In the third chapter of High Wizardry, Nita and Kit discuss Dairine’s behavior. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to read Young Wizards.Â
As much as the previous chapter sheds light on Diarine as a character, I found it honest and fair that Duane reminds us in chapter three that Dairine’s behavior is still hurting her sister. At the very least, she’s actively irritating Nita, punishing her for something that is out of Nita’s control. It’s not until Kit vocalizes this that she even considers there’s a bigger reason for her sister’s actions.
Prior to this, Nita just does her best not to fall into one of her sister’s traps. I consider myself a fairly patient person, so know that it is a big deal that Dairine made me feel impatient. She claimed to be bored after LITERAL SECONDS of being aboveground. She wanted to dart off into a different museum, and then she snapped at Nita after Nita tells her about the Star Wars books. I have a younger sister who reminds me of Dairine, though the similarity is superficial for the most part. However, I’m sure that some of you are familiar with having a competitive and spiteful younger sibling, so I believe that’s what Duane is tapping into here. Indeed, Nita treats her in a manner that suggests she’s used to Dairine trying to get her way through rudeness or manipulation.
THEN WE GET TO ENJOY THE MUSEUM AND BOY, DO I HAVE A COMPLICATED LOVE FOR MUSEUMS. The first time I went to London in 2014, I made a trip to the British Museum, where my mind nearly exploded from the sheer amount of knowledge and history in a single museum. Minutes into my trip, though, I couldn’t ignore that most of what I was seeing was probably stolen from the original cultures it belonged to. I feel a lot more critically about art and history museums than science museums, admittedly. They can often be bastions of privilege and imperialism, even if they do allow people to learn more about the world around them. BUT SCIENCE, Y’ALL. Oh, how I love science museums. They’re not my absolute favorite type (that would go to aquariums, and DON’T GET ME STARTED ON THEM), but I love a good science museum. The one in Detroit across for the DIA is fantastic! As are all of the science museums where you can touch EVERYTHING, like the Exploratorium in San Francisco.
But could you imagine how great a museum would be as a wizard? We get a taste of that when Kit “talks†to the Ahnighito meteorite, and I can’t believe I get to actually type that in the year of our lord 2016. BLESS THIS BOOK. The amount of understanding and knowledge he gets from this experience is immeasurable, and it’s one of the coolest things about being a wizard. He learns about the long journey the meteorite took, how it was part of a comet, and how it came to Earth. How can you possibly explain that in terms anyone else can understand?
That’s the uniqueness of wizardry, and it’s why Dairine resents her sister. Granted, we know it’s more complicated than that; the last chapter helped us understand why Dairine has a fear of not knowing something about the world. But I can’t ignore the resentment either, and neither could Kit:
“Neets, why’re you surprised? You’re a wizard. You’re the one who told me how hot Dairine’s been for magic since she was a little kid. Any kind… Star Wars, you name it. And now all of a sudden not only does it turn out that there really is such a thing, but you turn up with it!â€
In hindsight, I can barely believe how clearly this denotes where Dairine’s story is headed. I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN, IT WAS RIGHT THERE. If Dairine pursued knowledge at any cost, and if she desired wizardry more than anything else, what would she do? Take the Oath. I suspected as much, but here’s what I did not expect: that her first real working would be TO TRANSPORT HERSELF TO MARS. MARS!!! WHAT THE HELL, HOW. HOW. HOW DID SHE DO THAT. HOW ARE THEY GOING TO GET HERE. WHY IS THIS THE LAST CHAPTER I READ THIS WEEK.
EVIL.
Diane Duane is still offering a massive discount on the first 9 books in the Young Wizards series just to this community, so please take advantage of this deal while you still can:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIKTqpshWDc
Mark Links Stuff
– I am now on Patreon! There are various levels of support, from $1 up to whatever you want! You’ll get to read a private blog, extra reviews, and other such rewards.
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– My Master Schedule is updated for the near and distant future for most projects, so please check it often. My next Double Features for Mark Watches have been announced here.
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