Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Top Ten Literary Characters I'd Adopt

This week the Broke and the Bookish are stocking their family trees with literary figures!

1. Hari Seldon (Foundation,  Isaac Asimov)
He's the grandfather who knows eeeeeeeverything.

2. Minerva McGonnagal (Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling)
"Aunt Minnie", anyone?  Tough, but kindly.

3. Gred and Forge Weasley (Harry Potter)
Living in the same house as these two would be a constant riot, assuming I was IN on their jokes and not the butt of them. ("Out of the way, SERIOUSLY evil wizard coming through!)

4. Captain Sir Edward Pellew (Horatio Hornblower, C.S. Forester)

I'm more enamored of his character from the movies than the books (less developed in print), but he's a good man: not just a good soldier in terms of 'doing his duty', but he cares about the job he does and will bend the rules if need be.  Robert Lindsay makes the father-son dynamic between himself and Horatio come through spendidly.

Speaking of whom...

5. Horatio Hornblower
Were Hornblower a cousin or brother of mine, I could see the two of us being introspective, overly intellectual, and socially awkward at parties together.

6. Brigadier McLean (The Fort, Bernard Cornwell)
The perfect affable uncle and the most humane soldier I've ever read of.

7. Violet and Klaus Baudelaire (A Series of Unfortunate Events, Daniel Handler)

One is fiendishly inventive, the other a bookworm -- what's not to like?

...aside from the hammy villain who intends to kill/enslave/otherwise discomfit them?

8. Ellie Arroway (Contact, Carl Sagan)
No funding? No problem. She'll sit in the field and listen HERSELF. 

Cool older sister/aunt/mom?  Doesn't really matter. She's passionate about science, hopeful, and can give you a lecture on demand -- just point at a star and ask, "What's that?"

9. Either Remus Lupin or Gordianus the Finder (Roma sub Rosa series)
They'd both make good uncles.

10: Captains Jean-Luc Picard and Kathyrn Janeway (various books, including Mosaic by Jeri Taylor)

I like reading about ship captains the most when they have a paternal air about them -- not a patronizing one,  but to the point that the reader knows they care about the people under their command.  Janeway is especially noticable in this regard.

12 comments:

  1. Great picks. I love tough 'Aunt Minnie'! I adopted Fred and George as well. I think the laughs would far out weigh the pranks.

    My list is HERE

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  2. haha Aunt Minni! Love it! I can't really see that, but it's a funny image. I love that character, I even named my cat after her.

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  3. Nice call on the Weasley twins. I think it's safe to assume that we would all be IN on there jokes :)

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  4. I love McGonnagal! Great choice. I'd have her as my grandmother though - I bet she'd be lovely.
    And I'd love for Fred and George to be in my family too.. They'd be hilarious :P

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  5. "I like reading about ship captains the most when they have a paternal air about them -- not a patronizing one, but to the point that the reader knows they care about the people under their command."

    This. A thousand times this, and not limited to Star Trek. (Ha, although I might choose the word parental instead of paternal.)

    The Blue Fairy's Bookshelf

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  6. The Weasley Boys for sure! FUN!!

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  7. Ooh, the Baudelaires. Good choice!

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  8. Love this list. Jean-Luc Picard!! Wish I'd thought of him, he would be a great one to have in the family.

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  9. Interesting list and great choices,come by and see mine.

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  10. I definitely agree with you #1! Hari Seldon does know a lot.

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  11. Ellie! I love "Contact"! Nice list.

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