Baltimore, or The Steadfast Tin Soldier and the Vampire

I finally finished this book by Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden. First of all, here are some notes and thoughts I made as I was reading:

-The writing feels very solitary.
-Gothic is a very good word to describe the style.
-I love the art work. It supports the writing effectively.
-I love the opening with the battle scene. It sets the mood and tone for the rest of the story.
-I LOVE the sudden appearance of the Dante and Caprice characters. Their glowing descriptions are a spark in the gloom that should have been a clue that it was all too good to be true. There was no indication what-so-ever that their circumstances were not normal. It seemed completely right that they be there, happy, in a cursed and apparently abandoned Italian town. "Well done!" to the author for this passage. The writing was so consistent to this point, this scene was totally affective in giving you a bit of a jolt!
-Remind me never to buy a marionette that looks like a person!
-A little unsure as to how, exactly, the book is organized. Not in regular chapters. More like sections which have their own chapters.
-Interesting how the story doesn't really come out and talk of vampires but once, or so, but leaves it to descriptions of "the plague" that insinuate the vampire's influence.
-I have a hard time feeling like the story's moving at times, as enjoyable as it is.
-The whole story is composed as such, that even when they do use the word "vampire," it's a bit odd.
-Detailed descriptions can be graphic.
-The action sequences don't move as fast as some books I've read. They seem to stay, somehow, at the same pace as the rest of the book.
-Sort of didn't totally understand the ending but, it felt sad. Like ordeal would never really end.
-There are some great lines in the book too like the one on page 176 talking of a poor sailor who looked like he was the product of a pairing of a wolf and an ogre. I laughed out loud : )

I did not go to the library looking for this book or even anything in this section. I was wandering around waiting for my sister glancing at the books on the shelves and saw this one. Let me say this:
The first exposure to a book can leave a long lasting impression. A great cover is, sometimes, all it takes. I've checked out or even purchased books based only on title, cover art, or illustrations and I checked this one out because of its title.

The title grabbed me immediately and then the summary reeled me into checking it out. From the first page, the feel and tone of the writing and the story were established. The illustrations supported the writing and I found myself a bit disappointed when a page was without one. I looked forward to seeing how the artist would interpret the writing in his style.

The story opens with a group of soldiers in the midst of battle and tells the story of the encounter that the rest of the book is based around. Let's just say, the leader of the group torques off the wrong vampire demon lord. After that, it's a game of cat and mouse; chasing each other in the name of vengeance... to the death. The leader- Lord Baltimore- calls a group of three men to await his arrival to an inn. They spend a good portion of the book discussing why they could possibly have been called there and telling stories of their personal encounters with evil that may have contributed to Baltimore's calling them. In then end they finally meet the evil in question, face to face and Lord Baltimore arrives to finish the job.

I loved this book. It was wonderful. It was enthralling and grabbed me from the start. I checked this out at the last second and I am very glad that I did!!

Photographs!!!

I love taking pictures and try to keep a watch out for opportunities to get a really interesting shot. Here a few of them.
Betcha can't figure out what this is! I was amazed when I saw a drop of molasses suspended in a drop of vegetable oil on the kitchen counter while I was baking. I had to get a picture! Yah, the fact that it looks like an eye was pretty appealing too.
I made a 2x2 ribbed hat for my brother for his birthday. I was glad it fit, happy he liked it, and ecstatic when he said he'd use it!!
This is one of the last knitting ufo's I finished. It felt good to finish it because it's been sitting around for years. A toddler dress with the top smocked. Way cute!
Here is the next ufo (unfinished object) to be worked on. A child's cable sweater. I love cables. Irish cable sweaters and Nordic sweaters are why I learned to knit.
My first journey into dying yarn with Wilton food dyes. These are going to make some cool socks.
One of my favorite pictures. This is the tip of my finger with a praying mantis on the end of it.
A little better color but I just love this picture! Very interesting.
Water drops on a rose leaf.
This is a group of water droplets on the edge of a rose leaf in the greenhouse I worked at. Just an example of why I love taking pictures. Outside of the fact that the leaf is puke yellow green.

I have a flower bed out back that I am working to establish drought tolerant perennials in and in the mean time there is a lot of naked space so I scattered some various sunflower seeds and most came up pale yellow but this one came out a rich rusty brown. I absolutely love it!
Here is one of the pansies I seeded. "Flambe Terracotta Shades" from Park Seeds. I love the various colors of the mix, from this to pale yellow to burgandy.

These are some violas I seeded this year or last. I love the "faces". Do you ever feel like you're being watched? I wouldn't worry though, unless they turn and start following you...

That's all for now,

Michele

Some Day...

Some day I am going to have a disgustingly gorgeous library with dark, rich wood work, a huge fireplace, and overstuffed armchairs along with way too many bookshelves. A place to go to relax and revel in a great story.

I finished the Drift House book. It was good, like the last one but, this one used a lot more talking about the concepts of time. It was almost philosophical, if that is the right word; good action scenes too. I would have liked to have had a more comprehensive passage about the mirror book- the main concept of the story. What was there, for me, seemed kind of scattered. The book is about an uncle and his niece and nephew who get thrown backward in time and are trying to get home and all of the trouble they have in the process.

Now I am reading Baltimore, or, The Steadfast Tin Soldier and the Vampire by Christopher Golden with art by Mike Mignola, of Hell Boy fame. The horrors of World War I find a captain and his men in the midst of trench warfare getting slaughtered by the enemy. Lying on the bodies of his dead soldiers when he comes to after being shot, the battlefield is then descended on by a group of bats with an unexpected appetite. They come for him. He tries to fight back but, only succeeds in starting another sort of war. We will see if he finds his way out of it.

Until later,

Michele