Anticipating The Magician's Nephew

I am excited to read The Magician's Nephew. I am very familiar with C.S. Lewis and the Chronicles of Narnia series. I know that The Magician's Nephew is the first book in the series, but I know that it was not written first. I have read the children abridged version before but I do not know if I have ever read the actual version. I loved The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe. My mom first read that to me in the fourth grade. As for C.S. Lewis, my junior year of high school, I had to read The Screwtape Letters for my Theory of Knowledge class. I know that Lewis was a new Christian when he wrote the series and that there are a lot of underlying Christian themes throughout. I have seen both of the Chronicles of Narnia movies that have come out recently, and my family is a big fan of both the movies and the series. I am anxious to start reading it again and see what we talk about in class.

Analysis - The Phoenix and the Carpet

One thing that I noticed throughout the story was how rude the children were to the servants. The first time this is really talked about is in Chapter 3 when  it says, "No one could be expected to feel very kindly towards the cook, since it was entirely though her making such a fuss about a little foreign mud that the carpet had been taken away." Here, the cook is upset because when the children went on their adventure to the Topless Tower, they got mud all over the new carpet. Over the next week, the children were not especially nice to cook. And then they take her and leave her on the Sunny Southern Shore. Only Anthea is concerned enough to go and check on cook again to make sure she is happy after they leave. 
Later, after the adventure with the cats, rats, cow and burglar, the housemaid, Eliza comes home. She had left the house to go and be with her family and party with her friends while the family was away. When she comes home the children are very rude to her and threaten her with telling their parents. They use their power over her to get her to do what they want which is make them lunch and clean up after their mess. I find it interesting that Nesbit writes about the children being rude to the servants. At this time in London, it was not uncommon for middle class families to have cooks, maids and housekeepers. The fact that Nesbit is able to illustrate that through the eyes of the children shows a lot about how this time period was run and what was acceptable. The children must really think they are superior to Eliza and the cook for them to treat the help this way. In a time that is so concerned with being proper and manners, the children really take advantage of their social position.   

Notable Moment - The Phoenix and the Carpet

In Chapter 7, Mews from Persia, was my favorite chapter in the story. When the carpet came back with the 199 Persian cats, I started laughing out loud. The children ask the carpet to bring them something from its home and the carpet decided to bring cats. I do not really like cats to begin with and the thought of all of these cats roaming around is slightly gross to me. The distress of the children and the candidness of the phoenix was hysterical.
The cats are walking around mewing, the girls are petting them, the phoenix is hiding because he is worried the cats will eating and the whole time I was giggling to myself. How the children decided that the cats were hungry, I am not really sure, but they decided to send the carpet for food. And what does the carpet come back with, rats. 398 of them. Not only is that disgusting, but hilarious. I was trying to imagine what it would be like for 199 cats to randomly show up in the nursery but then for 398 rats to show up too. Those poor children.

Anticipating The Phoenix and the Carpet

I had never heard of this book when I saw it on the list so I decided to look it up. The story sounds really fun and whimsical. Then I was talking to my best friend about the books that we were reading and she had heard of this book. She told me that another author, Edward Eager, who's books we had read when we were younger, was a big fan of E. Nesbit. The books that Eager wrote, my favorite being Knight's Castle, are similar to those of Nesbit. Because I love Eager's books so much I am very excited to read The Phoenix and the Carpet. It seems to me like it will be a more classic fantasy story that people associate with children's literature. 

Analysis - Redwall

Reading this book for the second time in about 10 years, I was a little disappointed at how much I did not like it. I found this interesting because I remember really liking the book when I was younger. One of the things that I noticed, having a more "adult" perspective, was that some of the language seemed really advanced. There were a couple of moments when I was reading the book and I came across words that I definitely wouldn't have known the definition for when I was in fourth grade.

One example was the use of the word pathos. Jacques used pathos in the way it is used in rhetoric, to evoking emotion. I know that when I was in fourth grade, I did not know what this word and I doubt a lot of the general population would unless they had taken an upper high school or college rhetoric course. Another word that I would not have known in fourth grade is leveret. Basil Stag Hare uses it to relate himself to Matthais. A leveret is a young hare in it's first year, but I know that I would not have known that in fourth grade.

I am not trying to condemn Jacques for using the big words, I just find it interesting that he would use such words in a children's book. I feel like reading is the bet way to improve your vocabulary, it just seems to me that some of Jacques' word choices do not seem age appropriate.

Notable Moment - Redwall

One part of this book that really stood out to me while I was reading was the part where Matthais spends time with the Sparra warriors. Compared to the mice of Redwall Abbey, the birds are very barbaric. The environment from the birds is very different from that of the mice who live in the Abbey below them. The birds are very messy and unorganized unlike the mice who are neat and tidy. At the beginning of Chapter 16 in Book 2, Jacques describes it as, "The sparrows lived higgledy-piggledy here in one great untidy tribe." They lived in a very unorganized way, almost the way one might expect a bunch of birds might live together.  
The language of the Sparras is also very primitive. They speak like Tarzan or what I imagine the American Indians spoke like when they were first introduced to the English. This suggested that they are not as sophisticated as the mice or other woodland creatures that live below. However, at the same time Matthais respects and fears these birds. While they may not be advanced in the ways of living as he is, Matthais recognizes that they are very powerful and not creatures to be trifled with.
I really like the parts when Matthais is with the Sparra because I feel like it is one of the few times where the reader could be really concerned if Matthais will back it out alive. And he almost doesn't. Also Warbeak and Dunwing are very likable characters. The relationship that Matthais is able to develop with these birds, to me, shows his true hero quality of being able to relate with those around him. And I just really like Warbeak.

Anticipating Redwall

The first time I read this book was either fourth or fifth grade. I read the first 4 or 5 in the series and while I enjoyed the story, I got bored with the story after a few books. My sister, however, devoured all of the books. I think we have about 30 of the Redwall books at my house. I remember really enjoying the story so I am excited to start reading it again. What I remember of the story is there is a small mouse who lives in an abbey run by mice and he ends up saving all the various woodland creatures from the evil rat, Cluny. It is a sweet story full of adventure. And who does not like a cute, little, under "dog" mouse?