"No one can be lonely who has a book for company." ~ Nelle Reagan

Friday, August 5, 2011

Theme Thursday: Location



Theme Thursdays is a fun weekly event, hosted by Reading Between Pages that will be open from one Thursday to the next. Anyone can participate in it. The rules are simple:
  • A theme will be posted each week (on Thursdays)
  • Select a conversation/snippet/sentence from the current book you are reading
  • Mention the author and the title of the book along with your post
  • It is important that the theme is conveyed in the sentence (you don’t necessarily need to have the word)
    Ex: If the theme is KISS; your sentence can have “They kissed so gently” or “Their lips touched each other” or “The smooch was so passionate”
 This week's theme is LOCATION
"At eight o'clock on Thursday evening, Harry left Gryffindor Tower for the History of Magic classroom.  It was dark and empty when he arrived, but he lit the lamps with his wand and had waited only five minutes when Professor Lupin turned up, carrying a large packing case, which he heaved onto Professor Binn's desk." ~ page 175, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling 


This is a re-read for me as I participate in the Harry Potter Read Along hosted by Giraffe Days.  At this point in the story, Harry has recovered from being attacked by a Dementor on the Quidditch field and a big game is ahead, one that could finally bring championship for the Gryffindor team.  Concerned about another possible attack and the horrible effects Harry experiences when faced with a Dementor, Harry has sought the aid of Professor Lupin, teacher of Defence Against the Dark Arts, to teach him how to ward them off.  It is at this point in the story that Harry goes to the History of Magic classroom to learn from the best Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher Harry has ever known.


"Usually Zee would abandon the boat at one of the public wharves that lined Salem's waterfront.  Often it was the one at the Willows, the first wharf you came to when you entered the harbor.  But when the cops started looking for her, she began to leave the  boats in other, less obvious places.  Sometimes she would jump someone else's mooring.  Or she would leave a boat in one of the slips at Derby Wharf, which made it easy to get away, since she lived so close." ~ page 2, The Map of True Places by Brunonia Barry
This situation provides some background into the character of Zee, the main character of the novel.  She was a teenager at the time and troubled.  Her mother had committed suicide after fighting for several years against bipolar disease, and Zee had watched her die.  With this troubled vision in her mind and an otherwise occupied and mostly absent father, Zee began to act out, pirating boats to sail to the island where her mother had a house.  This was Zee's destination.  Did it make her feel closer to her mother?  Did she discover secrets there?  Did Zee find peace there?  You have to read The Map of True Places to follow Zee's story as it moves beyond the teenage years to those of adulthood where she finds herself engaged, unhappy, seeking insight, and trying to come to terms with the status of her life.  A fascinating read.  I am on page 142/412 now.  

Location is essential in building the plot of any story.  It not only creates a place to be, to envision as you read, but it helps to set the tone of the novel.  


Please share your link to your answer for this week's Theme Thursday in a comment below or tell me in your comments if you don't have a blog.  I wait in anticipation.....What's your location? 

8 comments:

  1. I love the description from 'The Map of True Places'. I visited Salem a few years ago and was really intrigued by the town!

    Thanks for stopping by my blog yesterday and for letting me know about your contests. I've entered the Jeffrey Archer one - his writing is absolutely superb!

    Have a great weekend and I'll no doubt see you around next Thursday!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I cannot believe you actually posted a location from Harry Potter! :o) I have just yesterday signed up for pottermore and he seems to be following me ever since ;) nice one!

    Thanks for visiting my blog. I won't be signing up for your contests at the moment as I have a couple of books on a deadline already, but keep me posted at a later time please!

    Love your background, esp as it is written in German, may I ask where you got it from?

    Have a good weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I agree that a well described location adds so much to any story. I read The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry and enjoyed it but haven't read this one yet.
    Great snippet!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Great snippet for this week's theme!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Dear Anonymous, the background is an advanced template available to bloggers using google blogspot.com. It is accessed through the "design" options. Glad you like it. I wanted to change things up a bit, and, though I can't read nor speak German, I liked the appearance of this background.

    Check back often for future giveaways. As you posted anonymously, I cannot contact you personally about upcoming contests. Following this blog is the best means of keeping in touch.

    Thanks for the visit.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thanks for stopping by everyone and please do take a moment to enter the two contests I am hosting.

    The Map of True Places is my first Brunonia Barry novel and I am enjoying it thus far.


    See you around. You don't have to wait until next Thursday to visit. I am always here!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hi Shirley,
    sorry, it was not my intention to post anonymously, but I am not with blogspot myself and I haven't quite figured out which identity to comment with ;) my bad, sorry.
    I will surely visit more often, just had a sneek on your other blogs and your first chapter is really intriguing! Hope you will continue that story soon!
    Good luck with your article

    ReplyDelete

Hey there! Thanks for stopping by. I appreciate all my visitors and your comments so please introduce yourself, ask or make suggestions. I'd love to hear from you. This blog is a no-award zone. I appreciate the acknowledgment but your kind words are enough.

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