Readers

“I sincerely believe that books don’t live until they’re read. While I think I’d write even if nobody was reading - it’s who I am - I thrive because I know the stories are being brought to life by all of you. In this, stories are a special kind of art, particularly ones written down. Each of you imagines this book, and its characters, a little differently - each of you puts your own stamp on it, making it yours. I don’t think a story is quite finished until that has happened to it - until the dream in my head has become a reality (even if briefly) in yours.

And so this book is yours, as are all of them once you read them. Thank you so much for bringing life to my work, and to the Cosmere.”

Brandon Sanderson, The Sunlit Man, Postscript

The Christmasaurus

Our bedtime story game has rapidly leveled up from board books to chapter books.

Right now we’re listening to The Christmasaurus audiobook on Davy’s Yoto radio and reading along in the hardcover.

The audiobook is British and the hardcover we have has been Americanized. I’ve texted changes I’ve noticed to a few friends and realized that this is just the sort of pedantic obsession that should live on the chronofile.

What follows is not an exhaustive list of changes, but those that stick in my mind without taking active notes at bedtime. There is a possibility of human error.

I’ll update this post as we read, but I’ve already ordered a UK hardcover (from Blackwells who offer free shipping to the US.) I find these changes really remove so much British charm.

Ok, time for the pedantry.

• mum → mom

• millimetres → inches

• rubbish → terrible

• tastes like marmite → tastes like chicken

• tele → TV

• school dinner → lunch

• dinner ladies → lunch ladies

• chips → French Fries

• car park → parking lot

• flask → cup

• cutlery → silverware

• wardrobe → closet*

• loo → restroom

• jumper → sweater

• loony → strange

• no mates → (completely cut)

• hell → horrible

• nattering → chattering

• plug hole → drain

• barmy →

• red post box → mailbox

• post → mail

• ickle → little

• it wasn’t anything to do with → it had nothing to do with

• goose pimply → goose bumpy

• cracker in the works → wrench in the plan

• handmade → made

• → horrible

• upon → on

• cinema → theater

• spotty → polka dot

• whilst → while

• pound notes → dollar bills

• holidays → vacations

• takeaway → takeout

• snooker → pool

• dreamt → dreamed

• fairy lights → Christmas lights

• stroppy → spoiled

• opening hours → regular hours

• GET ON! → HURRY UP!

• I guess we should start at the beginning. → Let’s give it a try.

• dressing gown → bathrobe

• the shudders → the shivers

• gawping → gaping

• a maniac with a gun → saving a dinosaur from a hunter

• barmy → out of his mind

• absolutely potty → absolutely zany

• scrummy → scrumptious

• pool → pond

• can’t make people die → can’t hurt people

• take out a teacher → take down a teacher

• said from somewhere → came from somewhere

• they → the boys

• whilst → while

Honestly I was fascinated by this little linguistic differences when I lived in London for a year. Chips to fries and jumper to sweater is almost understandable. And I can’t imagine including hell in a middle grade novel. 🤯 But all together the changes break the story’s sense of place.

The marmite one is particularly worrisome as it completely changes the meaning.

British terms the editor didn’t spot included:

• fairy liquid (a brand of UK dish soap)

• pants (meaning underpants)

There were also some sentence structure changes. Words swapped round.

And there seem to be opposing editorial stances on how often to repeat a character’s name. I found most of these changes ruined the rhythm.

It was clear straightaway that this must be the reason this book (and many others) do not have audiobooks for sale in American Audible. They’ve made too many changes to the text they would have to re-record it. And it wouldn’t even work with an American narrator or a British one by this point. It’s all muddled up.

* Imagine if they’d rewritten Narnia as The Lion, The Witch, and The Closet?! 😡

Wyrd Sisters

On the way to Charleston I read Wyrd Sisters by Terry Pratchett.

I loved this quote about the theatre,

“Things that try to look like things often do look more like things than things. Well-known fact, said Granny.”

and

“Actors had a habit of filling all the space around them.”

Together

Vintage Sesame Street books are so wonderful.

These are two pages from The Together Book (1971.)

There’s so much life in the line work. Also I love how you can see it was traditionally illustrated because the yellow paint overlaps the lines on Big Bird and hasn’t been touched up.

Merlin's Cottage

I absolutely love this 1970’s edition of The Sword in the Stone illustrated by Alan Lee. Merlin’s cottage has always been evocative for me and this is just how I’ve imagined it.

With a dreamy far off look

Beauty and the Beast (1991)

WoT & Grishaverse

A couple months ago I finally finished my massive re-read of The Wheel of Time.

Since then I’ve been binge reading the Grishaverse series by Leigh Bardugo. It’s darker than I usually read, but I love her characters. As the cast grows I really relate to so many neurodivergent traits. So that has kept me reading even when the circumstances are grim.

*Content warning, although most of the darkness is not explicit. If you’re a sensitive reader you may want to check out content warnings for each book on Storygraph.

You can get a taste of it via the Netflix series which is rated TV-14.

The storybook Language of Thorns was absolutely gorgeous, and used a clever illustrative style where the images slowly developed over each page. But some of the stories were so traumatic* I left mine in a Little Free Library and I’m not sure if I regret it or not.

*as are many traditional fairy tales to be fair.

Osmo Unknown and the Eightpenny Woods

I’ve been reading Osmo Unknown and the Eightpenny Woods by Catherynne M. Valente

This is the newest book by author of The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making (one of my all time favorites!) It’s a middle grade book, but equally delightful for adults.

Have a peek…