I So Want to be Holly Short

That's Captain Holly Short, folks. And that's in spite of the fact that I've always found leprechauns boring. That's because I didn't know the word should actually be spelled LEPrecon for Lower Elements Police reconnaisance.

Have you guessed that I've been reading Eoin Colfer's Artemis Fowl again? Yep, I whipped through Artemis Fowl The Arctic Incident and then sat right down to read Artemis Fowl The Eternity Code. I love these things.

Now, in The Eternity Code Artemis doesn't dominate the action quite as much as he does in the other books, and I think some kidlit folks might complain about that, seeing how he's the only kid in the book and all. And I'm sure the Point of View Nazis are probably nashing their teeth because the action switches scenes quite frequently, though the author practically gives you a road map so you can follow where's going. My attitude is these books prove that authors can do whatever they want to--so long as the story works. And Artemis Fowl works.

Eoin Colfer is supposed to have described these books as "Die Hard with fairies." (For the record, I was very fond of the first two Die Hard movies, too.) But these books aren't totally escapist thrill rides. The fairy folk think we humans are pigs and constantly complaining that we are wrecking our environment. While I was reading the third book in the series I was washing my hands in a ladies room at a mall. Instead of using the hand dryer, I pulled out a paper towel, a totally unnecessary use of an object. As I dried my hands, I thought, "Filthy mud person," which just happens to be what the fairies in Artemis Fowl call us humans. I'm getting the message.

A new book is coming in October.
Thank goodness that's only a month away.