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Svalbard In Fiction
Novelists, screenwriters and filmmakers have set their works in Svalbard, an archipelago in the Arctic, the northernmost part of Norway yet closer to Greenland. Such works often make use of its Arctic climate, polar bears, isolation and the natural beauty of its dominant glaciers, mountains and fjords. Novels * '' The Midnight Library'', by Matt Haig, features a woman who, in one of her many possible lives, is a glaciologist doing research in Svalbard. *''North of Danger'', by Dale Hollerbach Fife, is a World War II story about a 12-year-old boy living in Svalbard who has to hide in a coal mine to avoid being captured by the Nazi invaders. The Commonwealth Club of California declared ''North of Danger'' as best juvenile book of 1978. *'' Bear Island'' is a 1971 thriller novel by Scottish author Alistair MacLean about a movie crew who travels to Svalbard. When the group arrives, members of the crew start dying under unusual circumstances. *''Operation Fritham'' by crime writer and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Svalbard
Svalbard ( , ), previously known as Spitsbergen or Spitzbergen, is a Norway, Norwegian archipelago that lies at the convergence of the Arctic Ocean with the Atlantic Ocean. North of continental Europe, mainland Europe, it lies about midway between the northern coast of Norway and the North Pole. The islands of the group range from 74th parallel north, 74° to 81st parallel north, 81° north latitude, and from 10th meridian east, 10° to 35th meridian east, 35° east longitude. The largest island is Spitsbergen (37,673 km2), followed in size by Nordaustlandet (14,443 km2), (5,073 km2), and Barentsøya (1,288 km2). Bear Island (Norway), Bjørnøya or Bear Island (178 km2) is the most southerly island in the territory, situated some 147 km south of Spitsbergen. Other small islands in the group include Hopen (Svalbard), Hopen to the southeast of Edgeøya, Kongsøya and Svenskøya in the east, and Kvitøya to the northeast. The largest settlement is Longyearbyen, situated in Isfjor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Taboo
A taboo is a social group's ban, prohibition or avoidance of something (usually an utterance or behavior) based on the group's sense that it is excessively repulsive, offensive, sacred or allowed only for certain people.''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''.Taboo. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2012. Retrieved 21 Mar. 2012 Such prohibitions are present in virtually all societies. Taboos may be prohibited explicitly, for example within a legal system or religion, or implicitly, for example by social norms or conventions followed by a particular culture or organization. Taboos are often meant to protect the individual, but there are other reasons for their development. An ecological or medical background is apparent in many, including some that are seen as religious or spiritual in origin. Taboos can help use a resource more efficiently, but when applied to only a subsection of the community they can also serve to suppress said subsection of the community. A taboo acknowledged by a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Costa Book Awards
The Costa Book Awards were a set of annual literary awards recognising English-language books by writers based in United Kingdom, UK and Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Originally named the Whitbread Book Awards from 1971 to 2005 after its first sponsor, the Whitbread company, then a brewery and owner of pub-restaurant chains, it was renamed when Costa Coffee, then a subsidiary of Whitbread, took over sponsorship. The companion Costa Short Story Award was established in 2012. Costa Coffee was purchased by the Coca-Cola Company in 2018. The awards were discontinued in 2022. The awards were given both for high literary merit and for works that were enjoyable reading, and their aim was to convey the enjoyment of reading to the widest possible audience. As such, they were considered a more populist literary prize than the Booker Prize, which also limited winners to literature written in the English language and published in the UK and Ireland. Awards were separated into six categori ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Parallel Universe (fiction)
A parallel universe, also known as an alternate universe, world, or dimension, is a plot device in fiction which uses the notion of a hypothetical universe co-existing with another, typically to enable alternative narrative possibilities. The sum of all potential parallel universes that constitute reality is often called the " multiverse". The device serves several narrative purposes. Among them, parallel universes have been used to allow stories with elements that would ordinarily violate the laws of nature, to enable characters to meet and interact with alternative versions of themselves or others from their home universe, thus enabling further character development, and to serve as a starting point for speculative fiction, particularly alternate history. History Early examples One of the first science-fiction examples of a parallel universe is Murray Leinster's short story '' Sidewise in Time'', published in 1934. Although Leinster's story was not the first example of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Will Parry (His Dark Materials)
Will Parry is one of the protagonists in Philip Pullman's trilogy ''His Dark Materials'', along with Lyra Belacqua. He first appears in the series at the start of the second novel, '' The Subtle Knife'', and continues through to the final book, '' The Amber Spyglass''. Introduced as a 12-year-old boy, he meets and befriends Lyra in the world of Cittàgazze and teams up with her in order to uncover the mysteries of Dust and the disappearance of his father many years previously. He takes possession of the Subtle Knife which he uses to aid Lord Asriel in his bid to destroy the Authority. Description Will is the only son of the explorer John Parry and Elaine Parry, a woman who suffers from mental health problems, and whom he has taken care of since he was young, due to her condition. Will is unable to remember his father, a former Royal Marine, who has not been heard of since he vanished on an expedition to the Arctic when Will was only a baby, and who we later learn has wand ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lyra Belacqua
Lyra Belacqua ( ), later known as Lyra Silvertongue, is the heroine of Philip Pullman's trilogy ''His Dark Materials''. In ''His Dark Materials'' Lyra is a young girl who inhabits a universe parallel to our own. Brought up in the cloistered world of Jordan College, Oxford, she finds herself embroiled in a cosmic war between Lord Asriel on one side, and a deity figure known as The Authority and his Regent, Metatron, on the other. Lyra also features prominently in the subsequent trilogy '' The Book of Dust''. Background and life Lyra Belacqua, aged around eleven at the beginning of the trilogy, is the daughter of Lord Asriel and Marisa Coulter in a fictional Oxford, similar to our own. She is being brought up at Jordan College, where the scholars, professors and servants treat her as an adopted daughter. She has been raised believing that her parents died in an airship crash, and that Lord Asriel is her uncle; she later learns the truth from John Faa, leader of the Gypti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Coming-of-age
Coming of age is a young person's transition from being a child to being an adult. The specific age at which this transition takes place varies between societies, as does the nature of the change. It can be a simple legal convention or can be part of a ritual or spiritual event. In the past, and in some societies today, such a change is often associated with the age of sexual maturity (puberty), especially menarche and spermarche. In others, it is associated with an age of religious responsibility. Particularly in Western societies, modern legal conventions stipulate points around the end of adolescence and the beginning of early adulthood (most commonly 16 and 18 though ranging from 14 to 21) when adolescents are generally no longer considered minors and are granted the full rights and responsibilities of an adult. Some cultures and countries have multiple coming of age ceremonies for multiple ages. Many cultures retain ceremonies to confirm the coming of age, and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Amber Spyglass
''The Amber Spyglass'' is the third and final novel in the ''His Dark Materials'' trilogy by Philip Pullman. Published in 2000, it won the 2001 Whitbread Book of the Year award, the first children's novel to do so. It was named Children's Book of the Year at the 2001 British Book Awards, and was the first children's book to be longlisted for the Booker Prize. In 2022, the novel was adapted as the third series of the joint BBC-HBO television series ''His Dark Materials''. Setting The novel is set in a number of worlds dominated by the Magisterium, a theocracy which actively suppresses heresy. In some of these worlds, humans' souls naturally exist outside of their bodies in the form of sentient " dæmons" in animal form. Important plot devices are the alethiometer, a truth-telling symbol reader; the subtle knife, capable of cutting windows between worlds; and the amber spyglass, a device for viewing the form of consciousness known as Dust. Plot Having learned of the witches' p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Subtle Knife
''The Subtle Knife'' is a young-adult fantasy novel published in 1997 and the second book in Philip Pullman's '' His Dark Materials'' trilogy. The novel continues the adventures of Lyra Belacqua (now known as Lyra Silvertongue) recounted in the first novel, ''Northern Lights'', as she investigates the mysterious phenomenon of Dust. Will Parry is introduced as a companion to Lyra, and together they explore new worlds in the search for Will's father. In 2020, the novel formed the main part of the second series of the joint BBC-HBO television adaptation '' His Dark Materials''. Parts of the novel had already been included in the first series in 2019. Setting The main setting is a universe dominated by the Magisterium, an international theocracy which actively suppresses heresy. In Lyra's world, humans' souls naturally exist outside of their bodies in the form of sentient " dæmons" in animal form which accompany, aid, and comfort their humans. An important plot device is th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Northern Lights (Pullman Novel)
''Northern Lights'' (titled ''The Golden Compass'' in North America and some other countries) is a Young adult fiction, young-adult fantasy novel by Philip Pullman, published in 1995 by Scholastic UK. Set in a parallel universes in fiction, parallel universe, it follows the journey of Lyra Belacqua to the Arctic in search of her missing friend, Roger Parslow, and her imprisoned uncle, Lord Asriel, who has been conducting experiments with a mysterious substance known as "Dust (His Dark Materials), Dust". ''Northern Lights'' is the first book of the trilogy, ''His Dark Materials'' (1995 to 2000). Alfred A. Knopf published the first US edition April 1996, under the name ''The Golden Compass'', under which title it was adapted as a The Golden Compass (film), 2007 feature film and as a The Golden Compass (video game), companion video game. The book has also been adapted as the first part of His Dark Materials (TV series), the 2019 TV series ''His Dark Materials''. Pullman won the 19 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Epic (genre)
Epic is a narrative genre characterised by its length, scope, and subject matter. The defining characteristics of the genre are mostly derived from its roots in ancient poetry (epic poems such as Homer's ''Iliad'' and ''Odyssey''). An epic is not limited to the traditional medium of oral poetry, but has expanded to include modern mediums including film, theater, television shows, novels, and video games. The use of epic as a genre, specifically for epic poetry, dates back millennia, all the way to the ''Epic of Gilgamesh'', widely agreed to be the first epic. But critique and discourse has continuously arisen over this long period of time, with attempts to clarify what the core characteristics of the “epic” genre really are beginning only in the past two centuries as new mediums of storytelling emerged with developing technologies. Most significantly, the advent of the novel, such as classics like Tolstoy's '' War and Peace'' which began to be referred to as “epic novels” ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fantasy Literature
Fantasy literature is literature set in an imaginary universe, often but not always without any locations, events, or people from the real world. Magic, the supernatural and magical creatures are common in many of these imaginary worlds. Fantasy literature may be directed at both children and adults. Fantasy is considered a genre of speculative fiction and is distinguished from the genres of science fiction and horror by the absence of scientific or macabre themes, respectively, though these may overlap. Historically, most works of fantasy were in written form, but since the 1960s, a growing segment of the genre has taken the form of fantasy films, fantasy television programs, graphic novels, video games, music and art. Many fantasy novels originally written for children and adolescents also attract an adult audience. Examples include ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'', the ''Harry Potter'' series, ''The Chronicles of Narnia'', and '' The Hobbit''. History Beginnings ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
