...liesl & po by lauren oliver

On the third night after the day her father died, Liesl saw the ghost.

Liesl lives in a tiny attic bedroom, locked away from her cruel stepmother.  Her only friends are the shadows and the mice - until one night a ghost appears from the darkness. It is Po, who comes from the Other Side. Both Liesl and Po are lonely, but together they are less alone. 

That same night, an alchemist's apprentice, Will, bungles an important delivery. He accidentally switches a box containing the most powerful magic in the world with one containing something decidedly less remarkable. 

Will's mistake has tremendous consequences for Liesl and Po, and it draws the three of them together on an extraordinary journey.

LIESL & PO by Lauren Oliver

Genre: Middle Grade Fiction, Adventure, Magic, Paranormal

Published: 2011

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐

Liesl & Po is a pure hearted and whimsical middle grade fiction, ideal for lovers of magic, otherworldliness and adventure. It deals with themes of loss and loneliness in a way that's relatable to adults and children alike. 

Newly orphaned, Liesl wants only to bring the ashes of her father, who's recently passed, to a final resting place under the willow tree where her mother is also buried. Guiding her on this journey is Po, a ghost whose gender has long ago begun to blur, and Bundle, the ghost of what might once have been a dog...or a cat. They've both been on The Other Side for so long that they've begun to blur.

Along the way, through a strange set of circumstances that force their lives to collide, they meet Will who's fleeing his master, a powerful Alchemist, following a mix up that seems somehow to relate back to Liesl.

Together they journey to help Liesl find the willow tree to achieve the closure on the life she no longer has, and to say a final goodbye to her father.

There are so many familiar fairy-tale elements packed into this book that I think readers will recognise: a little girl locked in an attic, an evil stepmother, a alchemist's apprentice, a ghost guide from the other side. 

The characters are quirky and stereotypical of their architypes: the kindly guard, the evil stepmother who's ugly inside and out, the foreboding lady of the manor, the spindly tricky magician. 

This is the sort of book I would have read a multitude of times as a child, knowing each page back to front, and re-examining the drawings incorporated that bring the characters to life and give definition to the environment.

This is the first of Lauren Oliver's books I've read, but I understand it to be unlike any other she's written. I can see how this story unfolded from a personal place, as Lauren Oliver wrote this book whilst grieving the death of her best friend. To have her character, Liesl, fight and journey to lay her loved one to rest must have been cathartic. 

Reading this in her acknowledgements at the end of the book made me look at the story with new eyes. 

I can understand her depictions of the ghosts and The Other Side blurring for those who haven't yet moved Beyond. Everyone wants to think of their loved ones in spirit as golden, glittering angels, not as blurred spirits who've lost their essence of humanity. But in reality, no one knows what happens when we move on.

This wasn't one of my all time favourite reads, but nevertheless, it does have an ease and a familiarity about it that feels comforting. I can't overlook it, and I recommend it for younger readers, or for anyone wanting to be reminded of childhood. 

Zuzu 🖋

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...inspire yourself

I was told recently by a life soul coach (judge away you sceptics) that creativity runs through my life. She saw writing in my future, and since I write, blog and post under an alias, I knew she was unaware of the huge influence of books and writing in my life already. She had no way of knowing I've been in a creative ditch for 16 months, uncertain how to ignite my imagination and materialise a ladder to climb out.

She told me that when I was without routine, my creativity comes to a crashing halt. TRUE. These past 16 months under the effects of the covid-world, my job has had not schedule, nor has my life. I accept work greedily when it is offered to me, and sit around impatiently tapping my fingers when it's not instead of utilising the time to write. The reason is purely lack of inspiration. I have ideas bobbing about in my brain, but lack the motivation or urgency of creativity makes it impossible to whip out a pin and nail them to the paper.

The solution, I was told, was to read my own work and let my own words inspire me; revisit my story and live for a few days in the fantasy world of my own creation. INSPIRE MYSELF. No one else was going to do it for me, and I think I've been waiting for someone or something to force my hand.

So this is a short and sweet little blog, admitting my own complacency, and offering the excuse that this last year has been a hard and weird one, but I'm done with putting my creativity on hold because of it. If I wait for the world to go back to normal, I'm stunting myself and my creativity.

This week instead of snatching moments to read the books on my shelf, I'll be snatching up old notebooks and folding myself into cosy corners, finding my inspiration between their pages!

Zuzu 🖋

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...(book review) circe by madelaine miller

 

In the house of Helios, god of the sun and mightiest of the Titans, a daughter is born. Circe is strange - not powerful and terrible, like her father, not gorgeous and mercenary like her mother. But she has a dark power of her own: witchcraft. When Circe's gift threatens the gods, she is banished to the island of Aiaia where she hones her occult craft, casting spells, gathering strange herbs and taming wild beasts.  Yet a woman who stands alone cannot live in peace for long - and among her island's guests is an unexpected visitor: the mortal Odysseus, for whom Circe will risk everything.

CIRCE by Madelaine Miller

Genre: Fantasy > Mythology, Historical Fiction, Retellings

Published:

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This book was a mythological education in powerful goddesses and powerful women. Circe gets under your skin!

I love Fantasy, but I haven't read much Mythology, especially in the format of a retelling, but even so I recognised many of the Greek Myths that had made their way between it's pages, all weaving and interacting with Circe herself.

Circe was captivating as a character. She had to be since it was her words that drove the story, weaving and casting contempt like a spell. Other gods and mortals walk in and out of her solitude, but whilst alone on the island of her banishment, Circe can rely on no one but herself. Her independence is fierce. She's like a lioness roaring angrily into the darkness at the men who wronged her, and drawing the attention of those who would use her further. Even for a goddess, it's a man's world, but if anyone could break free from it, Circe could.

"But in a solitary life, there are rare moments when another soul dips near yours, 

as stars once a year brush the earth. Such a constellation he was to me."

There's always a light in the darkness, and where this is a tragic tale of loneliness and wrath, this is also a love story - one where happiness is snatched in brief moments, and preserved at all costs. 

Love is imperfect, and Circe feels no shame in the lovers she takes. From each encounter she learns and draws more strength, wrapping it around her like a cloak. Her journey through the novel is hard, but by the end she is quite the force to be reckoned with!

"It is a common saying that women are delicate creatures, flowers, eggs, 

anything that may be crushed in a moment's carelessness. 

If I had ever believed it, I no longer did."

I was nervous of reading this novel, worried that it wouldn't live up to it's stellar reputation, but wow, it did not disappoint! I wanted to sit down and devour it in one sitting, soaking up Circe's potent magic and letting it wash through my veins.

It's also piqued my curiosity for mythology, so I'll be seeking more fantastic tales of terror and tragedy to read. Please leave me some recommendations in the comments, and let me know your thoughts on Circe if you happen to read!

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Zuzu 🖋