little woman

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
by L. Frank Baum
Children’s Fantasy

This took about 10 minutes to read and I am so glad I finally got around to it. Such a great story… Only 13 more of his books to go. But before I read them, I will be reading Wicked… I plan to take it with me to the coast this weekend! I am also finishing up the Hitchhiker’s Guide trilogy… So many good books my head is gonna explode…

Interesting bit about the Wonderful Wizard of Oz… this is all taken from, you guessed it, Wikipedia.

Some scholars have theorized that the images and characters used by Baum and Denslow closely resembled political images that were well known in the 1890s, specifically the debate of the day regarding monetary policy: the “Yellow Brick Road” represents the gold standard, the silver slippers (which were ruby slippers in the film version) represent the sixteen to one silver ratio (dancing down the road). Many other characters and story lines represent identifiable people or circumstances of the day. The wicked witches of the east and west represented the local banks and the railroad industry, respectively, both of which drove small farmers out of business. The scarecrow represents the farmers of the Populist party, who managed to get out of debt by making more silver coinage. The return to bimetalism would increase inflation, thus lowering the real value of their debts. The Tin Woodman represents the factory workers of the industrialized North, whom the Populists saw as being so hard-pressed to work grueling hours for little money that the workers had lost their human hearts and become mechanized themselves. (See Second Industrial Revolution) Toto was thought to be short for teetotaler, another word for a prohibitionist; it should be noted that William Jennings Bryan, the fiery popular candidate (possibly the Lion character) from the Populist Party, was a teetotaler himself. Bryan also fits the allegorical reference to the Cowardly Lion in that he retreated from his support of free silver after economic conditions improved in the late 1890s. However, it has also been suggested the cowardly Lion represented Wall Street investors, given the economic climate of the time. The Munchkins represented the common people (serfdom), while the emerald city represented Washington and its green-paper money delusion. The Wizard, a charlatan who tricks people into believing he wields immense power, would represent the President. The kiss from the Good Witch of the North is the electoral mandate; Dorothy must destroy the Wicked Witch of the West—the old West Coast “establishment” (money) with water (the US was suffering from drought). Moreover, “Oz” is the abbreviation for the measuring of these precious metals: ounces.

You can look further into this at this page specifically about the political interpretations of the Wonderful Wizard of Oz…

The SciFi channel did something not long ago that actually didnt suck that much called Tin Man. I saw some of the episodes but not all… making a mental note to download them soon…

I have, of course, seen the Wizard of Oz an ungodly number of times. Remember the munchkin suicide rumor? You can see him hanging himself at the end of the Tin Man’s scene? Turns out that is all untrue.

the object in question is actually a wild crane used to populate the forest scene.

Haven’t posted on books in awhile… I wanted to read James Joyce’s Ulysses and then realized I should read the Odyssey and then realized I should read the Iliad and all the while realized I should read Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man first ANYWAY… So I have been working my way through those all while finishing the Pern books and sprinkling other candy reading along the way such as…

Just finished reading the standard edition… Paul got the crazy awesome edition… This was a fun, and very quick read (started on Friday and it is Sunday morning). I know someone that did not like the stories… I really liked the Fountain of Fair Fortune and the Warlock’s Hairy Heart. Anyway, it will be fun to read these to children one day along with other fables and tales.

Petracat on Paul’s crazy edition

Eragon
by Christopher Paolini
YA, Fantasy
Published 2003

Ok this story is awwwwwwwwesome (if you know Paul that sounds very familiar)… my only problem is that sometimes the writing seemed a little stiff or forced. But I realize he started writing this story when he was 15 years old. And you were told things throughout the book that you know are important to the plot that never got mentioned again… teaser for Eldest, yes, but kind of frustrating. All that said… great story! I plan on reading more for sure!

A little background from Wikipedia…
After receiving his high school diploma at the age of 15, the homeschooled Paolini started planning a novel which he would enjoy reading himself. After a month of planning out the series, he started writing the first draft by hand. It was finished a year later and a second draft was started. After another year of editing, Paolini and his family decided to self publish the book. Editing proceeded through a third year, as well as the creation of marketing materials, promoting the novel as Paolini and his family toured across the USA. Over 135 talks were given at bookshops, libraries and schools, many with Paolini dressed up in a medieval costume. In the summer of 2002, Carl Hiaasen brought Eragon to the attention of a publisher after his stepson read a copy of the book. Knopf acquired the rights to the series, which led to another editing of the novel as well as a new cover, drawn by John Jude Palencar.

Cover of the self published edition

The New York Times Book Review stated that the novel, “for all its flaws, is an authentic work of great talent.” I agree most with this assesment. But some others were not as kind… Common Sense Media called Eragon‘s dialogue long-winded and clichéd, with a plot “straight out of Star Wars by way of The Lord of the Rings, with bits of other great fantasies thrown in here and there”.

I am actually watching the movie right now… no seriously… right this very minute. Woah… John Malkovich is in it??? Anyway, I don’t have high hopes for it.I knew it was doomed when I read “…Peter Buchman wrote the screenplay, best known for Jurassic Park III”… oh jeez… Oh and Joss Stone is Angela… yikes

This is what Paolini had to say:
“The Eragon movie is Fox 2000′s version of my story. I had no control over their decisions. I have not seen the final version of the screenplay, nor the movie itself. We just have to wait and see how it turns out and hope for the best. In any case, the books speak for themselves.”

Eldest, coming up… eventually

Coraline
by Neil Gaiman
Published 2002 by Harper Collins
Fantasy

“Fairy tales are more than true. Not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be defeated.” ~ G.K. Chesterson Gaiman has this quote at the beginning of this book. I loved it and I just had to learn more about G.K. Chesterson… here you go..

This is an alice-meets-return-to-oz story… at times it can be dreadfully horrible and bizarre. It reads like a children’s book but it is more for YA much like Stardust. I really love that he doesn’t leave it up to your imagination… did it really happen or was it all just a dream? 

 This is what Wikipedia had to say… Coraline (2002) is a novella for children and adults by the British author Neil Gaiman. It was awarded the 2003 Hugo Award for Best Novella, the 2003 Nebula Award for Best Novella, and the 2002 Bram Stoker Award for Best Work for Young Readers. It has been compared to Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland books because of its surreality and its alternate-reality based plot. 

Its a good story… and I cannot wait to see what they do with it when the stop motion film that will come out in 2009. Paul should enjoy it because They Might Be Giants is doing the music for it! Henry Selick is directing… he did Nighmare Before Christmas which is one of my favorite movies!! The trailer looks a little too cartoony for my liking… I fear they won’t make it as dark as it should be.

The Foundling and Other Tales of Prydain
by Lloyd Alexander
Published 1973 by Holt, Reinhart and Winston

Alexander wrote these due to the demand of more stories of Prydain. “Coll and His White Pig” and “The Truthful Harp” were originally published separately as picture books illustrated by Evaline Ness, but after going out of print the stories were included in subsequent editions of The Foundling. [Wikipedia]

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The Foundling ~ This is the story of Dallben: how Orddu, Orwen and Orgoch found him in a basket and brought him up until one day while he was stirring a magical potion for him he got burned, accidentally ingested some of the potion and then knew everything the three knew. They couldnt possibly keep him under the same room so they gave him his choice of departing gifts and sent him on his way. They offered him a sword which I took to be Dyrwyn. They offered him a golden harp which I took to be the harp Fflewdur would eventually play. But he chose knowledge from the Book of Three. “The odd thing about wisdom is the more you use it the more it grows;  and the more you share, the more you gain
he learned that the lives of men are short and filled with pain, yet each one a priceless treasure, whether it be that of a prince of a pig-keeper. and, at the last, the book taught him that while nothing was certain, all was possible.” He learned many secrets of the world but he also learned about the cruelties of men. When he looked up from reading the book cover to cover he was an old man.

The Stone~ Maibon, a farmer, sees an old man one day on his way home (assume it is Dallben). He goes home and tells his wife that growing old must be the worst thing to happen to a body. The next day he finds Doli stuck under a log on his property. As he has helped a Fair Folk out of a spot, the Fair Folk must do something for him. He asks to be kept young forever and Doli gives him a stone that will do just that. Days go by and Maibon realizes its working. Everything is staying the same… EVERYTHING. The apple tree grows no fruit, the eggs have not hatched, his wheat has not grown. He tries getting rid of the stone but it keeps coming back to him. He tries to destroy the stone but doesnt make a scratch. Doli returns and Maibon begs to be rid of the stone. Doli tells him its because he didnt really want to get rid of it that he could not lose it or destroy it. Doli takes it back and instantly things catch up to where they should be. Eggs hatch, apples weigh down the apple tree and his field becomes full of wheat. “Stones are all right, in their way,” said Maibon. “But the trouble with them is, they don’t grow.”

The True Enchanter ~ Eilonwy’s mother, Princess Angharad, reached marrying age and her mother called on all the most talented enchaters to vye for her hand in marriage. One enchater takes time out of “in very busy morning” to drop by and make wedding plans. Another enchater comes and claims to be the master of his house over his wife and sons. “Its not houses getting married, its me,” said Angharad. “And if you can tell ahead of time that you’ll have sons instead of daughters you’re a prohet indeed! ” The last enchanter comes and enchants the Princess with words, not magic. Angharad is immediately won over. Her mother refuses to let her marry him as, by law, she is required to marry an enchanter. They run off together being chased by the magic of the spiteful enchaters. “At the edge of the forest a thick curtain of snow began to fall, and icy gales lashed Angharad and Geraint. but they held each other closer and so passed through it, too in warmth and safety. And where they left footprints in the snow, flowers bloomed.:

The Rascal Crow ~ Father of Kaw, Kadwyr, is a proud crow. When Medwyn calls all the animals together to warn them of Arawn’s Huntsmen that has been sent to capture all the animals and make them slaves of Arawn, Kadwyr teases gnats, the spider and the turtle for promises to help get rid of the huntsmen. For what are they do to? They are so small, they only knit and they are so slow! But when the time comes, Kadwyr breaks his wing and needs the help of the gnat, the spider and the turtle to help defeat the Huntsman by throwing him over a cliff.

The Sword ~ This is the dark tale of Dyrnwyn.King Rhitta used the sword to do some questionable things. He killed a poor farmer for asking him to mend the fence that was broken by the King himself. From them on a dark stain slowly crept over the sword and, thus, it was black by the time Taran sees it for the first time deep below Spiral Castle. We also find out that Rhitta grew so ashamed of killing the poor farmer that he began to be haunted by him. He began to sleep in a different room every night and he had many new rooms made that were difficult to get to. Finally he had a room made for him under ground where he was constantly watched over by guards. This tomb is the very tomb that Taran and Eilonwy break out of just before Spiral Castle crumbles to the ground.

The Smith, The Weaver and the Harper ~ In this tale Arawn, disguised as another, approaches a smith, a weaver and a harper. He fools the smith into trading his hammer for a shiny gold one that only crumbles when Arawn leaves. Again, disguised as another, tricks the weaver into trading his old shuttle for a new one. It also crumbles. He tries to trick the harper into trading his harp for a new one but he harper will not. He prefers his own and he can see the Dark Lord for what he truly is and what he truly holds: a harp made of dry bones. Thus, Arawn steals the secrets of the trade which Taran gives back to the people when he becomes High King.

Tidbit on Alexander

Doing historical research for Time Cat (another of his books) he discovered material on Welsh mythology. As Alexander says “It was as if all the hero tales games dreams and imaginings of my childhood had suddenly come back to me.” The result was The Book of Three and the other chronicles of Prydain the imaginary kingdom being something like the enchanted land of Wales.

Most of the books have been written in the form of fantasy. But fantasy Alexander believes is merely one of many ways to express attitudes and feelings about real people real human relationships and problems. “My concern is how we learn to be genuine human beings. I never have found out all I want to know about writing and realize I never will. All that writers can do is keep trying to say what is deepest in their hearts. If writers learn more from their books than do readers perhaps I may have begun to learn.”

http://www.kidsreads.com/authors/au-alexander-lloyd.asp

Once again, shamelessly stolen from Wikipedia:

The Four Branches of the Mabinogi

The Four Branches of the Mabinogi (Pedair Cainc y Mabinogi) are the most mythological stories contained in the Mabinogion collection. Pryderi appears in all four, though not always as the central character.

• Pwyll Pendefig Dyfed (Pwyll, Prince of Dyfed) tells of Pryderi’s parents and his birth, loss and recovery.
• Branwen Ferch Llŷr (Branwen, Daughter of Llŷr) is mostly about Branwen‘s marriage to the King of Ireland. Pryderi appears but does not play a major part.
• Manawydan Fab Llŷr (Manawyddan, son of Llŷr) has Pryderi return home with Manawydan, brother of Branwen, and the misfortunes that follow them there.
• Math Fab Mathonwy (Math, son of Mathonwy) is mostly about Math and Gwydion, who come into conflict with Pryderi.

Paul said he owns this so it will be added to the list of To Be Read!

i was just in some group on shelfari (go figure!) called JK Rowling TOTALLY stole from JRR Tolkien… they had a long discussion going (that no one had posted on in a couple of weeks) about all the similarities between LOTR and the HP books. this was my response to the whole discussion:

a lot of genres have certain characteristics that make them alike… i think that’s what makes them… GENRES!!

doesn’t a lot of fantasy have similar characters and themes? i think its because tons of fantasy authors were influenced by Tolkien so they would naturally have some similarities. i just read the chronicles of prydain by Lloyd Alexander and you could see the influence there… doli the red headed dwarf… sounds a lit like gimli. arawn and sauron have a lot in common… and many other similarities. but i didnt take offense to it. for the most part, the stories and lessons are different. they all take you to another world, allow you to paint beautiful pictures in your imagination and you grow to love the characters.

you would be hard pressed to write a fantasy and not have an evil dark lord (darth vader, sauron, awran, voldemort), a quest of some sort (for a ring, for a horcrux, for a sword, for midichlorians), the lovable sidekick who becomes courageous in a pinch (R2 or C3PO, gurgi, dobby, merry and pippin) the unassuming character who dresses the part of a pauper but turns out to be a prince/hero (gwydion, aragorn, luke, taran and harry potter himself) and an old wise wizard (obi-wan, yoda, dallben, dumbledor, gandalf)

a lot of the popular fantasy does tend to have a pattern but it’s one that I will read over and over again. It never ceases to surprise and delight me.

The High King by Lloyd Alexander
5th Book in the Chronicles of Prydain
Published 1968 by Holt, Reinhart & Winston
Received Newbery Medal in 1969

Ummm Dallben is awesome… Oh and Medwyn and the wolves and bears… I’m so sad about Coll… Oh and how they thawed the frozen waterfall! So much awesome my brain is going to explode!

“A grower of turnips or a shaper of clay, a Commot farmer or a king~ every man is a hero if he strives more for others than for himself alone.” Taran says this after he makes the decision to stay and Prydain instead of journeying with the others to the SummerCountry. He promised to finish rebuilding Prince Rhun’s wall, toil in Coll’s garden and work the lands of the Red Fallows. ThusTaran fulfills the prophecy that he is to become High King.

“And thus did an assistant pig keeper become high king of Prydain.” Dallben wrote these words at the end of the Book of Three after revealing that the book contained all that was, is and will be.

When Eilonwy makes the decision to be rid of her magical powers so she might stay with Taran in Prydain, Dallben tells her, “Yet you shall always keep the magic and mystery that all women share.”

I loved this book… as Alexander warns you in his note at the beginning, expect the unexpected. They don’t win every battle and not all of the companions will make it home… but its such a lovely end to the story of an Assistant Pig Keeper and the beginning of some very exciting adventures for Taran!

Taran Wanderer by Lloyd Alexander
4th Book in The Prydain Chronicles
Published 1967 by Henry Holt

While Taran is ahem… wandering through the land of Prydain seeking knowledge of his past and parentage, he is faced with many quests that delay the companions. Through all of them he is forced to show fairness, courage and other characteristics that could only come to someone of noble birth.

What is interesting about this book is that the peril is not coming from Arawn, the yet unseen Dark Lord that has wreaked havoc in Prydain… instead it all stems from Taran’s being there at the wrong time. After his stay with Carddoc the book takes a shift, he is much changed and seeks out a new way of life.

Honestly, one of my favorite characters is Llonio… his lesson to Taran is to live a simple life. Find a treasure in all things around you. Taran seems happiest here. He them moves on to learn from the Commots top craftsmen and women without finding a trade for himself. All of the lessons he learns along this final road cause him to see himself as nothing more than what he is in the Mirror. Oh and I was really happy he was able to stick it to Dorath in the end

This book is best summed up when Taran told Annlaw, “As for my parenage, it makes little difference. True kinship has naught to do with blood ties, however strong they be. I think we are all kin, brothers and sisters one to the other, all children of all parents. As the birthright I once sought, I seek it no longer. The folk of the Free Commots taught me well, that manhood is not given but earned… Llonio said life was a net for luck; to Hevydd the Smith life was a forge; and to Dwyvach the Weaver-Woman a loom. They spoke truly, for it is all of these. But you, you have shown me life is one thing more. It is clay to be shaped, as raw clay on a potter’s wheel.”

Now that I have finished this one, it might be in a tie with Castle of Llyr for my favorite so far. I loved Castle of Llyr because it painted so many beautiful pictures in my head… but I love Taran Wanderer because he learns the lessons that will make him a magnificent king one day…

The Castle of Llyr
by Lloyd Alexander
Published 1966 by Henry Holt & Co.

I love how Eilonwy has a simile for everything: “I don’t believe people should be allowed to come stamping into other people’s dreams with asking first… [it's] like walking into a spider web when the spider’s still using it.” Fflewddur is always quick to point out how a brave a Flam is but then he usually points out how dangerous their plight is immediately after. It makes him very lovable!

And I love Caer Colur… the castle that has broken away from the mainland and is how out at sea. It has sunk so part of the gates are submerged in water… I LOVE it! In fact, from the chapter “The Island” on is fantastic… Taran climbing up a rope to rescue the woman he loves from the tower of a castle that is in ruin and sunk a little into the sea with the waves crashing upon the rocks below… its lovely And it doesn’t stop there! The excitement doesn’t stop until they are all scrambling out of Caer Colur as it is crumbling into the sea.

This is my favorite book of the series… so far

Interesting little tid bit of trivia from Wikipedia: This is the only book in the Chronicles of Prydain where the Fair Folk do not appear. However, the crow Kaw, who was trained by the Fair Folk and is capable of some speech, does play a part.

I listened to this while I was shelving books today… I am writing a full blown summary and will be posting it on Wikipedia as they have no entry for this book.

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Curdie is becoming more and more a man, a miner, and less of a child. “On his way to and from the mine he took less and less notice of bees and butterflies, moths and dragonflies, the flowers and the brooks and the clouds. He was gradually changing into a commonplace man.”

While walking through the woods, he shoots a pigeon with an arrow. When he goes to get his prey, he picks the limp pigeon up softly and looks into its eyes. He remembers the Princess and her pretend grandmother who lived off of pidgeon eggs and wondered if this one… but no… that was silly! He never saw Princess Irene’s great-great- grandmother and didn’t believe she was real. He had heard once before that sometimes children can’t tell the difference between a dream and reality.

He saw the grandmother’s glowing orb at the top of the castle and decided to go up and find out once and for all. She was there spinning just as the Princess had seen her. He finally believed. She asked him not to mention that he saw her but, when people spoke of her, do not laugh and agree that she is not real.  The grandmother was able to heal the pigeon he shot.

He went home and told his parents over dinner. The next day he and his father were working in the mine. Some men began to speak of an old woman who appears sometimes at night. Curdie did as he said he would and supposed she was real. All the other miners laughed at him and they went on with their work. Later that day, Curdie and his father followed a glowing light until the light turned into the beautiful lady. She tells Curdie’s father, Peter, that he and his wife have royal blood that they must give up Curdie for a little while. Curdie asks how he will recognize her next time he sees her and she tells him that he must know her in more than just appearance. They leave the inside of the mountain to go home together and they come upon an old woman. It is the beautiful woman and she tells Curdie to meet her in the dove tower tomorrow night – alone.

When he we went to he, he burned his hands in a rose-fire, by her request, which gave him the gift of seeing a man’s true nature when he held their hand. She sent him home and told him to go to court the next day with no further instruction. He took off on his journey and Lina showed up just in time to help defend him against large birds. They traveled on together, Curdie thinking her a companion sent from the old beautiful princess.Eventually, Lina meets 49 other creatues which she overcomes and end up following behind her.

They went on to the town of Gwyntystorm where the King had his court. He met a baker that tripped on a large stone in the street. Curdie broke it up for him with his pickaxe and accidentally broke the barber’s window with a bit of the stone that flew up. He paid the man for the broken window. The baker’s wife liked Curdie and gave him some bread before he and Lina set off together again.

Some dogs came at them. Curdie put his pickaxe in one of their skulls and Lina broke the other’s neck. The dogs belonged to the town’s butchers who threatened to kill Lina because his dogs were dead. A crowd had gathered and they started to stone Curdie and Lina. Lina caught a stone in her mouth and turned it into gravel with a chomp. Everyone was frightened off by this and they were soon deserted in the street. “Lina,’ he said, ‘the people keep their gates open, but their houses and their hearts shut.”

An old woman and her grandchild were the only ones to treat them kindly. Derba and Barbara took them in, but very soon a mob came to take the two strangers away. They locked them up in the castle’s dungeon. Curdie, being resourceful, found a hole in the floor and they went through it. They found themselves in the wine cellar. They were able to make their way through the kitchen because the servents were all drunk. In the King’s chambers, he saw the princess Irene… and sees that she is much changed. The King is ill and Irene seems to think that the entire kingdom knows of his ill health. She tells him that they often wondered what happened to Curdie and his parents. The King had some men search all the mines in the kingdom but they found no word from Curdie.

The King’s doctor arrives, mistakes Curdie for a page and sends him down to the cellar to get the King’s medicine which is only the wine out of the cask he saw being used earlier when he was down in the cellar. It became clear to Curdie that those closest to the King were not really concerned with his health and well-being. He brings this to the Princess’ attention and they decide to regulate his food and beverage as well as hers to be safe. Irene and Lina get acquainted.

Curdie goes back into town to get the King a loaf of bread and it seems to do the King some good! The chamberlain (which we can only assume is a part of a large controversy) tries to get some papers by the King for a signature. As it turns out, the King had come to his senses a bit and refused to sign anything. Those papers were his will!

Later Curdie went downstairs to get some of the servants food for the King as he knew it would be nothing but the best with no chance of poison. Some of the servants noticed that a loaf and a pie were missing and they went hunting for the person who took them. Curdie had gone to the cellar to get some of the good wine for the King. A maid said she saw a page headed for the cellar with the missing food. Curdie and Lina were able to hear them before they entered and they snuck out the back door so they were undetected. Curdie had to wait a long time for the servants to go to sleep, but while he waited he discovered that the stones that made up the city were heavy with gold. He planned on making the King rich so he could get away from this controlling situation.

When he finally makes it upstairs, the maid that told who took the food was up their crying because no one would believe her and she was told to always tell the truth. Curdie brought him into his confidence and they became friends. Inside the King’s chamber, Curdie and Lina hid to wait for the Dr. to arrive. When he did, Curdie was able to see him as the snake he is because of the gift of the old beautiful Princess. Lina, hiding under the bed, pulled one of the Doctor’s feet and ended up smashing the bones. He fainted and Lina dragged him to Lord Chamberlain’s door. When the Lord Chamberlain came out for all the noise, Curdie saw that he was a bird of prey.

The next day the maid warned the other servants that they should repent for thieving, and lying, and unkindness, and drinking. They all laughed at her, began to beat on her and locked her in the wine cellar. That night Curdie was expecting a more direct attack on the King. He went downstairs to go through the wine cellar into the dungeon but the door was locked. He broke in and let the maid out. When he went into the dungeon, Lina was there with the 49 beasts she had met in the forest. They snuck them all into the house.

The maid burst into the servants at dinner and gave them one more warning from the messenger. Curdie burst into the room when they still resisted to show that someone had truly come to make things right in the castle. A doorman laughed at him but when Curdie felt his hand and felt nothing but the hoof of an ox did him no harm. The butler and the cook came wielding weapons at Curdie and in burst Lina and the creatures. They tormented the servantes by chasing them through the house and subjecting them to the horrors that they created: “They were bespattered with the dirt of their own neglect; they were soused in the stinking water that had boiled greens; they were smeared with rancid dripping; their faces were rubbed in maggots.” Then they were chased out into a horrible storm and locked from the castle.

Curdie allowed the creatures to finish the lavish dinner of the servants and then they began to clean the old castle that had been neglected.

And now for the top conspirators… he overheard the lord chamberlain, the attorney-general, the master of the horse, and the king’s private secretary saying they were going to announce the King’s sudden death, read aloud the will they had drawn up and being ruling themselves. Lina took watch over the secretary and made him faint. The snake-like creature found the Lord Chamberlain in his silver bed and turned it into a cage. The tapir-like creature kept watch over the Master of the Horse. A spider wrapped the attorney general up in her webbing and kept watch over him. Another creature known as Clubhead had the butler in the wine cellar tied up next to the cask of poisoned wine.

As everyone was driven from the castle, there were no rooms in the inn for the servants needed a place to sleep. The next morning, Curdie arrived in town to fetch Derba, the old woman who was kind to him, to come and live in and be employed by the castle.

During Religion day, the snake-like creature attacked the preacher during his sermon on ‘Honest Is The Best Policy’. The town decided that the remaining preachers should exorcize the town and the castle to get rid of the demons the two strangers had brought with them.  A paper was hung on a wall in the town with the King’s signature saying that whomever was unkind to strangers would be expelled the city.

The colonel of the guard had also been an honest man and, therefore, he was also “sick” under the care of the Doctor. He grew better just as the King did. The colonel sent Curdie to his regiment to act as messenger to give the real account of all that had happened. But, being told that their colonel had died they did not believe Curdie. The lord chancellor, who had been driven from the castle, went to a neighboring kingdom to form an ally to invade Gwyntystorm.

Peter and his wife had been checking the emerald the old Princess gave them every night for news on Curdie. One day it looked like the color had been burned from it. Peter ran to the King’s home but could not find anyone, not even the old Princess. So he headed to Gwyntystorm himself to help Curdie.

When the inhabitants of the town heard that an army was coming, instead of securing the borders of the city, they immediately took to their treasure to hide it. Next they wrote up an invitation to the King of the neighboring kingdom to take over their city, kill their King and annex this realm into his kingdom.

The colonel of the guard went to his regiment to ready them to fight but they thought him a ghost and shut themselves away not to hear any he had to say.  The next day they are all ready for battle. The King orders horses for himself, the Princess and the colonel of the guard because Curdie would rather be on foot. Curdie asks the maid if she would be willing to fight with and die for the King. She says yes and he replies, “Were I not a man I would be a woman such as you.”

During the battle, it turns out that the maid IS the old beautiful Princess and she has many pigeons to help them in battle. They win the battle and the King shows disappointment to his people. He sent Curdie out to fill his court with human handed people. All the kingdom’s money had been squandered away but Curdie told the King that they sat on a lot of gold. Curdie’s mother and father mov into Gyntystorm. Curdie and Irene got married but had no children. So after the King died, they were King and Queen, and their death, the people chose their own King. This new King was so greedy for all the gold that he kept mining and mining under the city until one day the city collapsed and was no more.

THE END