Post 317: Two Moon Princess

Two Moon Princess by Carmen Ferreiro-Esteban ISBN: 9781933718279.

So, this book did something a little different with the "tomboy princess" trope. Rather than Andrea wanting to a knight through the entirety of the novel, we find that really she just doesn't want to be a "lady." She has only chosen to be and trained as a page because in her world it would have given her more opportunities to contribute. Once she crosses over into our world, she sees that there is another option available and that all she has to do is escape to another world in order to have the freedom she desires.

In some ways there are problems with this, and in other ways it is completely understandable. Here's the thing: by leaving her world the way it is in order to improve her own lot in life, Andrea doesn't even consider that maybe she could have stayed on her world and tried to improve the lives of every woman. Perhaps she could not have accomplished much in her lifetime, but at least she could have stayed long enough to ensure that her history was recorded accurately. She was heavily involved with the peace efforts between her kingdom and uh, that other kingdom that I learned almost nothing about. I think if I had been that involved I would want my efforts to be recognized.  At least this way women and young girls might have an example to follow. Then again I guess they didn't really teach girls much history on Xaren-Ra, so perhaps it doesn't matter after all.

The point is, yay for Andrea, but it might have been nice to have her at least think about the conditions of other women on her planet. Instead, we see her go through only as much character growth as is necessary for her to get what she wants. Sounds to me like she's still stuck in princess mode, only now she can have even more of what she wants without really having had to work for it. She didn't even struggle with learning the language because her people have "amazing" memory capabilities. This is great and all, but actually freeing yourself from repression takes a lot of work and I think Andrea might have appreciated her freedom a bit more had she actually realized how much our world struggled to get where it is today, and how much further it has to go.

But as I mentioned earlier, it was nice to see that Andrea realized that she didn't so much want to be a knight, as she wanted the option to be more than a marital bargaining chip and embroiderer. This is a good touch because too often in this trope traditional femininity is sneered at and looked down upon. Of course, it still happened in Two Moon Princess, but it felt by the end of the novel that Andrea didn't have a problem with it so much as she just really didn't want to be associated with a group of people who didn't do anything. I think if she had stayed longer in her world she might have come to the conclusion that it wasn't because they didn't want to contribute, so much as they were not allowed to. Unfortunately, Andrea had some big old blinders on and they never really came off.

My review can be found on Goodreads.
LibsNote: Free review copy received from Publisher's booth at ALA 2010

Post 316:Two Moon Princess

Two Moon Princess by Carmen Ferreiro-Esteban ISBN: 9781933718279.

"I knew knights did not really fight for us ladies. If they did, they would have the courtesy of asking first whether we want their help." Page 279.

Chivalry is such a difficult issue in today's society. I don't think that chivalry is dead, nor do I think it should die, but it should reflect today's values if it is going to be practiced. And let me tell you, I do think it should be practiced. Chivalry is more than just bowing to or standing in the presence of a lady, it's about how we treat each other on a day to day basis. The fact that chivalry has been usurped almost totally as a means of condescending to the "weaker" sex is disappointing and inaccurate. It encompasses such traits and values as courtesy, generosity, valor, honor, justice, etc.

I posit that these are values that should most certainly be encouraged in men especially, but also in women. How often have you been behind someone and had your arms full and they ignored you? I've had it happen to me several times before and no matter who it is I'm always disappointed. Just recently I had an especially distressing experience when my car battery died while at a crowded grocery store. It's not that I expect people to help me out of these situations, but the fact is that I had two or three people actually make comments to me about it. They were not offers of help, but obvious excuses. It was plain that they felt guilty about not helping me, but it didn't change their behavior at all. The first was a young woman, roughly my age, and her excuse was "My battery is on its last leg." The second was a man in a big, almost brand new red shiny truck who said, "I don't know nothin' about cars." Even after I told him all I needed was a jump he kept walking. That one actually pissed me off more than the first, because you can bet if I had huge tits that guy would have at least tried to help me.

While neither person was particularly unchivalrous, it might almost have been better had they not said anything to me at all. It felt like they were almost going out of there way to be not helpful in order to say to themselves, "Welp, at least I tried to help someone today." No, no you didn't. If you didn't have the time to stop and jump my car, I understand that, but stopping to make an excuse doesn't feel to me like you don't have time. It just sounds like you don't want to help.

I think the reason this behavior annoys me so much is that I have stopped to give someone a jump before, I do hold open doors for the person behind me (regardless of how full their arms are), I give up my bus seat for the elderly, the infirm, or the heavily pregnant. It just makes me wonder how we could grow up in more or less the same culture and have such vastly different ideas about what is polite and what isn't. And this is why I would like to see the return of chivalry, or at the very least politeness as a code of conduct. I think it's something we could all benefit from in both practicing and receiving.

May I hold a door for you?

My review can be found on Goodreads.
LibsNote: Free review copy received from Publisher's booth at ALA 2010