Friday, August 26, 2011

The Forgotten Locket by Lisa Mangum

Published in 2011. 368 pages.


The world is full of impossibilities - some beautiful, some terrible - but sometimes, when you least expect it, they can become possible.
                ~ Abby

The Forgotten Locket is a satisfying ending to The Hourglass Door trilogy. I was bothered by some of the same things as in the previous books, but overall - as before - my inner teenage geek had a good time with it! (My initial response to The Hourglass Door is here, with my thoughts on The Golden Spiral here.)

I re-read The Hourglass Door last fall for my Teaching Through Literature Discussions workshop. I found that I enjoyed the book more on the second read - perhaps partly because I wasn't trying so much to figure things out. I also found that I appreciated the book more having heard the author talk about it and the writing process. Among the interesting things she said are these:
One thing that bugged me while I was reading was looking at the beautiful gold locket on the cover and seeing in my mind's eye the beautiful silver locket described in the narrative. In the end, I understand the point of the cover picture - but for most of the book I was thinking that the cover designer hadn't even read it!

Here is a favorite passage from The Forgotten Locket, one that I think deserves some contemplation:

"What kinds of things did you wish for?

Orlando turned his attention to the fire, avoiding my gaze. "Oh, I never made a wish myself."

"Why not?"

"I don't know. Maybe it was because I didn't want to look at my life and see what was missing. Once you identify what you lack, then it's all you see anymore. Wanting something I couldn't have would only lead to unhappiness, so I tried to be content with what I had."

"That's terrible," I said. "It misses the whole point of wishing. It's not to focus on what you don't have; it's to show you what could be. Once you know what you want, then you know what to reach for, what to dream about. It's how you change things."


2011.62

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