Robin McKinley is a YA fantasy author. She was the one who got me reading fantasy in high school (before I was one of those that thought it was just for geeks and anti-social people.) Since I've read all of her works and recommend them all but one to everyone I figured I would lump them all together.
The first one I read and still my favorite is Beauty: A Retelling of the Story of Beauty and the Beast. It's exactly what the title says, but it's SUCH a good retelling that anyone who even remotely likes the story of Beauty and the Beast will love this. I would bet that those of you with daughters (who are old enough to appreciate books at all) would find this a good one to read with them because it's somewhat short and easy to read.
The Blue Sword and The Hero and the Crown are next on the "I absolutely love this..." list. I wouldn't actually call Hero a second book to Sword. I feel it's more of a companion book, because although they do go together Sword takes place long before Hero and they only compliment each other in being about the same land. I also don't think it actually matters which one you read first. The Blue Sword was written first but the events of The Hero and the Crown come first in that worlds history. Both are are about the land of Damar and both have female main characters that are warriors. Personally I like Aerin of Hero a little more than Harry (yes a girl named Harry) of Sword but both are equally lovable and realistic.
Spindle's End is a VERY different version of the classic story of Sleeping Beauty and has an interesting take on Fairies. I'm still very torn on how much I liked or didn't like the ending, but I usually like it and I've read it several times so I still recommend it.
The Outlaws of Sherwood is of course the story of Robin Hood. Again it's a very interesting take on the story. For me it makes it seem more believable. The characters more real than just names and it's mostly historically accurate when it comes to what is and is not possible for the time that legend takes place. This one however is one that I've found not everyone enjoys. My sister, who is also an avid Robin McKinley fan, thought that it moved slowly.
The last three Deerskin, Rose Daughter, and Sunshine are on a slightly different level than the others as they are classified as adult novels. Deerskin is very hard for me to recommend even though it's my second favorite of McKinley's books. The reason it's difficult to recommend is that the main character Lissar/Deerskin goes through and experiences some rather harsh things. It's not explicit in it's explanation, but at the same time it doesn't hedge around what happens to her either. Rose Daughter is a very different take on Beauty and the Beast. (I think that this story is the authors favorite.) I didn't really like the ending, but I still liked the book. Sunshine is a vampire story and definitely written for adults as it mentions sex and is a darker subject matter.
I think that covers all of her novels, but I may have missed one and since I have no computer skills I'll just tell you that I know she has a website, but I'm not sure what it is. I'm sure if you're interested enough and you google her that her website will come up.
The Blue Sword and The Hero and the Crown are next on the "I absolutely love this..." list. I wouldn't actually call Hero a second book to Sword. I feel it's more of a companion book, because although they do go together Sword takes place long before Hero and they only compliment each other in being about the same land. I also don't think it actually matters which one you read first. The Blue Sword was written first but the events of The Hero and the Crown come first in that worlds history. Both are are about the land of Damar and both have female main characters that are warriors. Personally I like Aerin of Hero a little more than Harry (yes a girl named Harry) of Sword but both are equally lovable and realistic.
Spindle's End is a VERY different version of the classic story of Sleeping Beauty and has an interesting take on Fairies. I'm still very torn on how much I liked or didn't like the ending, but I usually like it and I've read it several times so I still recommend it.
The Outlaws of Sherwood is of course the story of Robin Hood. Again it's a very interesting take on the story. For me it makes it seem more believable. The characters more real than just names and it's mostly historically accurate when it comes to what is and is not possible for the time that legend takes place. This one however is one that I've found not everyone enjoys. My sister, who is also an avid Robin McKinley fan, thought that it moved slowly.
The last three Deerskin, Rose Daughter, and Sunshine are on a slightly different level than the others as they are classified as adult novels. Deerskin is very hard for me to recommend even though it's my second favorite of McKinley's books. The reason it's difficult to recommend is that the main character Lissar/Deerskin goes through and experiences some rather harsh things. It's not explicit in it's explanation, but at the same time it doesn't hedge around what happens to her either. Rose Daughter is a very different take on Beauty and the Beast. (I think that this story is the authors favorite.) I didn't really like the ending, but I still liked the book. Sunshine is a vampire story and definitely written for adults as it mentions sex and is a darker subject matter.
I think that covers all of her novels, but I may have missed one and since I have no computer skills I'll just tell you that I know she has a website, but I'm not sure what it is. I'm sure if you're interested enough and you google her that her website will come up.
3 comments:
Emily, I've read every one of the books you've mentioned, except Sunshine, which I started then didn't finish. I agree with everything you said , both positive and negative, about every book. I recently finished Dragonhaven (McKinley's latest) and surprisingly found it absolutely tedious. The story could have been told in about a quarter of the words used. I just didn't care for the narrator's "voice." Anyway, nice job on the author recommendation.
I've been meaning to read Dragonhaven but haven't gotten around to it. With that "glowing" recommendation it might take me longer to get to it. Thanks for the heads up.
I just read Dragohaven too and did not enjoy it in the least! I completely agree with large marge about the narrator's voice. Robin McKinley lost all of her beautiful language and story-telling ability in that book when she decided to write it from a teenage boys' perspective. She frequently clogged up her sentences with fillers such as "like" and I found it suffocating! The story really wasn't all that exciting either. NOT my favorite Robin McKinley book.
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