The Moon by Night
The Moon by Night by Madeline L'Engle
The Moon by Night by Madeline L’Engle
originally published 1963
Farrar, Straus, & Giroux, 18th printing, 1997
218 pages
Genre: Juvenalia, young adult
Synopsis & Review: It’s been a year, and things are changing for the Austin family. Their Aunt Elena, widowed in Meet the Austins, is marrying their Uncle Douglas, and the two will be adopting Maggie and moving to California. The Austins themselves will be moving back to New York City, so that their father can pursue research. To cushion the blow of leaving their beloved home and pets in Thornhill, Connecticut, the Austins head out on a camping trip across the continent, to California and back. Along the way, they encounter interesting people and the beauties of North America. And Vicky, blossoming after an awkward pre-adolesence, begins attracting attention.
Like a moth to a flame, Zachary Grey follows Vicky across the country, playing Hares and Foxes, despite her parents’ objections. Zack is a troubled young man, living on borrowed time, and he alternately thrills and confuses Vicky. On the way back east, she also meets Andy Ford in Yellowstone, a bright, considerate young man who makes plans to meet up with her in New York. Feeling pressured by her family on one side, and strange young men on the other, Vicky struggles to find her own identity and assert it.
One thing I can hardly bear is to read the first book in a series and not be immediately able to continue it, so when I decided to request Meet the Austins from the Multnomah County Library, I also requested The Moon by Night. Both arrived just in time for Dewey’s Read-a-Thon, and were my fallback un-read YA books. You know, for in case I needed something lighter. And it was a lot lighter a read than Meet the Austins, for me at least. Read the rest of this entry »
The Turn of the Screw
The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
originally published 1898
Buccaneer Books, 1993
87 pages
Genre: Horror, Gothic novella
Synopsis & Review: Over the Christmas holidays, a man tells a ghost story he’s kept to himself since it was told to him years ago. A young governess, swayed by a handsome employer, goes to a remote country house to take charge of a young orphaned girl. The house and child are beautiful and pleasant, and the housekeeper who is her closest co-worker is a nice, comfortable woman. But when the young boy is expelled from his school without a word about why, the governess must also care for him, and the atmosphere becomes ominous.
The governess soon discovers that both the children’s previous caretakers are dead, and that they were involved in an unsavory way. She also begins to see strange people where they shouldn’t be. And worst of all, the children seem aware of the unwholesome presences–and even to welcome them. Beneath the peaceful facade of the house and the innocent faces of the children lies an immense, unspeakable evil.
The second book I picked up for Dewey’s Read-a-Thon would also have suited RIP IV–but reading it at work was a dreadful mistake. Though many nights at work are very quiet and I can read undisturbed for hours, last Saturday was a nightmare. I don’t think I managed to go even five minutes without a disturbance of some kind. And reading Henry James under such circumstances was maddening. At least it was only eighty-seven pages. Read the rest of this entry »
