Jane Eyre

I am an eternal fan of the Brontes. (See past remarks about Wuthering Heights being 'the book behind the book' for The Summer King.) Recently my sister loaned me her copy of the BBC series on Jane Eyre. Utterly brilliant. Here's a fan trailer I found on youtube. Just got the book out of the library. I can't remember when I read it last. Hmm, did I read it? It may be one of those books I assume I've read but haven't. I do remember the old film with Orsen Welles as Mr Rochester. Well, I shall know for certain as soon as I start reading it. Can't wait. But first, to work.

Easter in Narnia

The Rector of Christ Church here in Bray, Co. Wicklow where I live is apparently as big a CS Lewis fan as I am. With the help of Signal Arts Gallery (which my sister Pat is involved with) and members of his parish, he transformed his church into a living story tale of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. An admission fee was charged which went to various charities and over 4,000 people visited. Best of all, he left the story tale intact for Easter service so off I went with a little gang to enjoy it all over again. Very fitting, of course, since the resurrection of Aslan is at the heart of the story. You can see from the pics that follow some of the scenes in the church. (The outside stone lions and eagles are a regular part of the church.) We went through fur coats into a snowy forest with a tall lantern lighted and then Mr Tumnus's cave with a lovely tea laid out, the arrival of spring (at front of church) and Aslan on the stone altar. Other scenes not depicted here included the witch's sleigh, Beavers' dam, Aslan's pavilion, the four thrones and so on. At the end of the Easter service - which included a poem by Sedulius Scottus and a reading from The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe (this is a church I will return to!) - there was smoke, a big bang, the altar flipped over and the Lion disappeared, and suddenly there was a great crack in the stone. Magic. (Photo credit: Tara Whelan)

The Eagle Has Landed

Yes, she's out at last and moving into bookstores across America: THE BOOK OF DREAMS, the fourth and final instalment of the Chronicles of Faerie. Must say, given these recession times, it's a bargoon at $20.00, a hardcover of 700 pages with a beautiful cover. Like the other three books in the series, The Book of Dreams is a stand alone and you could actually read this one first and then the other three like prequels. That said, I must point out - and I don't know quite how I managed it, will I call myself a genius? - but the four books are interlocking and, indeed, one leads into the next with the final book being the direct result of what happened in the other three YET they still stand alone and can be read in any order. Yeah, okay, I'm calling myself a genius. Now there is another issue surrounding these books - the Canadian/American one - which I have not discussed in order to avoid spoilers for my American readers. I promise to address this subject at the end of the year when the book has had a good run in the United States. If I forget, you can remind me.