Task Five: The Review

The Line Between by Peter S. Beagle

Delicious, rich and satisfying is how I would describe Peter S. Beagle’s latest collection of short stories The Line Between. I first read Peter Beagle's work in high school. We were supposed to read his classic fiction work, The Last Unicorn. Unfortunately, we ran out of paperback copies so I was on my own to get one. Of course both the school and public libraries’ copies were already checked out. None of the local bookstore had a copy of, The Last Unicorn but one did have a trade back copy of The Fantasy Worlds of Peter S. Beagle which had the novel in it. Even though my father grumbled at the cost, since it was for school he gave in and allowed me to purchase it. Not only did I read The Last Unicorn but I read the whole anthology in one week. It has been said that Beagle is not the most prolific of writers but he is one of the best. The craftsmanship he brings to his works exceeds most of his peers in the fantasy field. This new collection of short stories has a little something for everyone.

In The Line Between, Beagle goes back to some of his classic creations. For him as a writer he always travels that path least taken. He does this with a depth and humor that few have mastered. Now he has gone back to some familiar territory and explores some new ones. In interviews Beagle had said for years that he would not write a sequel to The Last Unicorn. He has finally broken down and has produced what amounts to the introduction of the sequel in the story Two Hearts. He enters the mystery realm with the story Mr. Sigerson. This is a different look at Sir Arthur Connon Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes. A morality tale can be in found in Gordon, the Self-Made Cat. If you enjoy the works of Ursula K. LeGuin, Robert Asprin or Terry Pratchett you may like this. Be warned you can not really compare Beagle with any other fantasy writer. While he may share elements with the three I mentioned remember always expect twists anytime you read a Beagle work.

For Further Reading:

Ursula K. LeGuin’s EarthSea Series
Robert Asprin’s Myth Adventure Series
Terry Pratchett’s Discworld Series
A Fine and Private Place
The Last Unicorn
The Innkeeper’s Song
Tamsin

Task Four: Runescape

Even though my children love playing this game, I have never taken the journey into Runescape until now. I had some experience playing role-playing games when I was in college but using the computer to control the character was new for me. The game reminds me of the Nintendo Zelda games only more complex. So far my kids haven't been on Runescape since I created the character. I am hoping I survive the surprise that they have planned for me. I can see the fascination that they have for this game. The combination of the tasks and the actions keep them coming back for more. If I would compare this to the old role playing games I would say the action was slow. Let's face it the human mind moves much faster than the computer game. It was nice to see the action rather than just imagining it. I was surprised to lean that this game is from England. For some reason I always thought that this one came out of Silicone Valley. It just goes to show how world wide internet gaming really is.

Task Three-Photo Sharing

Photo sharing is nothing new to me. I have had to use a Flickr account before for an avatar on a site. I was rather surprise that we were using Photobucket for this task. I found it to be easy to use but I think Flickr has more features. My photo album isn't that big but I hope you enjoy it. I used the URL (universal resource locator) from Photobucket to upload this picture. The other pictures on this blog I did from the computer. I have been surprise by how much the staff are getting into the Library 2.0 project. I think this staff day will be remembered for a while for this project.

Second Task- exploring Kansas City

When I drive to work each day I pass the Concourse Fountain. This fountain has an interesting history. The view from the Concourse is beautiful. In the spring and fall I would recommend taking the scenic Cliff Drive. It is is well worth the time it takes. It is hard to believe that this is only a few minuets from downtown Kansas City. You can find the Concourse Fountain at Gladstone and Benton Blvd.

Why am I doing this?

I am starting this blog to participate in a staff day activity at my library. I am one of the computer class teacher’s at my branch so it is only fitting that I should support our Library 2.0 program. (Also getting a techie prize at Staff Day would not hurt either.) This is an attempt to make library personnel more comfortable with the new technology that is out there. I have always been one who embraces new technology. Just give me that new gizmo and I will know how to use it in no time flat. There are a total of five tasks that are to be completed. Basically the tasks break down to blogging, exploring blogs, photo sharing, Runescape and readers advisory. The one that my children look forward to with great anticipation is the Runescape challenge. I have a feeling that they will just be waiting to see if their characters can surprise good old mom when she starts to make her mark. I will keep adding to this as I go through the tasks at hand. Most of the tasks I have done at some point in time with the exception of Runescape.