Now it reads: Artur’s face, narrow-nosed and with a chipped front tooth — Irene’s, dark as an ateva, but brown, and eyes darker than her face, scarily dark, full of thoughts –
If I make it apply Bjorn, who was in the original 3, it can become—Artur’s face, narrow-nosed and with a chipped front tooth — Irene’s, pale as nand’ Bren’s; and Bjorn, dark as an ateva, but brown, and eyes darker than his face, scarily dark, always full of thoughts –
I like the description, but Irene’s become otherwise, and Bjorn still has to be defined…
I think that will work. I like that it keeps the description intact.
If Tommie, Ready4more and I all three haven’t found any physical description of Bjorn yet, it seems likely that his appearance hasn’t been described yet.
He is described as clever, he’s studying very hard so he can’t come down (I get the feeling that it’s implied that a lot is expected of him, maybe for some demanding future function), so that chimes with the ‘full of thoughts’ part of the description.
while you’re at it, why not give her those very pale irises which I call ‘ice eyes’, and one of my friends calls ‘wolf eyes’? I should think that would put the fear of ghosts into most atevi, and make Uncle’s gesture with the cup even more to the point.
Nand’ Sabina at the Shejidan forum had a useful and clever solution:
[quote]
I agree with the person who said, they prefer the story not be retconned or suddenly Björn getting turned dark to add some diversity to the cast, whether he ever got a description or not.
I think it would be much easier to an “r” to the one instance Irene’s color is mentioned in Protector. Which would make her “paler” or she could “have become pale”. Which in no way would contradict earlier mentions and, imho, brings her feelings of fear and apprehension better across.
[/quote]
Except, on the other thread CJ said she’d have to rewrite several scenes in the just-finished book (Peacemaker, if I’m counting right) if Irene had to become dark again, just because of that one sentence in Deliverer, so apparently her pale colouring becomes important in some situation(s). Hiding in the dark? Camouflage or getting lost in the mist? Standing out in a crowd of dark atevi, despite being too short to be easily seen? Just the hint starts my ‘perhaps…’-brain spinning.
The quote from CJ there, when I suggested something similar: “It’s a great thought, but there’s whole scenes in the new book that would have to be rewritten…”.
So transferring that great description, and keeping the diversity of the crew (and possible link with captain Ogun?) intact by shifting it onto Bjorn, who’s appearance hasn’t been defined (except from being the oldest of the kids, grown as tall as Cajeiri, and being intelligent) seems the best option, now.
Nods. Very good point, Hanneke. If it’s something intrinsic to a later plot point, then of course something has to change. As Tommie says below, there’s also the urge to perfect one’s art, the story.
It suits me however you feel best describes Irene now. After all, it’s ultimately how you see her in your mind’s eye, even if it changed between books.
I don’t see a problem with someone named Bjorn, very Scandinavian to us, being dark-skinned. It’s only our present-day (and American) expectations of the name, and there are likely people with very typical names there anyway, whose ancestors came from much further south.
Whether Irene or Bjorn or both, given the history of Phoenix’s descendants, it makes sense.
Tommie had mentioned someone with cinnamon / coppery skin and red to auburn hair earlier. I’ve seen at least one model/actress with looks like that. Very attractive. Not that Irene or Bjorn need be, but worth comment. There’s also the song, Cinnamon Girl.
Maybe Bjorn was named for his Scandinavian grandfather, rather than the dark-skinned grandfather on the other side. I have just finished “Protector” and I love it, and the children, their characters and their appearance, are perfect and full of possibilities (I’m already thinking about “Peacemaker”). I agree about adding the “r”, making her paler, as well as taller and older than Cajeiri remembers.
Possible. (Look up the Mozingo family sometime.)
(Also, one of my nieces was a friend of a Swedish exchange student, whose parents were from Sri Lanka. I know someone of Swedish descent who claims she’s a brunette because of the Turkish creditors who followed Charles-the-whatever home after he was ransomed out of Ottoman imprisonment.)
My spousal unit used to sing Cinnamon Girl to my eldest daughter, who’s eyes are the color of a cinnamon stick. The young woman I spoke of was planning to dye her hair black in order to look less ‘strange’; sixth grade, after all.
Will the world come to an end without the change? Unless it is a vital point in the story.
Just my two cents.
I think we can all understand the urge to perfect a piece of work, especially if you are going to put your name on it. I sign very few of my pieces of needlework.
I know it actually bothered me (as in I sort of went ‘huh?’ then shrugged) that Irene was Artur’s sister, yet it was implied he was light skinned and she was dark, so in a way making her light skinned sort of resolves that issue -minor, I know, as its entirely possible they’re just extremes of one genetic mix, or have different fathers. Either way, I’m of the ‘its small potatoes’ school of thought. At least as far as we know! 🙂
where are they related? I don’t remember that part. In Protector it’s clear that Arthur has two parents, and Irene has one. (Gene has one, who doesn’t care.)
Its way back in one of the book where we first meet the kids, I haven’t a clue where, and its sort of one of those throw away lines that never shows up again. Sort of like Toby having a medical practice…. 🙂
@weeble Aha! That’s the school of ‘By every detail hangs a tale’ that I so admire!
My only comment on such like is “De tails not mportunt, rite moar buks.” — Didn’t know I spoke fluent Kitteh, didja? (I haz to. I’m teh Meomy uf 3 kittehs.) As far as I’m concerned, “suspension of disbelief” has got that covered.
If you’re collecting misprints, there’s a rather obvious one in Chanur’s Homecoming, Ch 6, first page: “Tartar” should be “Tahar”.
But Gene has always been Cajeiri’s favorite…. Bjorn shouldn’t come down to the planet as he was peripheral to the other three. Gene needs to be described. As stated somewhere else, just let the cover art stand as is and make Irene dark. If the cover art were true to the story then another important human person would be on the cover….