My bookshelf is filled with authors that have influenced my writings and my life, but when I decided to pick one author that made the biggest impact in my life and work, I had to pick Robin McKinley.
When I first read The Blue Sword around its first printing in 1982, it was like I was reading about my own life without the fantasy trappings. In The Blue Sword Angharad Crewe, shortened to Harry, lives in a very restricted world reminiscent of the British when they lived in India. Damar is being colonized by the Homelanders, Harry’s people. Corlath, the king of Damar, kidnaps Harry, which turns Harry’s life around. She finds that she has “kelar,” a magical element of the royal bloodline.
At the time I was reading this particular book, I was breaking away from a restrictive religion and home life. I began to value my talents even though I was a woman. As I left home and joined the US Navy I kept a copy of this book on my shelf so I could re-read it.
But I grew out of the book. Robin McKinley’s other books including “The Hero and the Crown” didn’t spark for me until I read Sunshine around 2004. It sat on my bookshelf for a few months until
I picked it up and read the first words:
It was a dumb thing to do but it wasn’t that dumb. There hadn’t been any trouble out at the lake for many years. And it was so exquisitely far from the rest of my life.
And then I was hooked. This book was not for young adults, trying to find and understand their lives. No, this was a book that spoke to an adult woman, who had a life and career.
This particular book, Sunshine, hit me with as much force as the first book. It took me from my younger life to my current life with the question – is there more to this life than cooking, cleaning, and loving?
So Sunshine drew me into a world of baking and vampires. The world that McKinley created is a world that has been through a terrible war between the vampires and humans. Rae, the main character, learns more about her magical heritage after she is kidnapped by vampires. She can draw power from sunshine, hence the title.
What makes Robin McKinley so great is that her characters feel like your neighbors and you become involved in their lives. When Rae is kidnapped you feel her emotions of terror. These vampires don’t sparkle. They are vampires you dreamed about as a child.
If you want to know more about McKinley’s life, there are biographies online. One fact that interested me was that her father was an officer in the US Navy so she traveled all over the world. Her story-lines reflect that early experience. Another fact was that as a young girl, she had never been discovered by boys. I know that feeling since I also was more interested in having adventures than meeting boys.
I feel a kinship that crosses space and time with this author. But more than kinship, I hope that someday my stories can sing like hers.