The Stars Like Dust was the first Asimov book I read, back in Garden International School, when I was about 14 years old. I remember coming across it in the secondary school library, and read it a few times throughout my school year. But ever since I left school, I’ve been unable to buy, borrow or steal a copy for 10 years… until now. I saw it being a released in a new edition at Borders bookstore and snapped it up immediately. It’s basically a simple space-adventure story, with an ending that is a little propangandic for the United States / democracy. Isaac Asimov himself had remarked that it was the book that he least liked among all 100+ stories that he had written. Maybe that’s why I haven’t been able to find a reprint of the book anywhere until now, 17 years after he died. It even says in the flyleaf that it was published with permission from the Estate of Isaac Asimov, so I’m guessing his relatives must have finally agreed to it.

But I don’t care… even if Asimov himself hated the book, I loved it, and still do, despite its’ flaws. No one can hate the first book that introduced them to an author they love. The Stars Like Dust was that for me.

Soon, with rival kingdoms at war, political skulduggery, sorcery and secrets hidden for generations coming to light, and even rising tensions between the humans who birthed her and the intelligent Royal Beasts who raised her, Firekeeper goes through a whole host of adventures in lands fascinating and foreign. What I really appreciate about this series is the depth of the world-building involved.

Lindskold may not always tell the most riveting or action-packed of stories, and the plot sometimes staggers along without being as smooth-flowing as some other writers, but the sheer depth and complexity of the thought that has been put into the world that Firekeeper inhabits is mind-boggling.Whole societal structures, belief systems, languages and syntax, geography, history and magic are created and viewed through the eyes of the simple girl who thinks she’s a wolf, and finds out that she’s something much more complex. The clash of cultures and worldviews is something that comes across very well, and it’s a treat to see how deftly that’s handled by the author. It’s a world that rivals Tolkien’s Middle-Earth for its depth and richness (with the possible exception of Elvish poetry).

And the author takes advantage of that excellently. Time and time again, Firekeeper and her wolfish companion Blind Seer are whisked away to foreign lands, where they have to deal with even more complex societies, where politics, magic and religion mix in strange new forms. More and more, with each successive book, mysteries about the world and the secrets behind the Plague that destroyed all magic-users generations ago are revealed. New societies of Man and Beast co-existing in different ways… and how Firekeeper acts as a catalyst upon the world, changing the way things work, bringing more of the world’s nations together, because she is separated from all of them. And her essential loneliness is shown to us too… a being in between the worlds of Man and Beast, belonging to neither and both at the same time.

Admittedly, the narrative is complex and can sometimes get a bit bogged down in political drama and the endless travelling between countries. It sometimes feels like the narrative of a MMORPG fetch-and-carry quest, where the main character constantly travels from one end of the world to the other, bringing messages and fighting battles along the way. Yet the sheer richness of the world and the mystery behind the magic is something that keeps drawing you back. If you can take the slow and complex pace, and enjoy the richness of the world, you’ll find this series an enjoyable one.

Wolf’s Blood feels like the culmination of the entire series, though the ending is predictably open-ended. But many beloved characters from the older books are brought back, every nation that Firekeeper has visited is helping in some way, and one of the biggest mysteries of the series has been solved. True, there is still room for expansion – knowing what happened is not the same as reversing the process – but the very fact that the two worlds are now connected once again gives hope. It feels like an ending… and Firekeeper seems to have accepted her relationship with Blind Seer. A satisfying stopping point for me. But who knows? If Jane Lindskold does continue to write Firekeeper stories, I wouldn’t mind going on to the next adventure of the wolf-girl.

According to McCloud, most forms of media (books, film, comics, photographs, paintings, music) can be used in a wide variety of ways, from entertainment to education. What elevates a particular instance of a medium from “common” to “Literature” or “Art” (as the snobs would call it), can be shown like this. We call things Literature when the message and themes that the medium conveys is meaningful or addresses an issue that is, for all intents and purposes, speaks to our souls and is “serious”. In other words, if a book talks about coffeeshop gossip, it’s probably not Literature, but if it portrays the human condition under conditions of war, depravity, stress, etc. , it can be called Literature. Literature is concerned with the content and meaning of the message being delivered by the medium. Art, on the other hand, explores the medium itself, and the techniques and ways in which a message can be brought forth through that medium. In other words, a medium becomes an Art form when it finds new ways to express something that is cannot be expressed by other media and leverages its’ inherent unique properties. Artistry is concerned with the properties and techniques inherent to that medium, and how to use them effectively.

I found those two definitions remarkably useful in clarifying my thought processes, and helping me think in new ways about all the mediums I create in – short stories, visual novels, games. I’ve always been interested in pushing the boundaries of innovation in those media – I don’t want to stick to the simple and boring entertainment. I want to try something different, something unique. And now I know where to concentrate my efforts. The boundaries become defined. Art and Literature – changing how a message is conveyed through a medium, and changing the message that the medium is trying to convey. That’s my goal.

Anime/Manga: The new anime season is starting from this week. A bunch of interesting shows that I’m thinking about watching…  Cross Game (the latest story by my favourite mangaka, Adachi Mitsuru), K-on (another KyoAni product, in a similar vein to Lucky Star), Tears to Tiara (fantasy adventure), and Winter Sonata (yes, the classic Korean drama is being turned into an anime. Goodness knows what it’s going to be like). I’ll probably post more in-depth thoughts on these another day.

Books: I’m kind of oscillating between a couple of books at the moment – David Drake’s When the Tide Rises (the 6th book in the RCN series that I’ve been buying regularly from Webscriptions), and Rhys Bowen’s series of Constable Evans Mysteries, which are a bunch of mystery novels set in rural Wales around the early 1990s. Kinda light reading.

Christianity: The search for a Senior Pastor for our church (since the last one left to become a missonary a year ago) has finally borne some results – a Rev. George Butron was unanimously recommended by the committee to be the top candidate for Senior Pastor. He’s scheduled to preach for 3 Sundays before a vote will be taken by the congregation whether to accept him or not. So far, he seems like a nice guy and an engaging speaker, based on his sermon today. Lots of anecdotes and managed to share his own testimony while putting out an altar call. As a speaker and preacher, I think he might be okay, though there were a few careless errors here and there with regards to Scripture referencing. I haven’t had a chance to see how well he operates as a teacher or pastor yet, but there’s still two more Sundays (and Easter) to go.

Games: Playing Baldur’s Gate a lot this week. Actually, I’ve been playing a lot of games this week – Hourglass of Summer (the other visual novel that I went to great effort to get), Baldur’s Gate, and dabbling in a bunch of other games. But mostly Baldur’s Gate. I had bought the entire set (Baldur’s Gate, BG II, and both expansions) some time ago for a really bargain price, but never got around to playing them seriously until now. Now I’m planning to finish them before I lose interest again.

K-Pop: Nothing much. Watching a little bit of everything – following SNSD in variety shows, a little bit of Family Outing, a little bit of We Got Married, and a little bit of Coffee Prince.

Shows: Have decided not to go for Cats. Must save money. However, my cell and I are planning to watch a movie this Good Friday holiday. Finally, I can use that free movie ticket that I’ve been hoarding up for  nearly a year now. It expires this month, so I’d better use it fast. There’s supposedly a new Jackie Chan movie coming out…

Anime/Manga: Toradora anime has officially ended! (Well, the first season, at least…) And it was a good, well-executed ending, too. Being based on a light novel, the issues that were dealt with in the penultimate and final episodes were a lot more serious than I had expected out of a romantic comedy, and yet it pulled it off well. This ending sort of makes me want to read the light novels now. Also, it looks like the Natsu arc of the Skip Beat! manga has finally come to a successful close. Natsu-sama FTW… but man, she’s harsh. And yet another member joins the Love Me section! Interesting times ahead…

But the biggest highlight of this week has been the manga known as Liar Game. I just read it out of the blue when it was featured on one of the sites I visit often, but boy is it engaging! Essentially, a naive and honest girl gets sucked into a very weird game where participants are each given a lump sum of money and pitted against each other to con, trick or steal each other’s cash. Whoever loses ends up owing the company the amount they lost, and whoever wins gets to keep the extra prize money for themselves. So how’s a poor, innocent, totally-honest girl supposed to survive in this game? By hiring one of the best swindlers in town, of course! A very interesting psychological drama, full of mental battles, tricks and calculation of odds. Plus some philosophical issues raised about greed, fair play, and the natural inclinations of humanity towards either of these. The third round of the Liar Game just ended, and the stakes just keep getting higher and higher…

Books: The best times for reading are when I’m taking public transport on the way to and from work. I can usually get through a couple of chapters each trip. After finishing The Phoenix Guards last week, I’m now naturally going through all the books written by the same author, Steven Brust. His style really is a copy of Alexander Dumas. Except that he knows it. What I find really interesting is the narrator’s voice in his stories. Brust pretends to be a translator of a history academic, Paarfi of Roundwood, who himself is an author of historical romance, writing novelizations of the life major characters in the history of Paarfi’s world. Really interesting when Paarfi’s pompous and loquacious style is poked fun at by the “translator”, Steve Brust. I wonder if I’ll ever be able to write in a similar manner?

Christianity: Sometimes, I wonder what the role of a cell leader is supposed to be. How far should I go in caring for my cell members? I’m naturally introverted and reserved, so I don’t expect much contact with them outside of church activities. And yet, should I make efforts to meet up with them more often, and encourage them to do so as well? How far do we take the concept that the Church is a family? Should we be integrated into each other’s lives fully? How can I find the reserves to care for each one of my cell members, when I don’t have that much depth of feeling in me? I know that the world will recognise us by the love we have for each other, but I really wonder – can I love this way?

Games: I tried playing Piece of Wonder this week. It’s one of the English-translated Japanese visual novels that I went to so much trouble to get. Really like it, but for some reason it doesn’t work too well on my machine. The novel parts are fine, but the battle gameplay (which plays like a console turn-based tactical RPG) doesn’t seem to respond well to mouse controls. It got stuck on Windows XP, and is totally unplayable in Windows Vista. Eh… I should find a way out of this. I really want to know what happens next.

K-Pop: So, I’m moving to tracking another musical group now… it’s amazing how interconnected the Korean entertainment industry is. By just tracking music artistes to variety shows, and then investigating variety shows to find new music artistes, you can get to recognise quite a number of celebrities. This time, I followed YoonA from SNSD to Family Outing, then watched several episodes of Family Outing until I got interested in Big Bang, and now I’m tracking Big Bang. Big Bang is a 5-member boy band specializing in a fusion of hip hop, rap and pop music. What I really like about them is their music video choreography. Three of their biggest hits: Lies, Last Farewell, and Haru Haru (This Day) all have a surprise twist at the end which makes you reinterpret the meaning of the song and the scenes that occured during the MV. Really good. And the themes expressed in these songs are pretty good too. Plus they actually compose and produce their own songs, too, which speaks well of their passion and talent.

Shows: The Cats musical is coming to Singapore! I’m so tempted to get a ticket and go to watch it… How often will I get a chance to see a world-famous musical like this being performed without going overseas? But the cheapest tickets I can get are $70, whereas the good seats cost $140, double the price. Still… it’s Cats. It’s really worth it, especially with an international cast. *sigh* Still have 10 more days to decide before it opens…

Anime / Manga: Ako kissed Negi! Huh, can’t believe Akamatsu actually allowed it to happen. Naruto finally met his father! Cool. Also, Mitsuru Adachi’s Cross Game has returned to publication! Time for more youthful sports romance drama! Yay!

Books: Just finished reading Steven Brust’s “The Phoenix Guards”, a fantasy adventure novel written in the French Romantic style. Great technique, there. Lots of humour too. Haven’t encountered French Romance since reading The D’Artagnan Chronicles by Alexander Dumas back in secondary school. The Phoenix Guards really remind me of The Three Musketeers (as it was supposed to, I guess…)

Christianity: Did you know that the last parts of the Gospel of Mark are widely considered by Biblical scholars as not to have been written by the author of Mark’s Gospel? The oldest manuscripts end off at v. 8, which means the passage about the Great Commission, the post-Resurrection appearances and the accompanying of signs and wonders to the message being preached by the disciples were not included in the original Gospel. Some scholars theorise that this passage was added as a footnote by a scribe in the second century, based off the Acts of the Apostles. Lee Strobel’s “The Case for the Real Jesus” is very interesting.

Games: Just added Saboteur and Munchkin to my personal board game collection! Now if only I can interest enough people in getting together to play them… Also, next week is the Game Developer’s Conference, where the Independent Games Festival competition results will be announced. Hope CarneyVale: Showtime wins the Grand Prize.

Shows: You know, no matter how many times I watch them, I just find it really hard to believe Taeyeon and Hyungdon acting like a couple in We Got Married. Maybe I’m biased because I see SNSD a lot elsewhere, or maybe their behaviour on screen or the editing process really is trying to keep things light rather than developing, because they’re scared of all the anti-fans. But there’s absolutely no chemistry between this couple. It feels more like a big brother being run roughshod over by his little sister and her pack of friends. That one Kangin-Taeyeon moment in episode 47 had more sizzle and spice than the entire Taeyeon-Hyungdon relationship so far. *sigh* I miss the original couples of We Got Married. Especially Alex and Shin Ae.

Misc.: I really should start building this website up more and put up my portfolio as well as my fanfiction pieces… been kind of lazy to do it.

The Road to Yesterday book cover

Today, I finally read The Road to Yesterday. This was the last book written by L. M. Montgomery, the author of Anne of Green Gables, partially finished at the time of her death. It was a collection of short stories set during and after the Blythe children’s growing years at Ingleside. The Blythes (and Susan Baker) make cameo appearances in almost all the stories, but the stories themselves usually feature protagonists from the villagers around Glen St. Mary.

You know, it’s been so long since I’ve read L.M. Montgomery’s tales that they feel like a fresh balm upon my soul. Without realising it, I’ve become jaded and twisted by the media that I’ve been consuming lately. And when I read this book, I was transported back to a place of healing for my soul – where Beauty and Poetry still deserved to be praised, where people had ideals and Christian values weren’t some funny religious practices, but infused the very life of the people who strived to live by them.

That isn’t to say that all the stories here are feel-good. Most definitely not. But still… there is a sense of gentleness, and innocence, and quiet humor even in the harshest of stories that portray the life of a country village in Prince Edward Island, Canada. For someone who’s lived most of his life in an urban, fast-paced, postmodern society, it’s important to be reminded every now and then that a different life is possible. And although people are people everywhere, one can still choose to live in the fear of God, the fellowship of man, and the faith in a life of love and beauty.

One acquaintance of mine describes reading L.E. Modesitt Jr. as an act of intellectual masturbation – every book of his is exactly the same, and they all end the same way, pleasant but boring. Some ill-fated person is cast into circumstances which force his or her to discover their own innate talent, often through being treated unjustly. They learn that life isn’t always fair, but they just have to get along, understand the rules, and work within them to achieve some measure of success… usually not without paying a price. Eventually, they find peace and balance within themselves.

Every single book.

Well, there are variations on the theme, but most of it is the same. And it’s so boring. I think I’m getting sick of reading L.E. Modesitt already. There’s nothing new. I’ll just finish the third book of the Corean Chronicles, and then I’ll stop.

But this brings me to an interesting topic. I’ve realised I tend to stick to authors. If I find an author I like to read, I’ll usually read through almost all of their books until they bore me, or I get put off by changes. And I realise that there are some weaknesses with this approach. First, the authors I like tend to be formulaic. Most of their books are very similar to each other. They have one major hit series, and then everything they write after that seems to be just copies of that series, cast in a different skin.

David Eddings always has a group of wisecracking heroes and manifest gods coming together to save the world. Piers Anthony’s Xanth chronicles track the progress of hero after hero on a quest to save Xanth, by first visiting the Good Magician, and then using their Talents to do whatever it takes to overcome the pun-filled obstacles. David Weber is all about reluctant heroes who care too much, thrust into unwilling battle, but then overcoming the odds and becoming stronger. Terry Brooks always has a mysterious Druid pulling a group of unlikely heroes together to face dangerous magic threats, using dangerous magic powers, and each saga ends with passing the Druid mantle onto the next generation… who will be the Druid of the next series. Anne McCaffrey is all about mysterious (and usually empathetic) life-forms, and how to co-exist in harmony with them.

So far, Eddings, Anthony and Brooks have already lost their magic and grown too boring after 15 books or so. Weber is still okay with me, because there’s some signs of progress and character growth between each book in a series. But already I’m starting to see signs of lack of development as an author. McCaffrey was smart in retiring and passing on her mantle to her son, just as she was starting to lose steam. (Of course, her son is nowhere near as interesting a writer as his mother, but oh well…)

On the other hands, weird and varied authors like Mercedes Lackey and Eric Flint also cause me trouble… I like some of their books, and hate other ones. Lackey’s saga about the One Hundred Kingdoms and the Tradition, for instance, is a highly-enjoyable mix of fairytales told anew. But her story of the Heralds of Valdemar are usually disturbing for me. Likewise, Eric Flint’s alternate history books are interesting, but his Joe’s world books have rather vulgar and crude humour.

So I guess there’s no easy answer for this. If I want authors that are familiar and comfortable, I’ll get bored by how similar each book is to the next one. If I want authors that are varied and interesting, then I could end up with stories that I dislike, simply because the spectrum is so wide. Ah well. Better to read widely, I guess.