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| To Look Out Upon Life by Cairistiona | 11 Review(s) |
|---|---|
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 10/10/2009 |
| Oh, I love this series looking at child to King. And the use of the last line of one feeding the first line of the next is well done! Yes, well done indeed. Author Reply: Thank you, Larner! I'm very glad you enjoyed this... linking the drabbles with common phrases was something that just sort of happened accidentally with the first two, then I decided I liked the effect and did it more deliberately with the last sets. I thought it worked well, and I'm glad to hear that readers liked it as well. Thanks again for the review! | |
| Raksha The Demon | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 10/10/2009 |
| This is a lovely series, Cairistiona. My favorite is the second entry; it's just so like a child, even Isildur's Heir - 'moldy old kings' indeed, he's sick and tired of studying when Elrohir and Elladan get to have all the fun going out and slaying orcs. And, like the child he is, young Estel cannot comprehend that all that orc-slaying becomes less than fun over the years... Author Reply: Thank you, Raksha! I'm glad you enjoyed this and told me your favorite--it's been interesting finding out which ones are everyone's favorites. I agree completely that even a young King-to-be is going to fret over having to study and do all those boring things when there are far more exciting things to do. Ah, the ignorance of youth... someday he'll wish he only had to study old moldy kinds and kingdoms. Thanks again for the review! | |
| Estelcontar | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 10/9/2009 |
| Cairistiona, as I said before, I couldn't resist reading this lovely story of yours. so I snatched a few moments to read it this morning. These are most poignant and insightful vignettes. You've managed to capture with a few masterful strokes, five meaningful moments in the life of Aragorn, which illustrate perfectly his growth, his victory and the bitter price he paid for it too. To me the last vignette is very, very touching, and a perfect ending to your piece. Author Reply: Thank you, Estelcontar! I'm glad you took a moment to read this, even as busy as you were. Aragorn's such a fascinating character to me... it was really interesting (and challenging) to figure out a way to work through his life in glimpses of him looking through windows. It was a fun OAA prompt. :) Thanks again for the review! | |
| Silivren Tinu | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 10/9/2009 |
| Aw, that was beautiful! I got all misty-eyed when Aragorn mentioned Halbarad in the last part. *sniff* He really got everything he hoped for and more than he dreamed of, but it came at such a high price. *sigh* I couldn't help chuckling at "moldy old dead kings on a moldy old drowned island". ;-) Loved it! *g* Almut Author Reply: Thanks, Almut! I'm sure Elrond and Erestor would not be happy to hear the Last Homely House referred to as "moldy" but it did seem to fit what a frustrated young teen (or even pre-teen... I can't decide quite how old he is there... probably about 11) would think while watching his idolized older brothers leave on adventures without him. :) And yay, made you misty-eyed! *hands over tissue* Thanks for the review! | |
| Envinyatar | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 10/9/2009 |
| Beautiful. I'm not generally a fan of drabbles, but when they're vignettes connected to form a bigger picture they can work well and this really does. The essential elements of a life captured in a few well-chosen words. What I am a fan of is long, multi-chapter stories, so excited to hear there's one on its way...! Author Reply: Thank you, Envinyatar! You know, I'm not especially fond of drabbles, either, so it always catches me by surprise when I find I like writing them--like you, I'm more of a novel fan. But I think the challenge of using only 100 words to get a point across is what I enjoy about them. And yes, I almost have to string them together because one drabble alone is usually too short for me to get my full point across. Anyway... I'm glad you liked this little drabble/ficlet! I hope the upcoming multi-chapter story will be to your liking! :) Thanks for the review! | |
| RS | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 10/8/2009 |
| I love these moments of Aragorn's life. From his chubby arms (Wohir! I love it), to his impatient teen years with his moldy books and moldy history...to his yearning of a new found love! I'm with Inzilbeth, that part is my favorite! But the lat two moments....just moved me to tears! Thanks! Can't wait for your next one. Author Reply: Thank you, RS! I'm so glad you liked all these little glimpses of Aragorn's life. And especially glad to hear the last one moved you to tears. I can barely even *think* about Halbarad's death without crying, so I'm glad that some of that came through in my writing about it. And lovelorn Estel was so fun to write. :) Thanks again for the review! | |
| curiouswombat | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 10/8/2009 |
| What a lovely series of vignettes - each a perfect gem, strung onto a thread of mithril! Author Reply: Thank you so much, curiouswombat! What a lovely analogy! *blushes* | |
| Calenlass Greenlaef | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 10/8/2009 |
| I loved these, Cairistiona. They give a lovely picture of Aragorn. :) ~Cal P.S. I've missed reading your stories, btw. You need to write more often! *grin* Author Reply: Thank you, Cal! I'm glad you liked this little ficlet... a series of smaller pictures to create a larger one was exactly what I had in mind. And fear not, a multi-chapter story is on the way that I've been quietly working on for the last, um, not sure how many moons. It's in the capable hands of my beta and hopefully in about a week or a bit more, I'll start posting the chapters. :) Thanks for the review and the encouraging words! | |
| Mirach | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 10/8/2009 |
| It's beautiful! I love how each of the parts tell just a glimpse of a story, a short moment, but together they create the feeling of flowing time and a greater whole. And in each of the parts, you managed to capture Aragorn's thought very realistically - even as a little child and a teenager (moldy old everything, lol) Gandalf too had only one line here, but he is very much Gandalf since he opens his mouth =) And I absolutely love how you connected the parts with repeating words or images. Short glimpses through the window, but a deep glimpse into Aragorn's life, just beautiful! Author Reply: Thank you, Mirach! I'm so glad you liked the way there were repeating images and phrases that connected them all... and glad that even though each drabble was sparse (as drabbles are by their very nature), you thought I captured the moments well. I definitely was aiming for a deep but quick glimpse through the years, all tied together with the idea of him looking out a window, which I think is likely something he would do a lot. Thanks again for the review! | |
| Inzilbeth | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 10/8/2009 |
| Oh wonderful, absolutely wonderful! This was such a great idea and you've executed it most beautifully. I'm struggling to think of a favourite but I think it might be the image of the lovelorn young man, seeing the world very differently now that he he has met his own Tinuvial. Very well done indeed! Author Reply: Thank you! I'm so glad you liked this... it really was a bit of a wild hair idea that literally came in the middle of the night last night, and it demanded to be written. I can't say which is my own favorite... probably the last one, since it's about Halbarad (you know me!!) but that picture of a dreamy-eyed Aragorn is fun, isn't it? :) Thanks for the review! | |