Lady Warrior: Aerin of Damar

Hero-and-the-CrownOne of my favorite literary heroes of all time is Aerin-sol of Damar, also known as the Dragonkiller. She’s the main character of Robin McKinley’s fantasy novel, The Hero and the Crown. The book tells the story of how Aerin goes from an awkward princess who would rather be ignored by the Royal Court, due the dubious heritage of her late mother, to a warrior who wields a magical sword and saves her entire kingdom from the invasion of a demon army.

There are many things that I love about Aerin. She does many brave things, sometimes foolhardy, but often they are backed up by careful thought. She learns how to fight dragons effectively from studying an ancient history text in the library while she is recovering from an illness. Then she tests her methods with scientific precision until she perfects them. Any warrior who uses her brains as much as her strength is inspiring. (more…)

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My eBook Reader: My Best Friend

I have always been an avid reader. Once upon a time, that meant carrying a bag full of books with me everywhere I went: usually one set of books for school, at least one book of fiction, and at least one other nonfiction book for non-school-related research. A heavy backpack or messenger bag went with me everywhere. Sometimes people, including my friends, would make fun of me for that: “Why do you have your big bag with all of your books? You don’t have school today.”

Riding the bus everywhere played a big part in why I always carried a large bag (I think that most people take for granted how much stuff they always have with them in their car), but I also just wanted to take my books with me. Even if I only had a few minutes to read while I was sitting and waiting for someone else to show up, or be seated at a restaurant, I liked having my books there. And I couldn’t pick just one book to bring with me, even knowing that I would not read every single one of them on a given day: I wanted the flexibility to choose what I wanted to read in the moment. (more…)

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