Oh goody. Another topic that points out what an odd child I may have been. I seem to have missed out on the crushing over book heros thing. I suspect I can blame George Lucas. At the point in my life where most other girls were falling for heros in books, I was a complete and unrepentent Star Wars Geek. I was all about Luke Skywalker and Han Solo.
And flying X-Wing fighters! I would have been GOOD at that. I suspect I might even have had a talent for bull's-eying womp rats in a T-16.
What I was bad at was reading books with markedly alpha heros and happily-ever-after romantic endings. I was reading authors who gave me female protagonists, Andre Norton, notable among them. I desperately needed those strong, smart, determined women at that point in my life. She delivered. Ordeal in Otherwhere has to be one of my favorites. A heroine driving her own fate on a world ruled by women? What's not to love?That said, a few of her heros do stand out in my memory. Kethan in the Jargoon Pard. Prince Michael in The Prince Commands. Not because either story was much of a romance - the Jargoon Pard did have a bit of a romance in it, but both heros were good, admirable guys in tough circumstances. Prince Michael had the smart mouth and wit to make me appreciate him. I admit to being a sucker for a sense of humor. Kethan had the heart, brains, and determination to walk into the fire for a woman who barely knew he was alive until she, too, saw those things in him.
The heros all of my English teachers seemed to hold in such high regard? I thought they all needed a swift kick in the -- shins. The heros. Not my teachers. Okay. There was that *one*...
I liked the female protagonists, too. But I loved 'em to have a great guy to team with!
ReplyDeleteYay for the female heroines!
ReplyDeleteHan Solo all the way! I've been in love with Harrison Ford ever since that day --
ReplyDeleteBut I have also always had book heroes. I need to save them for the blog post. Which I suppose I should be writing. Or at least thinking about writing.
The prequel to Jargoon Pard...now I'm blanking on the name and will have to look it up. AH, Year of the Unicorn! The hero had a name with all sorts of consonants. He was one of my favorite Norton heroes, as was Simon Tregarth. Both of them had to subdue their alpha-ness and let the woman shine.
ReplyDelete