November 23rd: #YASAVES—Blog about how a dark YA book made an impact in your life.
I don't remember how or why I started reading the Inheritance Trilogy by Christopher Paolini ( which is not even called a Trilogy anymore but a Cycle) but I remember how it started to shape me.
Strangely enough, the story really dug into me as the hero got an horrible scar down his back; As Durza scars Eragon for life, it seems to have the same effect on me.
The pain Eragon suffer is well described and I remember thinking: I dont think I ever encountered a story where the hero physically suffered from an injury which became something that he carried along.
In every movie, every book, every game, most hero survive mortal wounds without any "real" scar, or at least if they are physical, they rarely explain how a scar beyond the history of how or why the wound was inflicted became to shape the hero in his or her daily life.
In reality, even a ligament or a muscle injury stay with you for years to come. It often awakens with the weather or with a bad move and it becomes a part of you; it shapes you physically and mentally.
Your body starts to compensate in other ways to balance itself out. Because your mind will do anything to either make you forget how you got the wound or how to avoid feeling the injury again.
I thought there was a really cleverness about this.
But of course, this cleverness is nothing compare to the cleverness of creating a whole new language and a whole new world.
Rivers, mountains, deserts, rules, hierarchy, legends, races, powers.
Creating landscapes where there was just void before.
Creating conflicts and interests where characters were just empty ragg dolls without purpose.
Creating meanings behind made up words. And not any words. Creating Words which pronunciation will become as vivid as the meaning itself.
Brisingr.
That word really sounds like Fire coming to Life.
And turning them into shape, sense, texture.
All of this in the mind of one person.
That is truly the skill of a writer.
So this is indeed one of the many dark YA books that shaped me.
His fourth book, Inheritance, was released this month (on November 8, 2011) and I can't wait to put a conclusion to this story I read over the course of 4 years.
I have the first book on my shelf, but I haven't read it. This is a very enticing post. I'll have to make time to read it.
ReplyDeleteI haven't read any of the books in this series but they do look intriguing. So many YA books have affected me and my writing though I can't particularly think of one that was "dark." Actually, I think the one dark book that affected me the most was "Wuthering Heights" but that isn't exactly YA. Hmmm, going to have to think about this one.
ReplyDeleteMy son loves these books. I wonder if he even knows that a fourth is out? I sure didn't. I'll have to get it for him.
ReplyDeleteGreat books! Paolini's version of dragons is one of my favorites. And his world feels very real.
ReplyDeletehm. interesting.
ReplyDeletei think its good and at the same time, bad when people can repel and attract each other at once. i dunno, it just seems kind of strange.
i move in 5 weeks. every day i get more excited and more nervous.
i like stopping by your blog, it makes me look at things in different perspectives =)
and its okay to be behind at replying to people. i always fall behind on it....
ps. now its 49!! do you just snag followers off the streets?? =P
I tried reading this series a long time back..when it first started coming out. For some reason it didn't work for me. But I might give it a chance again.
ReplyDeleteI like the way you talk about it :)