This, dear readers, is what I love about the Great Library—my library. Our library. Everyone can find their own story here. It is a wonderful glowing feeling to see a reader connect with a book that helps them know who they are.
Can I help you?
Janner had never seen so many books in one place. He wandered from room to room, perusing books that struck his interest and others that didn’t. He couldn’t resist pulling them from the shelf to smell them, to feel their pages, and to skim their contents no matter what the books were about. He read a few disturbing poems by Adeline the Poetess in a collection called An Anthology of Maniacal Verse; he browsed through pages of illustrations by someone named R. Smackam, mostly of fairies and witches and gnoblins; he found a biography of Connolin Durga which he tucked under his arm for later; and to his delight he found a whole section of Annieran history. …
Janner stood in the aisle, ears ringing and skin tingling, turning pages with trembling fingers. Here, among all these books, was one about his family—and it wasn’t just a list of names hung on a family tree. Each name was listed with the date and place of birth and a short biography, and some included a gallery of portraits. …
He felt as if he were glowing from the inside out.
—From chapter 29, “A Lineage of Kings.”
Was there a scene that resonated with you this week? Share it in the comments!
If you’ve got questions or thoughts about the books, or just want to connect with other readers, come to the forum to hang out with us. 🙂 In particular, I’d love to hear what Aerwiar stories you want to read!
Some of my favorite parts have too many spoilers in them, but this one is a great stand alone quote that won’t disturb anyone’s enjoyment of the story.
“You’ll want to keep watch out for whoever’s got the boot,” said the stocky man, introducing himself and his wife as Guildmaster Pwaffe and Guildmadam Pwaffe. They seemed as wide as they were tall, but without an ounce of fat. Their arms were short and think, their necks were as wide as their heads, and their fingers looked like sausages.
“Oy,” the woman said. “That’s basically all there is to Get the Boot. That’s what we call the game. Get the Boot. Someone has the boot and everyone’s supposed to get the boot. And when you’ve got the boot, everyone else is trying to get the boot. So you have to keep the boot. That guy over there is timing how long each guildling has the boot. Any questions?”
Janner had lots of questions, but before he could ask a single one, Guildmaster Pwaffe said, “Oy, guildlings. Off you go. Get the boot.”
Janner, Kal, and Leeli looked at one another.
“Now?” Kalmar asked.
“That’s what I said.” The man pointed across the field at the herd of children still chasing the girl, who appeared to be having the time of her life.
“But what do we do when we get the boot?” Kalmar asked.
“Keep the boot. It isn’t hard.” Guildmadam Pwaffe shook her head sadly. “Not too smart, these, eh, Wimble?”
“The whole game is right there in the title,” the man said. “‘Get the boot.’ That’s it. So get the boot. Go!”
For me this week, my favorite passage was the description of the Great Library. I just love the Hollish style of architecture and this is definitely one of my favorite places depicted in all of the Wingfeather Saga.
“Here we are!” Oskar said as he reined in the horses in front of a majestic building with fat trees shading the entrance. The building was of reddish stone, streaked with age, and beautiful. It was several stories high, and each level had a balcony where people sat in the shade with pipes and mugs of cider, reading books among the leaves.
Since Janner was a boy, and boys always think of climbing things, he noticed how easy it would be to step off the balcony and climb along the thick limbs– then he spotted several people doing just that. They strolled along the branches of the trees, deep into the overstory where platforms were attached to the limbs. Comfortable chairs perched on the platforms, and feet dangled over the edge where people reclined, lost in stories or studies. The more Janner looked, the more people he saw in the trees.
Janner dismounted without a thought of his soreness and followed Oskar through the main doors and into the library. His mouth hung open, and goosebumps tickled his arms. In every direction, he saw another hallway lined with bookshelves. It was like Books and Crannies, only a hundred times bigger. in every corner of the room, stairs spiraled up to the next floor. Lanterns flickered on the walls. Cushioned chairs were tucked into nooks, and where there were no chairs there were desks.
In the center of the main room, ‘the hub,” as Oskar called it, stood a signpost with arrows pointing to different sections of the library. Straight ahead were Stories About Creepy Sounds; another sign pointed a little to the left and read, Stories With Treasures; to the right were Stories With Bittersweet Endings and True Stories (If You Dare). The lowest sign read Signpost Number Two and pointed to the far side of the hub, where another sign gave directions to a host of other sections.
It’s one of my favorite places in the whole Saga, too! I’m glad you like it. 🙂