the siblings discovering more about their individual paths.
The books aren’t quite as awesome as I thought they were when I was younger (And I can’t help but roll my eyes at what I now know are Marks Of Specialness, like Alys instead of Alice, and Janie having purple eyes.) but they’re still pretty fun, and it’s easy to see why certain aspects of them stuck firmly in my head for well over a decade.
In The Night of the Solstice, Alys, Janie, Charles and Claudia Hodges-Bailey are loyal-but-not-really-close siblings ranging in age from about 8-15. When a fox belonging to their mysterious neighbor, Morgana Shee, asks though Claudia to rescue her mistress, they go on a quest into the Wildworld (faery) to rescue her. The book starts of looking like it may take the Narnia route with the youngest sibling encountering the otherworld and the rest not believing her, but the similarities are quickly dispelled, though, for the most part, the plot is somewhat standard for “kids find fairyland,” though the world is a bit darker than I remember others being. What’s noteworthy is that it’s the sisters who get the more active, traditionally heroic roles, and Charles who keeps getting distracted by Beautiful Others, and doesn’t always keep his mind on things. This may be highlighted by the end, where the siblings get their dearest wish granted. Alys gets a horse meant for heroes, Jane gets to be an apprentice sorceress, Claudia gets to talk to animals, and Charles gets a container of krypton, because that’s the closest thing there is to kryptonite. These are fairly stereotypical girl/boy wishes, but spun in a way that the stereotyped girlie wishes are the ones that lead to importance and heroism, and the boyish wish has no practical use. Also, when they meet Morgana, unlike most adults in similar situations, she doesn’t praise them for their bravery and ingenuity and risking their lives, but goes “Oh blippetty blip I have five minutes to save the universe and I have to make sure you kids don’t die in the crossfire? Gaaah!”
I think I read the sequel Heart of Valor first when I was younger. At the least, it’s the one that I remembered. This is where Smith gets into Arthurian legend, and I think it’s the first time (one of the few times) I saw a positive take on both Morgan and Guenevere at the same time. Smith’s version of Arthurian myth is closer to the pre-medieval myths than the better known medieval adaptations, and she delves further into more specific Celtic mythologies, as well as the siblings discovering more about their individual paths.
The books aren’t quite as awesome as I thought they were when I was younger (And I can’t help but roll my eyes at what I now know are Marks Of Specialness, like Alys instead of Alice, and Janie having purple eyes.) but they’re still pretty fun, and it’s easy to see why certain aspects of them stuck firmly in my head for well over a decade.