On Saturday I went for the MOE Recruitment seminar. It was an eye-opener. I never realised that listening is a skill that is not easily utilised by many. Questions were raised during the Q & A session, only to be reiterated by another person as the session wore on. And there were some disgruntled souls making a cake of themselves, and some who were justifiably upset enough to voice their grievances.

And there were a couple whose questions felt inciteful rather than insightful or genuinely ignorant. I hardly think a recruitment seminar is the appropriate place to humiliate both a government institution or yourself. There are proper channels for it, but maybe I am just conservative and fastidious on what is appropriate and what isn't.

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I find myself writing more on LJ these days, because the text space is larger and easier on the eyes and aids the readablity of the entry when I am writing. Most of the time I edit the LJ entry and post the whole over here.

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On Saturday I found The Queen's Fool by Phillippa Gregory and finished it over the weekend. I found the novel plain in style in contrast to the previous novel The Other Boleyn Girl. It is perhaps a natural result of reading one too many of her books. It is somewhat confusing to rate the book as average especially, since the narrative and pacing was engaging enough that I finished the book so quickly.

The novel explores the transition of girl to woman. A theme that resonates deeply with me. I really enjoyed the book, even wept over bits and pieces of it. It was cathartic to identify with Hannah, constantly searching for stability and safety, betrayed by a man who dearly loves her, having what is now referred to as a "schoolgirl crush", idolisation and admiration of strong women figures and the crystallisation of self despite society's expectations.

I believe part of why I identified with Hannah was the ruthlessness of the author in refusing to delineate the psychological composite of Hannah; one that veers away from the damage of being a Jew and motherless child in the tumultuous Tudor times. A blank slate to improve upon.

It is a deliberate insistence to ensure that the strength of the character resides in the present rather than the past. Hannah is more Anne Boelyn than Mary Boelyn in this novel. But of course it is sheer folly to parallel one book with the other, even when written by the same author within a short span of two to three years.

But there can be no doubt that Hannah is awkwardly displaced. There is the disconcordance of intersplicing her story with the story of Queen Mary and Princess Elizabeth. Neither story integrates well with each other, although I was still captivated by the pace of narration, and the interesting perspectives that were introduced. This is after all, a novel about a Jew, delivering an uncommon historical perspective in my favourite era in English history.

The Queen's Fool grows structurally less satisfying towards the end, and the last few chapters show slightly less adroit handling than I have come to expect from Phillippa Gregory. The novel does offer its happy ending, and a possible allusion to another novel, maybe on Elizabeth the First. I will be looking out for it.

I like Daniel Carpenter. I hope the Beau will be like Daniel Carpenter. Flawed, but redeemed in the eyes of his beloved through his enduring love and faith in the woman. Not to mention that he is bloody calm, argumentative and boring. Three main characteristics of the Beau. I saw, (as per usual), many parallels between the protagonist and me, her betrothed and the Beau. But that's me. Living in lalala land as usual.