Not quite a GIP

So, last night, I was coming home from work and thinking about Bride of Frankenstein, as I so often do. Because I love that movie and I love the Bride and I write elaborate fix-it fic in my head so that she does not die and has adventures. Because she should. And then I started thinking about female monsters in general and how few of them there are that are not adjuncts to male monsters or monstrous because of sex and reproduction. And I tried to figure out who the last really satisfying female monster I'd met had been and I do believe it was Kay Caldwell from Son of Dracula. So I made an icon, because Kay is a badass vampire queen who will rip your throat out.*

But of course, one is always looking for more satisfying female monsters so let me ask you, O internets, for your advice. What other monsters can you think of that aren't explicitly female versions of a male monster (like the Bride or Countess Zaleska in Dracula's Daughter) and aren't monsters because of sex or reproductive whatsit (so not Carrie or Ginger from Ginger Snaps or Nola Carveth from The Brood)? Any medium you like. I've got Kay already and I'm trying to list others. There's Annie Wilkes. Grendel's mother - because she's scary 'cause she eats people, not because she's capable of giving birth. Jason Voorhees' mom counts under that argument too. Robot!Maria. I know there must be others out there - probably obvious ones that I'm missing - but I'm starting to draw a blank. (That, and I tried to list Asenath Waite before remembering, wait, she's not even really a woman. Dammit, Mr Lovecraft!)

Who else can you guys come up with?






*I kinda want crossover fic now. Which makes no frelling sense as the two movies are set in very different time periods (probably - it's hard to tell with the Frankenstein films) though I suppose one could make the point that it's logical that the Bride would be as indestructible as the Creature, right? Okay, I know what story I'm going to be making up while shelving today. 8)

(no subject)

This week's Picture Book You Should Read is another one of my cherished childhood memories: Hey, Al by Arthur Yorinks and illustrated by Richard Egielski.


Hey, Al!

Al and his dog Eddie live in a tiny apartment in New York City, where Al makes a living as a janitor. One day, a huge colorful bird pokes his head through Al's bathroom window and promises Al and Eddie a perfect carefree life in a magical tropical paradise far away, if only they'll come with him. But, of course, there's a hidden catch.

Why should you read this book? Well, for one thing, the illustrations are lovely - it's a Caldecott winner, after all. I am especially fond of the way Mr Egielski conveys the unsatisfactory nature of Al's life in New York by only ever showing us the inside of his bathroom, closed in by claustrophobic walls.

But mostly you should read this book because I'm pretty sure it's the first horror story I ever read. Seriously, this book is like body horror for beginners. See, that hidden catch I mentioned above? [Spoiler Alert!] After a few weeks in their magical paradise, Al and Eddie begin to turn into birds. Which is accompanied by lovingly drawn illustrations of these terrifying half-bird/half-man (or -dog) hybrids. And, all right, Al and Eddie get away and end up back in New York ready to love and appreciate the life they left behind but the reader is left with questions. Why did the birds want them? Were all of the birds once people? Are the birds going to come visit me? It's wonderfully disquieting.

So if you're in the mood for a brightly colored but still creepy picture book, Hey, Al is definitely the way to go.