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Apr. 15th, 2011 10:39 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
skygiantsFor reasons that are obvious, I'm probably going to be rereading a lot of Diana Wynne Jones here and there over the next few months.
Two weeks ago, The Magicians of Caprona is what I had to hand - which is not my favorite DWJ book exactly, or even my favorite Chrestomanci book, but that's really like saying that cheese bread isn't my favorite because it's not asiago cheese bread, and, yes, but it's still cheese bread and INHERENTLY DELIGHTFUL.
And The Magicians of Caprona really is inherently delightful. One of the things I love most about it, I think, is that it's all pulled together from tragedies and horrible things - it's made up of Romeo and Juliet and Webster's The White Devil and Punch and Judy (which I refuse to believe is not a tragedy) and the Italian civil war all stirred around together - and somehow by magic she turns all of those ingredients into one of her warmest books. It's about family and friendship and wacky magical hijinks! And war and doom and destruction of course, but MOSTLY the family and friendship.
The plot revolves around the warring spell-families, theCapulets Montoyas and Montagues Petrocchis, who are so busy feuding ALL THE TIME that they almost haven't noticed that the city-state of Caprona is falling apart and on the brink of war with like every other Italian city-state. Most of the book is from the perspective of Tonino, one of the youngest and quietest and least-magically-talented Montoyas, and even though the horde of learned great-uncles and VERY DRAMATIC aunts and quarreling cousins and siblings can get a bit overwhelming at times, he loves all of them and they all love him and you can tell. It is especially notable because: good parents! In a DWJ book! WHAT IS THIS MADNESS.
Of course you can tell from a mile off that there is going to be a pair of star-crossed Montoya/Petrocchi lovers - who are, by the way, one of my favorite sets of star-crossed lovers in all of literature for how cheerfully and matter-of-factly they go about getting around it, and because this is a Romeo and Juliet who actually care about their families! it's amazing! - and that Tonino and his brother Paolo are going to end up having to cooperate with Petrocchi daughters Renata and Angela (infamous for accidentally turning her father green) to save the day. It's how you get there that's the fun. The bit where the Montoyas and Petrocchis get extremely incensed at each other and have a GIANT MAGICAL FOOD FIGHT in the middle of the city is one of my favorites, because it starts off hilarious and then you realize that hey, this is actually pretty dangerous and might end up with someone dead. (Actually, the awareness that war is coming, and people might die, is a a very strong backdrop for this book under all the wacky hijinks - it struck me especially on this reread.)
Also Chrestomanci is in there somewhere, but you don't need to have read the other Chrestomanci books to enjoy this one; mostly he just shows up and is long-suffering, well-dressed and English at everybody.
But don't read this book if you're creeped out by puppets.
. . . and actually, don't read this book if you don't want to be creeped out by puppets. Punch and Judy will NEVER BE THE SAME.
Two weeks ago, The Magicians of Caprona is what I had to hand - which is not my favorite DWJ book exactly, or even my favorite Chrestomanci book, but that's really like saying that cheese bread isn't my favorite because it's not asiago cheese bread, and, yes, but it's still cheese bread and INHERENTLY DELIGHTFUL.
And The Magicians of Caprona really is inherently delightful. One of the things I love most about it, I think, is that it's all pulled together from tragedies and horrible things - it's made up of Romeo and Juliet and Webster's The White Devil and Punch and Judy (which I refuse to believe is not a tragedy) and the Italian civil war all stirred around together - and somehow by magic she turns all of those ingredients into one of her warmest books. It's about family and friendship and wacky magical hijinks! And war and doom and destruction of course, but MOSTLY the family and friendship.
The plot revolves around the warring spell-families, the
Of course you can tell from a mile off that there is going to be a pair of star-crossed Montoya/Petrocchi lovers - who are, by the way, one of my favorite sets of star-crossed lovers in all of literature for how cheerfully and matter-of-factly they go about getting around it, and because this is a Romeo and Juliet who actually care about their families! it's amazing! - and that Tonino and his brother Paolo are going to end up having to cooperate with Petrocchi daughters Renata and Angela (infamous for accidentally turning her father green) to save the day. It's how you get there that's the fun. The bit where the Montoyas and Petrocchis get extremely incensed at each other and have a GIANT MAGICAL FOOD FIGHT in the middle of the city is one of my favorites, because it starts off hilarious and then you realize that hey, this is actually pretty dangerous and might end up with someone dead. (Actually, the awareness that war is coming, and people might die, is a a very strong backdrop for this book under all the wacky hijinks - it struck me especially on this reread.)
Also Chrestomanci is in there somewhere, but you don't need to have read the other Chrestomanci books to enjoy this one; mostly he just shows up and is long-suffering, well-dressed and English at everybody.
But don't read this book if you're creeped out by puppets.
. . . and actually, don't read this book if you don't want to be creeped out by puppets. Punch and Judy will NEVER BE THE SAME.
