Breeds of Witches
I love the uses of witches as a creative outlet for people from all walks of life now-a-days; from illustrative self-inserted representations like "Witchsonas," to webcomics featuring different variations of magic and the society witches live in (Here's 3 of my personal favorites!), to the numerous examples found in film and television! Depending on who moulds the world they live in, witches themselves can become a vast variety, somewhat like different breeds under the same species genus, and I find that fascinating. I've yet to read a story including witches that prompts the thought; "yes, I've seen this exact representation before," and that alone makes me want to discover the other variants people could imagine.
Speaking of variants, I read Aunt Maria, and thoroughly enjoyed how the world and town of Cranbury unfolded itself. I was definitely surprised at so many people abandoning the book simply because it seemed to be dragging on too long initially; maybe I'm just patient, but I had a lot of fun speculating about what was to come in those lull-moments early in the book!
I originally thought Elaine was going to be the one to reveal her presence as a witch, or that Maria would be some sort of witch spell-bound in a curse of sorts. And while that was not clearly the case, getting to find all the little clues left by Mig as she writes her own account before the climactic reveal was a neat little I-Spy game I found fun! I also loved the dynamic written into Aunt Maria's character; that subtle condescension and do-no-wrong outlook was so vividly portrayed, and felt way too relatable.
I feel like everyone's known some sort of Aunt Maria in their own lives; that's partially why I think the reveal was so effective in her being the "Queen" witch! Seeing someone who so clearly delights in being right and having the higher ground, based on personality alone, also have an otherworldly ability to bolster her standing was a really effective dynamic to portray in a big-bad. Too often we get Voldemort Villains when we really want Umbridge ones (although I hardly think J.K. Rowling was the most effective in her portrayal of an evil witch, or their society as a whole either...) Along with the fact that she created such an interesting divide among the men and women in Cranbury's little society, she really came into her own as a wonderfully crafted villainess for me!
As a slight departure back to my initial excitement about witches, I really did feel that the slow-ness of the beginning was intentional, if only to grow the impact of that bubble-pop in reality once Aunt Maria shows who she really is! The world being magic itself was more believable after being immersed in the unusual normality of it, because it was so strange, even though the residence were used to it. Overall, I had a whole lot of fun reading through, and the ending was fitting in my eyes. A wonderfully interesting take on witches and their covens, and how they interact with the world.
Speaking of variants, I read Aunt Maria, and thoroughly enjoyed how the world and town of Cranbury unfolded itself. I was definitely surprised at so many people abandoning the book simply because it seemed to be dragging on too long initially; maybe I'm just patient, but I had a lot of fun speculating about what was to come in those lull-moments early in the book!
I originally thought Elaine was going to be the one to reveal her presence as a witch, or that Maria would be some sort of witch spell-bound in a curse of sorts. And while that was not clearly the case, getting to find all the little clues left by Mig as she writes her own account before the climactic reveal was a neat little I-Spy game I found fun! I also loved the dynamic written into Aunt Maria's character; that subtle condescension and do-no-wrong outlook was so vividly portrayed, and felt way too relatable.
I feel like everyone's known some sort of Aunt Maria in their own lives; that's partially why I think the reveal was so effective in her being the "Queen" witch! Seeing someone who so clearly delights in being right and having the higher ground, based on personality alone, also have an otherworldly ability to bolster her standing was a really effective dynamic to portray in a big-bad. Too often we get Voldemort Villains when we really want Umbridge ones (although I hardly think J.K. Rowling was the most effective in her portrayal of an evil witch, or their society as a whole either...) Along with the fact that she created such an interesting divide among the men and women in Cranbury's little society, she really came into her own as a wonderfully crafted villainess for me!
As a slight departure back to my initial excitement about witches, I really did feel that the slow-ness of the beginning was intentional, if only to grow the impact of that bubble-pop in reality once Aunt Maria shows who she really is! The world being magic itself was more believable after being immersed in the unusual normality of it, because it was so strange, even though the residence were used to it. Overall, I had a whole lot of fun reading through, and the ending was fitting in my eyes. A wonderfully interesting take on witches and their covens, and how they interact with the world.
I love the versatility of witches-- good, or evil; scary, or enchanting; beautiful or not. I think its one way in which women can really shine as important, powerful characters! Aunt Maria was her own version of the "witch" character, and the long suspense captured a more exciting narrative overall.
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