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NEWS — The Wingfeather Saga

BRBC week 32: Blindploppings for everyone!

Sometimes when everything is terrible, a little humor goes a long way in helping us get through. :-)

“Rudric jammed the lock into place and pressed against the door, panting, while the Fangs pounded and scratched. “Help me!” he ordered, and several other men, women, and even a few children pressed against the door.“Kal! Where’s Leeli!” Nia spun him around and looked at him frantically.“She’s all right. She’s fine.” Kal took Nia by the arm and pulled her down the corridor to where Leeli waited among the others.Nia squeezed them both tight. “Janner’s out there,” she said. Kal had never seen her so upset. She was usually calm in the face of great danger, but she wasn’t merely afraid, she was angry—at herself. “I can’t believe I let them blindplop him. I should never have let him out of my sight. This is my fault.”“Mama,” Leeli said, “this is Gnag’s fault. Not yours. Like Kal said, Janner might be safer than we are.” Nia put her face in her hands and shook her head. “We’re the ones who are stuck in a dungeon, surrounded by monsters.”“Maybe you should have blindplopped us too,” Kal said.“Next time, please just blindplop us all,” Leeli said with a smile, and Nia laughed a little through her tears.”
Discussion: What helps you when everything is terrible?Why do you think Andrew picked Carnack Ban Soran to be the one who first saw Kal on the hilltop?New forum conversations: Fangness and hard choices. Come talk to us—I want to hear your thoughts.

Blindplopping adventure!

Last week a Durgan from the Rabbit Room happened upon an online exploration game where you're set down in a random place and have to find out where you are. Blindplopping, I thought immediately! So, since Janner was blindplopped in last week's reading and he's still working on getting himself back to where he needs to be, I thought it'd be fun to give ourselves the same challenge. :-)The game is called GeoGuessr, and it has maps for different continents or regions, different famous cities or landmarks, movie locations, or—if you want something a bit tougher—the whole world! Can you figure out where you are if all you have is terrain and perhaps buildings and street signs, and maybe those signs aren't in a language or even alphabet you know? I'm not completely familiar with your world yet, so for my first challenge I just went with the United States, but I think Connolin Durga would be proud of me. :-)Try it for yourself and let us know how it works! Select a region and then just click "Play"—no need for an account unless you want extra features.GeoGuessrNote: We work hard to keep WingfeatherSaga.com as safe as we can, but it is always a good idea to check with your parents before exploring new websites.Have fun, and thanks to Hannah for finding this game!

This week, Madame Sidler will be reading chapters 7-13 of The Warden and the Wolf King. Come back on Friday for an excerpt, and to share one of your own!To chronicle your blindplopping adventure, comment here or in the forum. We've got other fun conversations happening in the forum, too. All they need is your voice. :-)

BRBC week 31: Carnack and the Jewels

Happy Friday, Featherheads! Here is our first excerpt from The Warden and the Wolf King. What would you do if you were in this situation?

“Come, Carnack.” Rudric held out a hand. “For the sake of our strength.”“No.” Carnack folded his arms and looked away. “I pledge nothing to no Fang.”Leeli put her whistleharp away and leaned over to the boys. “Kal, this would be a good time to do something.”“But what?”“You could fight him,” Janner suggested. “That seems to be how Hollowsfolk work stuff out. See?” He pointed at Rudric, who was barely restraining Horgan Flannery from leaping off the stage and pummeling Carnack.“Look at that guy!” Kalmar whispered. “He’d destroy me.”“No he wouldn’t,” Leeli said. “You’re stronger and faster than any of these people.”Kalmar sighed and shook his head. “I hate this stuff.”In one swift motion he leapt from the platform and landed just a few feet in front of Carnack. There was a gasp from Rudric, Horgan, and the rest of the chieftains. Carnack sprang into a fighting stance and backed away, sword in hand. For the first time that day, the perfect snow of the Field of Finley was marked with footprints.But Kalmar drew no sword, for he had none to draw. Nor did he circle the warrior as if he wanted to attack. He merely stood before him in the snow, his black cloak hanging about him like a shadow.“What’s your game, wolf?” Carnack spat.“I don’t have a game.” Kalmar spread his hands to show that he held no weapon. “I just want Gnag the Nameless to lose. Don’t you?”“I do,” said Carnack after a pause. His sword dropped a few inches.“Janner, the flag,” Leeli whispered, pointing at the Annieran flag behind them.He understood in an instant what she meant. Janner removed the Annieran flag, then helped Leeli to her feet. The Throne Warden and the Song Maiden stepped down from the platform and joined Kalmar on the snow. Carnack looked at the three children uncertainly. Conscious of the eyes of every warrior present, Janner planted the Annieran flag in the snow and knelt, pulling Kalmar down with him.“If you won’t fight for the Shining Isle,” Janner called out so all could hear, “then let it be known that the Shining Isle fights for you.” He stared at the snow and waited for some response. All he heard was the flutter of the flag in the cold wind.“What say you, Carnack?” asked Horgan finally.
Discussion: How would you feel if you were Carnack? If you were in Kal's place, what would you do?How would you like to be blindplopped? Tell us in the forum what you'd bring and how you'd find your way home.What was your favorite passage this week?

Welcome to the Warden and the Wolf King

Good Monday, dear readers! This year in the Ban Rona Book Club we've been reading and posting through the whole Wingfeather Saga, starting from a little homey cottage in Glipwood and following the Igibys on their journeys from wonder to danger, from safety to exile, from their little township to the Ice Prairies to the Green Hollows.Last week we finished book three and today we begin book four. If you've been following along, welcome back! And if you haven't, you're still welcome to jump in at any time. The forums are wide open for anyone to play in. :-) And if you feel like binging the series this week to catch up with us, or have read the books before but it's been a year or two, that's okay too.

Fan Art

Would you like to see your art on the official Wingfeather site? We'd love to see what's happening in your imagination as you read these books. Just send your art to Andrew via the Art By You page. :-)

This week, Madame Sidler will be reading chapters 1-6 of The Warden and the Wolf King. See you on Friday for an excerpt, and all week in the forums!

BRBC week 30: The strand of song

Miss Linda and Miss Mary are visiting this week. We are dividing our time equally between beanbrew, art projects, and naps. :-) This week's excerpt, from the last section of The Monster in the Hollows, is one of Miss Linda's favorites.

When Leeli sang over the cloven, her song rose from the depths of her heart and sent a burst of shimmering cords into the matter of the world. They sizzled from her in a million strands, like a spiderweb of lightning bolts. They shot through [the Wingfeathers], waking something bright in their bones, and each of them felt it differently. The music’s power was invisible to everyone around them, even to Nia; for her and the others it was just a pretty song amidst the clamor of warfare. But for the Jewels of Anniera, who bore the blood of their ancestors, the music reached into secret places and did wondrous things. Janner heard voices, Kalmar saw pictures, and Leeli’s tender heart coursed with the rivers of emotion swirling in those near her, opening her to the deep, unutterable mysteries of their souls.
Discussion: What was your favorite passage this week?How does music connect you with those you love?Forum fun: Which is more ferocious: A honeymuffin, or a banana? Discuss in Friday Night Fights!Art: What have you been playing with lately? We'd love to see your Wingfeather art (just send it to Andrew from the Art By You page). If you have fun project ideas, tell us about them in the forum. :-)We love you Featherheads!

Art from Jay Myers

Who wants a wee bit of Florid Sword/Shadowblade art?Yeah, I thought you might. :-)https://www.instagram.com/p/BmTtENlhca2/?taken-by=mrjaymyers

This week, Madame Sidler will be reading THE END of The Monster in the Hollows! To follow along, start at chapter 54 and keep going till you run out of appendices. See you Friday for an excerpt—and next week for The Warden and the Wolf King! Meanwhile—to the forum!

BRBC week 29: Goodness in the dark

This week we read chapters 47-53 of The Monster in the Hollows, and so many good things happened—and other things that weren't quite good, but good to read. There are some passages that make me cry every time. Here is one of them, from the last time we convened the BRBC. Here is another one. (And I bet you can all guess the one too spoilery to post here.)

Into the silence of the great hall, Leeli played. Her eyes were closed and she stood beside her mother, swaying with the melody. Janner knew the moment she spoke that if she played, the strange magic would awaken. And he was glad, though he couldn’t imagine what good it would do them, with Bunge’s hand on the lever that would send Nia and Kal plunging to their deaths. Except for the time it had assuaged the sea dragon’s anger, the magic had never really done them any good; the words and visions that filled Janner’s mind mainly left him confused.Still, he welcomed it. His heart was black with despair, so the Maker’s magic was most welcome. It helped him believe there was power pulsing behind the veil of the visible world, pulsing like blood through the world’s veins, sending life and light coursing through everything, surprising and confounding at every turn. When he remembered this, the darkness glimmered with goodness.
Discussion: What helps you when you feel beset by darkness?What would you hope for after the Fork Factory? (discuss in the forum)What passage stood out to you most this week—from these chapters, or wherever you are?Bonus: There are a lot of recordings of "My Love Has Gone Across the Sea"—live, studio, theatrical, covers—but here is its very first performance, including some commentary from Andrew on writing that scene.

The Wolf King and the Cloven

Look how beautiful this is.In our book club last week we read what Janner found in the cave. But this is what Kalmar found in that same cave.One little snout. One big snout. Connection.Thank you, Noah, for sharing your heart and eyes and Conté work with us.

This week, Madame Sidler will be reading chapters 47-53 of The Monster in the Hollows. I can't wait to share an excerpt with you this Friday and hear how your week has been. (And you are always welcome in the forum. What would you like to talk about?)

The stories are true.