No one can relate to Enna's actual position at the beginning of this chapter, but I believe we've experienced times when there seemed to be no options. When we were trapped by the choices we'd made and the circumstances we were in. Inside those moments, all can seem impossible. As I hope it seems so now in the story. Impossible. She is truly trapped.
The catalyst for change: Isi. Always Isi. She changes nothing except perspective. I think sometimes that's all we need. Not for someone to take away all our problems but just help us turn a bit, see a slightly different way out. Isi was raised on stories, and so that's what she can offer. A story. I feel the same. I can't reach back to every reader who reaches out to me with letters and requests and needs for friendship or mentorship. I can't find every person who is lonely or afraid or trapped by people who don't have their best interests at heart or stuck in their own mistakes or sad or desperate or yearning. But I can offer a story. That's what this book is for me. A story like the one Isi tells Enna. And hopefully it will reach the right people in the right way. Hopefully the right reader can take what they need from it and turn just a little bit, see the path they hadn't seen before.
But--oh! After weeks in that tent, as horrible as this chapter is, I'm so relieved when she starts escaping in the camp.Run, Enna, run!
Stories are characters. Characters are their relationships. With others as well as with themselves. Everything in this story matters because of Enna's friendships with Isi, Razo, and Finn. Can you imagine this story without them? If you're story is stuck, look closely at the relationships. Which need to be strengthened? More important? Can you add a friendship/sibling/parent-child relationship that will matter to the story?
Anna asks, "If the Goose Girl was a movie, who would you want to play Ani and Enna?" I truly have no idea. Who would you pick?
Lizza asks, "Are any of the characters in Enna Burning LGBTQ+?" The text doesn't specifiy but surely there must be. 5-10% of the population in the US identify as LGBTQ, so it's reasonable to assume that at least 5% of a book's population as well. I've had readers email me that they read Enna's fire-speaking as a metaphor for their own homosexuality, which I hadn't intended but I love how fantasy can create metaphors to speak to everyone's own experiences. Telling the story of characters who are LGBTQ is not something I've done yet (there are so, so many stories I haven't done yet!) but if you're looking for recommendations, I love authors like Holly Black, Malinda Lo, Libba Bray, A.S. King, Maureen Johnson, and David Levithan. A couple recent books I've loved featuring LGBTQ characters are Smile by Raina Telgemeier and Afterworlds by Scott Westerfeld. The Stonewall Book Awards also provide an excellent list.
I'm off to Comic-con and won't be able to blog again until Monday. Thank you, readers!
I love that Isi and Razo and Finn didn't judge Enna. They understood. Isi especially understood. They accepted. Everyone needs friends like that.
Posted by: Heather | July 23, 2014 at 02:32 PM
This has nothing to do with the book club, but I thought you would like to know. I visited Jane Austen's home today (which was absolutely amazing) today and I overheard the cashier in the gift shop giving a raving review of Austenland, the movie. Congratulations! You've made it back to the motherland!
Posted by: Catherine | July 23, 2014 at 02:47 PM
I would pick Jennifer Lawrence for Ani and Lily Collins for Enna! That's just me though...
Posted by: Anna | July 23, 2014 at 06:12 PM
I LOVED that part where Isi goes into the camp to tell the story, it's so touching and just so like her!
About the stories-are-characters thought, I totally agree. After I finish a book, I've honestly already forgotten a lot of events in the story, but what I am really left with is the characters - the ones I loved and the ones I hated, the way they made me feel, their interactions in my favorite scenes, and the lessons they've taught me.
Thanks for the posts!
Posted by: Leilani | July 23, 2014 at 09:39 PM
Are Isi and Enna based off people you know or did they just spring to life in your wonderful mind?
Posted by: Nicole | July 26, 2014 at 05:21 PM
Do you think of a character and then name them or do you start with a name? I don't know why but I pronounce Enna's name as Eena or Ina.
Posted by: Lynn | July 26, 2014 at 10:36 PM
I need to reread Goose Girl and Enna Burning just so I can figure out who would play them. I have such a hard time "casting" book characters because they are just THEM and my mental picture is unique, but it would be fun to come up with a real-life faces to match to the characters.
It also makes me wonder how close the images of Enna and Isi you picture are to each of ours. That would be fun to see.
Posted by: Tara | July 26, 2014 at 11:07 PM
Oh, I love this scene! The last time I read Enna Burning was seven years ago. I forgot a lot of things in that time, like Sileph's name and the augury. But this scene feels like it's burned into my brain. I love how Isi sacrifices her hair just to tell Enna a story. I love how the story gives Enna the motivation to escape. I love how Enna realizes her friends will always be there for her.
Last time I read this book, it was about struggling with a problem no one else could see and conquering your inner demons. And now it's about friendship! Haha, you tricky book, changing on me like that.
Posted by: Eliza | July 27, 2014 at 08:23 AM