What Do You Get When....

What do you get when you cross the Gray Death (A mysterious magical disease), two princesses, a legendary warrior, and a sorcerer? The Two Princesses of Bamarre!
Read On!

Alexis

There's No Place Like Home...

We (Or at least I) have finished the book! As I mentioned before, it is one of my favorites, and I enjoyed reading it again. :) The last half of the book is a bit confusing, so let's walk through it~but I won't give away the end!
The Beast demands that Beauty stay with him as payment for the rose her father took. The castle she stays in gives you whatever you want or need if you speak our wishes out loud. Cool huh? It is also very lonely for Beauty until little creatures come and visit her. (Hedgehogs, a spider, kittens, toads...) Meanwhile, Beauty begins reviving the roses that are the lifeline for the castle. This section of the story is intertwined with dreams and magic and a mysterious story that we don't hear completely till the end. (It's really best to read this part for yourself. I had to read it twice...:)
In the end though, Beauty is home, and that is the best place to be.
Till The Two Princesses of Bamarre,
Alexis

What's in a Name?

Every good author puts meaning into the names of their characters. In Rose Daughter, every name is made simple, describing exactly what the bearer does or is. This can be very helpful or make us more confused. I love the way it is done in this book, and I think the names add tons of meaning to the story. Let's look at some of them and find their meanings.
Lionheart: fearsome, loud, outspoken, rash, and a magician with horses. She is brave, because she masquerades as a boy to get a job (with horses as it turns out). She is protective of her sisters and her father. She tackles the heavy (Manlier) work eagerly (remember the chimney?).
Jeweltongue: Witty, smart, occasionally hurtful, deep, and a magician with a needle. Before they moved to Longchance she would talk with philosophers trading ideas and fancy words. She scolded the maids and housekeepers in their city home. She learns to keep her tongue reined in later on.
Beauty: Quiet, steady, earnest, peaceful, and a magician with roses. She can't have her sisters fighting, and she worries about her father and his moods. It says in the book that she was named Beauty because that was all that represented her.
Now to some less prominent names.
Mr. Whitehand: The baker. He works with flour all the time, hence, the white hands...
Mrs. Oldhouse: She possesses an old house, one that has been in her family for generations. She makes the best snack cakes and serves them at her literary/writing club meetings. She is also known as Mrs. Words-Without-End, because she tends to ramble in her writing.
Mr. Horsewise: Lionheart's boss. He works with horses and knows everything about them. Lionheart says "Mr. Horsewise knows more than I'll ever learn."
Farmer Goldfield: He grows wheat, or something else that is gold...
The Truewords: They always fulfil their word.
Of the animals, only three have names with meanings. There are a few other animals with normal names, but here are the three that don't.
Tea-cosy: The three girls' pet. He is small, and always curls up in a ball- exactly like a teacosy.
Fourpaws: The cat who couldn't be named anything but what she was.
Sunbright: The horse Lionheart picked at the horse fair. He has a coat that shines like the sun.

Well there you have what is actually in a name. Hope you enjoyed!
Have a good day,
Alexis

Curiouser and curiouser

There is a castle hidden near Longchance where each day is a month and where a large and fearsome beast lives amongst his magic. Sound spooky? Disconcerting? Let's catch up on the story. Beauty's father receives a letter informing him that one of his ships has returned from being lost at sea. The ship has brought back many things to sell and has made a profit, so Beauty's father sets off to the city to settle the rest of his debts with it. On his way back he and his pony are caught in a snow storm and stumble upon a castle hidden in the woods. That isn't too strange, except the castle is in the sunlight, and there is no snow! He wanders in and eats at a table set for a banquet, decorated with a single dark, fragrant rose. As he gets up to leave, he remembers Beauty, who asked him for a rose before he left. (her roses did not bloom that year) He picks up the rose and begins to leave. That is where all the trouble starts...