Naermyth by Karen Francisco

It’s a little weird, writing this post months after having read the book and having given my copy away, but my personal need to chronicle my reading life is compelling me, so here we go.

Naermyth by Karen Francisco is a take on post-apocalyptic YA that combines the tropes of the genre with uniquely Filipino references. In this world, the creatures of mythology suddenly emerge and lay waste to most of civilization. In the Philippines, these are the creatures parents used to invoke to strike fear into children’s hearts, such as the aswang, sigben, and the manananggal. Only pockets of surviving and resisting bands of humanity continue to exist, including a fort in Manila that is protected by the so-called Shepherds.

The Shepherds venture to the aswang-infested territories of Manila to find surviving humans and lead them to relative safety. One of the most efficient and competent aswang-killers among this ragtag group is a girl that answers to the name Aegis. One day, she finds an unconscious man who is about to be attacked by aswangs and saves him, only to find out that this man has absolutely no recollection that the end of the civilization has occurred.

So far so good, right? I was initially interested in reading this book because of the premise. A sustained novel of this genre from a Filipino author has been a long time coming. I was ready to experience some intricate worldbuilding, a spunky heroine, and copious amount of Filipino mythology thrown. All requisite boxes are checked. However, I found no pleasure in reading it because the first person point of view, the dialogue, and the plot twists struck me as utterly unconvincing.

The Magicians of Caprona

Diana Wynne Jones recasts Shakespeare’s warring families of Verona into two magical houses in the charming book The Magicians of Caprona. Instead of the Montagues and Capulets, however, we have Casa Montana and Casa Petrocchi, rival families as old as the city-state of Caprona. Their rivalry often causes the citizens to run away and take cover because their confrontations inevitably lead to spells flying all over the place, littering the streets with cowpats and the like.

The story is told through the eyes of brothers Paolo and Tonino Montana. They grew up hating the Petrocchis like true Montanas, and they strive to be as good magicians as the older members of their family. When a series of bad things begin to happen around the city, the Montanas naturally suspect their old rivals. But when the magical disturbances start becoming more sinister, causing even the Chrestomanci to take notice, Tonino and Paolo begin to suspect a force much stronger than petty rivalry.

Day 13 – Childhood favorite

Day 13 – Favorite childhood book OR current favorite YA book (or both!)

Roald Dahl’s Matilda

I should by myself a copy of this book now that I’m older. I first read this in the school library, and essentially became entranced by the way Roald Dahl’s paints a vivid picture of childhood. There’s a mixture of baldfaced credibility in the stories, despite being totally implausible.

As someone who constantly escape into books, I really love the way Matilda’s inner life was depicted, how she sought refuge in books because of an unhappy family life. I also loved how Dahl didn’t shy away from showing the awful things that kids usually experience at a young age, like the fear of bullying and the general certainty that the rest of the world is constantly hiding things from you because of your age.

That does it, I’m buying myself a special edition of Roald Dahl books soonish.

Day 02 – Ray Bradbury fanclub, party of one

Day 02 – A book or series you wish more people were reading and talking about

Ray Bradbury’s Something Wicked This Way Comes

This is such a pretty cover, I wish my copy has this. Anyway, the short lifespan of his blog has already demonstrated my affection towards Ray Bradbury and his works, and I’m going to do more of the same today. Something Wicked is part scary story, part coming-of-age tale about two boys on the cusp of adulthood who find themselves confronting the burden of growing up and shedding the innocence that they’ve always enjoyed. It also features the scariest way to utilize a carousel ride ever. EVER. I stake my reputation on that.

I feel like Ray Bradbury’s works, with the exception of Fahrenheit 451, have been largely overlooked, mostly because he opts to write using old fashioned, nostalgic language. His subject matter is also significantly less “edgy” than SFF authors like Robert A. Heinlein and Philip K. Dick. Still, if you want a good horror book, or a poignant tale of childhood and what we leave behind, I totally recommend this.

Palpitattle, He Who Keeps Flies out of Jams and Butter Churns

Fly by Night by Frances Hardinge is a YA novel about Mosca Mye, a girl who escapes her desolate life in a village where she is treated with suspicion because of a dangerous skill: knowing how to read. Her flight gets her tangled up with a disreputable Eponymous Clent with whom she travels to the city of Mandelion. There they engage in acts of conspiracy and espionage as rival guilds wage a war of dominance within the kingdom called the Fractured Realm.

How much do I find it amusing that Mosca helped free Eponymous Clent from the village stockade because he’s a poet who uses words like “mellifluous?” He blinded her with science! words. I love that this is a dominant part of Mosca’s personality, that she gets into these dangerous situations because she is seduced by words, the texture and the sound of them.