And weeeee're back!

First up, Castle in the Air by Diana Wynne Jones. It's a sorta kinda sequel to Howl's Moving Castle - at least, the main characters from Howl's Moving Castle recur in it. The most appropriate comparison I could make (in more ways than one) would be to the relationship between The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe and The Horse and His Boy. As in, they share characters but have different plots and focuses. Also both Castle in the Air and The Horse and His Boy feature fantasy versions of the Middle East. I really liked this book - almost more than its predecessor, actually. Funny, clever, original and with that certain spark that makes a good children's book good.

The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Sparks. Um. This book made me feel like an idiot, because the whole of the time I was reading it (not very long; it's only 150ish pages) I hated it without quite knowing why. All the characters were simultaneously complex and horrible and nothing much really happened. There. What a mature and intellectual response I have produced. Ahem.