Library Break: Batman: Knightfall pt. 3

I read this last week and forgot to write about it here. Part 3: Knightsend ends the Batman: Knightfall saga. This is the story of how Bruce Wayne reclaims his place as Gotham's Dark Knight.

After a long and slow recovery, Bruce Wayne is almost ready to resume his place. But he knows he has lost his edge, and he is afraid he will not be able to reclaim it. To that end, he asks Lady Shiva to train him.

As Bruce Wayne is struggling to survive Shiva's training, Jean Paul Valley is spiraling further and further into madness.

Knightsend is the explosive conclusion to the Knightfall trilogy. I didn't think it was nearly as good as Broken Bat (because I doubt that anything will be able to compare to that), but it is definitely worth the read!

School Book: The Black Cauldron

I started reading The Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander two nights ago. It is one of the books we're studying in Contemporary Children's Literature, so it is am extremely easy read. And I absolutely loved it! The Black Cauldron is a high fantasy, similar in some respects to the Lord of the Rings; there is a band of unlikely heroes who end up saving the world. But unlike the Lord of the Rings, The Black Cauldron can stand on its own.

The story mainly follows Taran and his friends as they search for the evil Black Cauldron. They must fight their way through the evil hunters of Arawn, survive the three sorcerresses, and all the time they have to be careful of whom to trust. Adventure and excitement at every turn of the page, this is an unforgettable adventure for everyone!

However, I do wish I had read the Book of Three, the first book in the Prydain series, before this one. The Black Cauldron alluded to events that had already happened, and talked about characters near the beginning as if they were people you knew. But once I got past the first couple of chapters, I found that this stopped and then the story was able to stand on its own.

All in all, I found The Black Cauldron to be an enjoyable read. It is simple, but highly entertaining. I think it is something that everyone, young and old, should get their hands on at least once in their lifetime!

School Book: Hamlet

Well, this is the third time I've had to read Shakespeare's Hamlet. And although I would have preferred my professor choosing something else, I have to admit I really like this play. The first time I read it, back in grade 12, I didn't really care for it. But when I reread it for class last year, I thought it was great. The plot is well written, the characters are all distinct, and it is fun (even for a tragedy).

I did notice a bit of a difference between this edition (The Arden Edition) and the one I read last year (The W.W. Norton Edition). Specifically, my favourite soliloquy seemed different ("To be, or not to be..."). But all in all, I enjoyed rereading this. It is a wonderful tale, and definitely worth rereading time and time again!

School Book: The Spanish Tragedy

I don't know why I'm even bothering to comment on this one; it's been about a week since I read it, and I absolutely hated it! It was painful to even get through it! The Spanish Tragedy was written by Thomas Kyd. It seemed similar to Hamlet at first, but not nearly as good. The characters were boring and similar to one another. The beginning of the play was incredibly dull, having to do with a battle and whatnot. And the first couple of murders didn't really have a good reason to happen. I will say though that the ending was kind of funny. It was a play within a play, and although my copy was translated, the original is supposed to be happening with every character speaking a different language!

Overall, this was not my favourite play by a long shot.

School Book: Edward II

Earlier this week I readthe play Edward II by Christopher Marlowe. I have to say I really enjoyed it! This was the first work that I've ever read by Marlowe, and it was extremely well written. The characters were well defined, the verse style was easy to understand, and the plot was interesting. I also didn't find the characters' names too confusing, so that was another big plus. Edward II is a historical play, and it is based off of the life of Edward II of England. See here for the wiki page). It was a very enjoyable read (although the ending is a bit gruesome when you stop and think about it!)

School Book: Abel's Island

For Contemporary Children's Literature, I had to read Abel's Island by William Steig. It is a fun little story about a mouse who gets marooned on an island and is trapped there for over a year, trying to survive and escape.

Looking at it from the perspective of the class, I can see how Abel's Island would be attractive to children. It is a chapter book, but definitely not a difficult read. It has lots of adventure, and a fun character. But I have to say it wasn't my favouritest book. I didn't like the way it felt like the author was talking down to me the whole way through the book (I am more of a fan of The Wind in the Willows style writing, where the book is written in a more mature fashion). The back of the book compares Abel's Island to Charlotte's Web, which I also don't agree with (and I think that children agree with me on this one, as Charlotte's Web is still widely read while I have never heard of Abel's Island before this class. But I could definitely be wrong on this point).

All in all, this was an okay read. Not the best book in the world, but definitely not the worst.

Library Break: Batman: Knightfall

I have read parts 1 and 2 of the Knightfall series. And I have to say, I absolutely loved Part1: Broken Bat! Bane released all of the villians from Arkham Assylum, using them to wear out the Dark Knight. Batman, who was already in rough shape from the previous few weeks, is slowly but surely worn down as he goes after the escaped villians. He has no time to rest, even though his body desperately needs it. There were many fights when Batman should have been able to take out the thugs no problem, but he was only able to by using the last of his strength. Depleated, there were many images of him hiding in the shadows, exhausted. Yet he always managed to find the strength to continue as there was no one else.

It was the strangest story to read: with Batman barely managing to remain on his feet. And finally, when Bane struck, Batman was at his weakest, and he lost! Bane attacked Batman at home, when the Dark Knight was mentally and physically exhausted. Batman tried to fight back, but there was no strength left in him. And so Broken Bat left me with this image: Bane literally breaking Batman! It is a sad and terrifying image: no one should be able to break Batman!

So of course I had to start reading the second graphic novel in the series: Who Rules the Night. It starts out where Broken Bat left off, with Bane gloating over the fallen Knight. And so there is a desperate attempt on the parts of Tim (Robin) and Alfred to save Batman from being paralyzed for life. Fighting the clock, they manage to get the medicine they need, the only one that can help heal a broken back.

But now Gotham is in ruins. News that Batman has fallen bursts open the flood gates. Crime skyrockets. With no one to stop them, criminals everywhere try to carve a piece out of the city. And Bane lords over everyone, proclaiming the city his.

Into this dreary night comes Batman's chosen successor, Jean Paul. Jean Paul takes up the mantle of Batman with the help of Robin, but quickly proves to be a much darker Knight than that of the real Batman. He slowly decides to disobey Bruce's command not to engage Bane directly, deciding that taking down Bane will be the best way to stem the tide of chaos that has taken over Gotham. He modifies his costume, and becomes increasingly violent. Robin desperately tries to reign him in, but Jean Paul will not listen.

Jean Paul fights Bane twice. He injures Bane a lot, but almost dies in the process. For this reason he modifies his costume again, needing more than just the claws he had made the first time. It is during his second encounter that Jean Paul manages to bring Bane down. At the last moment, he decides not to kill Bane, but instead leaves him broken, much like how Bane left Batman.

It was a great story, and I can't wait to get a hold of part 3. But I definitely didn't like part 2 as much as part 1. There wasn't enough Bruce Wayne in part 2 for starters, which, although understandable, still made me sad. And I think I liked reading the downfall of Batman rather more than the aftermath. Jean Paul seemed rather unstable, and also kind of scary. I know Batman is not made of teddy bears and gum drops or anything, but he does have his code, and it never seemed like Jean Paul held up to it. (I know, that was the point, but I didn't like it).

Finally, I now have a reason to hate "Batman and Robin" even more. They totally butchered the character of Bane!!!