On being unobservant

[tearoha.livejournal.com]

Hi, *pokes head around corner, with sheepish grin* Newbie butting in again  -

So I lent my copy of The Thief to my middle little brother last week, and he just came into my room after finishing, all punch-drunk from its sheer awesomeness to talk about it with me. (Another obsessed fan on the horizon!) So we were nattering on and on about it and I mentioned something about the part in Thief where Gen does NOT die under the cliffs. And immediately, MLB goes, 'yeah, because he's got the thing in his hair that keeps him alive.'
Which made me feel, I don't know, really, REEEEALLY incredibly slow? Because I've been reading the first two books at least twice a year for at least seven years now and only realised the significance of Gen not dying after reading about it on Sounis? Also, MLB is TEN YEARS OLD and picked it up right away???

So... my question, or discussion, or whatever, is this:
1. What parts of the books took everyone a long time to 'get'? Or that you think you should have got sooner? I'm really, really hoping I'm not the only one who was this phenomenally slow, but the books are so intricate and rely such a lot on subtext as well there must have been things that other people missed...

2. Conversely, some subtext you did pick up, and remembered? (For me, realising Gen was in the room when Attolia is 'being silent' after she sentences Relius was a very, very exciting moment XD)

Thoughts?

Also, on a completely unrelated note, I was trawling throught the archives and found some references to a letter with questions sent to MWT and answered. Is there any way I can find out what was in the letter and reply?

-Te Aroha

(edited for being even more unobservant than usual: There was a lot of talk about not noticing Gen's gift-bump in Thief a few entries down which I totally missed. Gah. Other things XD?)

Comments

[checkers65477.livejournal.com]

Some entries can only be seen by members. If you go to the user info page and join the community, then go here (http://community.livejournal.com/sounis/199110.html) it might answer your question about Eddis.

[hapaxnym.livejournal.com]

Ah. Got it. Thanks!

But it still didn't answer the question -- just kicked it upstairs to the gods, darn it.

Hmm. THE LAST EDDIS -- potential title for the (soon soon soon) fourth book?

[(Anonymous)]

I'm not a member, so I can't see the inside stuff, but in the little story in the paperback there is some discussion among the god Eugenidies and the queen goddess whose name escapes me about whether Helen is the one, the last, and whether she will do. The queen seems to think she will do and sends her back to become the last Eddis when her father and her three brothers all die.

I don't see any happy marriage for Helen, not with the gods considering her to be "the last" and Eddis. If marriage were in the offing, she could be Eddia, just as Irene is Attolia before her marriage.

But we'll see.

- ELM -

[checkers65477.livejournal.com]

But if the mountain explodes sooner rather than later, and Eddis no longer exists, she might go and live elsewhere and marry whomever she likes. She'd still be the last Eddis. OR, she could marry but continue to rule, and continue to be Eddis. That doesn't explain the "last" part, but I take that as an omen that the country of Eddis is not going to outlast Helen. Who knows, maybe all three countries will merge.

[(Anonymous)]

All good possibilities, but there is something about Helen being the Eddis while Irene was the Attolia before and after marrying that gives me pause...

- ELM -

[philia-fan.livejournal.com]

I keep wondering what Eddis will be called upon to do. Obviously the gods have a great interest in her being Eddis, as we know from both the short story and The Thief.