Q.R.V.
Formidable Foreman
Better paranoid than dead.
Posts: 149
Likes: 20
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Post by Q.R.V. on Jul 26, 2012 17:59:02 GMT -5
I recently acquired a case, also from ebay. Instead of the publicity schedule that others got, mine came with an "Educator's Guide". This contains discussion questions, mostly of the bland variety that teachers use to check everyone read the book. Some, however, drop plot hints: there are mentions of the Bombinating Beast, Ellington Feint, Kit Snicket (though not by name), Hector (by name), locations in Stain'd-by-the-Sea (the Black Cat Coffee Shop, the library), and three new characters named Moxie, Prosper Lost, and Hangfire. Any character with the name "Hangfire" is guaranteed to be awesome. The guide also contains three new, detailed illustrations. I have uploaded scans of the guide to google docs, in case anyone else is interested. docs.google.com/folder/d/0B6_lN_AJmTuMMlBQUVp4Tnd2Umc/editMy initial interpretation of these questions is that Hangfire is the villain from "How can we stop him?", that the statue in "Why would anyone want to steal this statue" is indeed of the Bombinating Beast, and that the girl with binoculars in the first illustration is the same girl as in "Who is Ellington Feint?". I could wildly speculate more, but I doubt anyone would want to read it. Hope these scans are useful!
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Post by Poe's Coats Host Toast on Jul 26, 2012 20:45:45 GMT -5
Hope these scans are useful! You can say that again. Tons (comparing to other official news updates) of new information. Thank you so much for the scans!
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Post by B. on Jul 27, 2012 2:30:09 GMT -5
Thank-you very, very much for sharing that, Q.R.V, and congratulations on acquiring a case. Note the girl with the binoculars seems to be looking out at a falling Lemony- the image we know from the cover and the Drop Everything promotion. However, I don't think your case was the only one with an educators guide (unless this photo belongs to you). There's a picture of another one here. Do you know how long the case was up on ebay before you bought it, and is it possible these batch of cases came from a different event? Did your case still have the publicity schedule inside it?
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Post by Dante on Jul 27, 2012 2:39:52 GMT -5
Worth a new thread, I think. Yes, this is definitely very important. Well done, and that sure was lucky, Q.R.V. Just to add context, ASoUE had similar guides for many of the books, pumping them for exercises and themes, so I'm not surprised to see one for WCTBATH - but it sure is useful for our purposes and picks up on some information we got recently. This presumably comes from a different event - one more for educators and the like, presumably. It wouldn't have been the only one, but they'll have been tailoring their giveaways to their audience. I think I'll go through this page by page. Front cover: Just to be clear that "detective story" is a major genre associated with the text. There is going to be a good, strong mystery here. Page 2: The cover is more or less confirmed to be "symbolic," so we can probably stop trying to think of literal explanations for the giant shadowy figure striding over the landscape (movie poster, model city etc.). "Moxie" appears to be one of the first new characters Lemony meets in Stain'd. With a name like that, we can guess more or less what she'll be like. But it also sounds like Lemony will be acquiring quite the circle of allies, and that should make things very interesting for us. We also know that Moxie particularly is not necessarily trustworthy - and I would guess that we can say this about numerous characters. It's not that they're bad, it's more that they have their own agendas, which overlap sometimes but not always with Lemony's. As hinted yesterday, the statue is of the Bombinating Beast, clearly a legendary being. But the LB Young Readers' catalogue seems to imply that the Bombinating Beast itself will appear, which says to me that there's a present incarnation of it which is probably, once again, not what it appears (and certainly not a beast - something that buzzes to me sounds like a machine). The guide clearly assumes you've read the book, and yet it's not clear why the statue is important or why Hangfire wants it - which more or less confirms that that plot runs on through the series, as we've already had indications it would. Page 3: Hector is our first confirmed returning character from ASoUE (excluding Lemony, of course). This should clarify a number of facts about him from ASoUE, assuming it's the same Hector - whether he was a volunteer, for instance. But it's also true that Hector is a fairly minor character in ASoUE, appearing in one book only. If Handler's willing to bring back a character like Hector, does that mean that we can reasonably expect more notable and notorious characters? The quote from Hector implies either that Kit's around, or that one obligation Lemony's had to leave is helping his sister, but it's really not clear. It sounds like there's a good chance that Kit could appear, too. At the very least, we'll have to be aware of her. "Prosper Lost" - another ally, but male or female, young or old? The name sounds to me more like an older character, as does their wisdom and advice. Actually, they sound more like the sort of chaperone I'd have expected Lemony to have. I wonder if they're the inhabitant of the Chapter Three manor? Many of the characters aren't as they appear - good! Let's keep on guessing about everyone throughout the series. It's more or less confirmed that Ellington Feint is "the girl" and that she is very mysterious. I continue to have her marked down as a femme fatale. Interesting that she's trying to find her father - who presumably has gone missing in the town. That's a familiar idea from ASoUE - think of Fiona and Fernald and their stepfather, for instance, and what they were willing to do to find him. But is that really what Ellington's after? It sounds like she commits some fairly dubious acts. The machine in the Black Cat Coffee Shop sounds like it doesn't just make coffee. Or if it does, it does it in a very convoluted way. The Stain'd-by-the-Sea library sounds like it will give us a lot of insight into Lemony's character and history. Shame that the opening of the book more or less guarantees that Lemony will burn it down at some point. Great job, hero! Page 4: Just to note that the taxi from " Keep your eyes on the road" appears as a full illustration, since they've sampled it on the corner of this page. Page 5: In the first illustration from the left, we see what's either a stuffed or a statue of a crow, continuing their importance to Snicket's work. If it's a statue, maybe it's a reference to the Maltese Falcon? I wonder if the guy with the shades and the inverted skull vest is an actual character, given the amount of detail and prominence accorded him. He looks like the sort of guy who might be called Hangfire, actually. Second illustration from the left: Evidently the Ink Inc. calendar from the attaché case is a real thing in the story. Also, as noted by Bee, that's Lemony falling into a tree in the distance, from the cover. I agree that the girl watching him strikes me as more of an Ellington Feint than a Moxie. She also has a number of photographs of people on her wall. Third illustration from the right: Screams echoing from the spooky old house! Who hasn't encountered that trope before. That looks to me like the manor from Chapter Three (or rather, the end of Chapter Two). Are those people in the foreground important? I can't even tell their ages. What a haul! This tells us so much - not necessarily about the plot but about what kind of book this is and what we can expect. And it sounds like the book will be more thorough and deep than we might necessarily have expected.
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Post by Christmas Chief on Jul 27, 2012 8:24:21 GMT -5
I know we've seen the cover photo before, but I don't think anyone mentioned the book itself appears to be black under its duskjacket - not just the spine, but both front board and back board. So I don't think we'll be getting any additional illustrations from there. It does, by the way, appear to be an actual photo judging by the mark across the back of the shadowy figure and a dim scratch above the rear of the car, and the fact the creases along the edge of the spine and right of the front board seem to be legitimate rather than some sort of bevel effect. I also notice they're classifying this as a book for ages "9 & up," whereas I recall ASOUE was usually pegged as a book for ages 9-12, i.e., given a range.
About the second page: They misspelled "stationery" in the fourth discussion question. That's not really significant, except that "stationary" and "stationery" have two quite different meanings, and I wondered briefly if it would be punned upon in the text. Probably too late for that, though. On another note, Moxie's character must be ambiguous, if the question implies there can be evidence found in the text supporting either position. If so, I suspect she's less of a "friend" (the way the Quagmires were to the Baudelaires, for instance) and more of an acquaintance or ally. But some of these questions are confusing. "What do you believe happened to the town...? What could be done to try to save a town like Stain'd-by-the-Sea?" Does that imply we don't find out? Isn't that what Lemony has set out to do? Perhaps they are asked as such for the same reason the Moxie question was asked in the present tense - teachers are supposed to ask these as the class goes through the book.
"When describing the statue of the Bombinating Beast ..." so either the Beast is a statue, or there is a statue of it. Probably the latter. Can we tie this to "Why would anyone want to steal this statue?"? Perhaps the Bombinating Beast is the maybe-it's-a-seahorse illustration we puzzled over early on. If so, Hangfire might be the man from "How can we stop him?"
Third page: We learn a few things about Ellington here. First, Lemony helps her. Second, she commits some action readers might find at first despicable. Third, she is looking for her father. I suppose that answers "Who is Ellington Feint?" for now. We also learn about the uses of various disguises, a key part of V.F.D. training. And of course there is the library, which keeps Lemony "connected to his past." I wonder what sort of past this is. When we think of Lemony's past it usually is about his time in the organization, but here the implication is his story goes back even farther - to Beatrice, certainly, but what were other aspects of his life outside school? Also, how does a library do that? By devoting a section to V.F.D. mysteries and Lemony's home town in 804.1? The call number must be connected somehow, in any case.
The illustrations: Aye, I'm guessing the girl with binoculars is Ellington, as she matches the plaid skirt and long hair we saw in the "Who" promotion. She has an Ink Inc. calendar on her wall, incidentally, as well as a lighthouse landscape portrait. She listens to music, or perhaps some sort of recording. And there is a mug and open book near where she's kneeling, implying she has been watching and waiting by that window for some time - she clearly knew what to look for. As Dante says, the EEEE illustration looks to be coming from the house at which we leave Lemony and Theadora at the end of Chapter Two. The two boys, or at least two figures posing as young males, represent to me the general feeling around Stain'd that this is one house to be avoided. As for the library, I wonder if that is actually supposed to be Lemony in disguise? Or some villain confiscating crucial evidence?
Edit: Oh, and as for why this guide was included in the case: I've read of various incidents where ATWQ promotes specially to educators, and schools are often the target for samplers such as these. I suspect this was given out at one such event, or mailed out on request. Thanks a ton for posting it, Q.R.V.!
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Post by Old Swinburne on Jul 27, 2012 9:01:17 GMT -5
When I first heard the name 'Bombinating Beast', I thought it might be some sort of Bonnacon/Chimera-like animal, but as 'Bombinating' means 'make a humming noise' it seems to be more insect-esque. It is interesting to note the lighthouse picture on the walls of Ellington's room. And the Ink Inc. calender- either they are widely available in Stain'd-by-the-Sea, or (and here we are approaching the realms of pure speculation) she is an employee of the company (?).
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Post by Dante on Jul 27, 2012 9:04:23 GMT -5
I think your two interpretations are pretty reasonable, somewheresafetosea. The calendar has been drawn on her wall for a reason. Either the calendar is an extremely common piece of merchandising, or it indicates that Ellington is connected to Ink Inc. somehow.
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Post by Hermes on Jul 27, 2012 9:42:34 GMT -5
Thank you very much, QRV - this is amazing.
Stationary shop - well, most shops are stationary. Except the moving toyshop, in the book by Edmund Crispin. I think it's just a misprint.
Hector - bother, bother, bother. I had just worked out an explanation of his backstory which ex-plains how he knows Lemony without being a volunteer, and now this messes it up.
The Bombinating Beast - well, I think it still could be chimera-like, since the name seems to be a reference to the passage in Rabelais about a chimera bombinating in a vacuum. But I'm not sure it has to have any existence apart from the statue: if it's famous statue it might be called simply 'The Bombinating Beast'.
One thing that interests me is 'everyone has done something bad', apparently said to Lemony to comfort him - this seems to link up with the 'chef's salads' and 'noble enough' themes from ASOUE.
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Post by Dante on Jul 27, 2012 9:53:55 GMT -5
One obvious thing that just hit me - the names no longer seem to be literary allusions; they're more like actual words or puns (I'm thinking of Moxie in particular).
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Post by Christmas Chief on Jul 27, 2012 10:00:51 GMT -5
Could the allusions be shifting from literature to linguistics? Certainly both are present in each series, but I can definitely see how one might lean more one way than the other.
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Post by Old Swinburne on Jul 27, 2012 10:40:59 GMT -5
I think we will be encountering a lot of child characters in WCTBATH, probably in the Dickensian 'ragamuffin' gang format. We have mention of an 'unusual cast of secondary characters', which points towards this. I assume the group will have unusual nicknames- Qwerty, Moxie, Prosper Lost, Ellington Feint... It's interesting that the word 'crimes' on the fourth page is highlighted, hinting that there will be lots of philosophical discussion on the nature of crime. I am, personally, looking forward to see a younger Hector.
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Post by Isadora Is a Door on Jul 27, 2012 11:11:16 GMT -5
er, wow!
This is fantastic!
Im SO pleased Hector will be making an apperance, even if it is just a few pages....
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Post by B. on Jul 27, 2012 14:33:23 GMT -5
Could the allusions be shifting from literature to linguistics? Certainly both are present in each series, but I can definitely see how one might lean more one way than the other. I think it's nice to see this difference between the two series. I suspect literacy allusions will still be present in ATWQ, though perhaps not so much as in ASoUE. Look at “Feint” as a surname in this novel- we already know Ellington performs some kind of untrustworthy action. On the front cover it lists “Loyalty and Courage” as some of the themes on the front cover; it seems Lemony and his associates will go though quite a few trials in this story. I wonder if the lines “I was hired in the town and I thought the girl had nothing to do with the theft. I was wrong.” refer to the action that readers may find despicable that Ellington Feint does to find her father. If Hangfire is trying to steal the statue and Ellington does something to do with the theft then…. Wild speculation: Hangfire is Ellington’s father. The fact that it also says Ellington doesn’t give much information on the subject, is immediately cause for suspicion. Based on what it says here, Ellington strikes me as a character very similar in some ways to Fiona. We know there are going to be a “variety of settings.” Again, another thing making ATWQ different from ASoUE: each book had a very set location. I really like how we’re going to see so many different characters in this story. I’m hoping we’ll see a few cameos from some characters we know too, or cameos of characters from this story briefly appearing in further instalments. If students are asked to “offer their predictions on why Hangfire wants it so badly” then it may well point to the fact that the statue and the Bombinating Beast are going to be reoccurring plot elements in the series, unless of course, as Sherry Ann mentioned, these questions are meant to be asked as the book is read. The Stain’d-by-the-Sea library seems to be the one pictured in the 804.1 promotion. The fact that it “connects Lemony into his path” suggests that it may be more of a library of records or an archive of some sort. If Ink.Inc produces calendars, then they definitely seem to be leaning to more of an organisation than just a company producing ink. Perhaps they had to turn to other merchandise because of the lack of ink, and the fading business?
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Post by Christmas Chief on Jul 27, 2012 14:56:48 GMT -5
I think it's nice to see this difference between the two series. I suspect literacy allusions will still be present in ATWQ, though perhaps not so much as in ASoUE. Look at “Feint” as a surname in this novel- we already know Ellington performs some kind of untrustworthy action. Certainly there are plenty. Antenora pointed out "Markson" could be read "marks on," "Moxie" has an established definition of its own, "Hemlock" is a poison, "Hangfire" is made up of two independent words suggestive of I don't know what yet, "bombinating" and "clusterous" exist as obscure linguistic anomalies ... yes, I can see a definite transition. I took "variety of settings" to mean "places within Stain'd-by-the-Sea," the same way TPP took place in Hotel Denouement, but each floor was almost a setting of its own.
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Post by Hermes on Jul 27, 2012 15:10:56 GMT -5
Based on what it says here, Ellington strikes me as a character very similar in some ways to Fiona. Fiona Feint? Various companies do produce calendars, as advertising - the Pirelli Calendar is quite famous, or notorious. "Moxie" has an established definition of its own Do you mean the drink? I hadn't heard of that until recently, when I cam across an online discussion of it, but then it also came up in Stephen King's 11.22.63.
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