Wednesday, December 15, 2010

The Phoenix


via Amazon.com
 The US cover of the Jonathan Stroud's latest book sports a gorgeous specimen of the phoenix. Don't you think?

The Ring of Solomon is a prequel to the Bartimaeus Trilogy. This installment of the series is based on the grandfather of all djinn tales, King Solomon's supposed connection to the djinn and an infamous ring talisman. Even I couldn't avoid mentioning it my MS. But back to the phoenix. I love those too and I guess I'm not the only one who thought it was a fitting creature for a djinn. Except my use of the phoenix is more symbolic and sometimes metaphysical.

For example, some important lore that led to my use of the Phoenix for dinn nature and more specifically, my MC:

  • Phoenix Rising has many similarities to Kundalini, which I use as an energy source for djinn.
  • A phoenix is a creature (or person) rising from the ashes of the former self. An arabian Phoenix is born of fire, dies by fire, and is symbolic of rebirth.
  • In Chinese culture, the phoenix represents the female or the yin. The Taoist idea of duality of all things is the balance of Yin and Yang.
  • The bird famously kills snakes - even a basilisk. If you read my earlier post, The Seed, you'll know where I'm going with this.
Related articles
Enhanced by Zemanta

7 comments:

Matthew MacNish said...

WHAT!?!?! I love the Bartimaeus Trilogy. It is one of my all time favorite stories. YES! I am now officially excited. You just made my day, thanks Carolyn.

And you also incorporate Kundalini into your novel? Very interesting.

Elena Solodow said...

Gorgeous cover.

Creepy Query Girl said...

that is a really beautiful cover! Kind of reminds me of the style for the 'English' version of the fifth Harry Potter or Eragon or those other big books out there. How have I not heard of these?

Old Kitty said...

Oooh I love the fairy story told simply in your earlier blog "the seed"!!! And yes the Phoenix, the snake, the imprisoned daughter..!!

Lovely!!! Take care
x

Hart Johnson said...

Oh, this is intriguing! I love the Phoenix, too, but in addition I am a fan of the Bartimaeus Trilogy, and your book sounds like it uses similar ideas (and not dissimilar from His Dark Materials, yes?) which I think is a fabulous mechanism for set-up. Okay, now I'm excited to read your book! (I don't think I knew anything about it before)

Unknown said...

Neat! That's so cool. I love what you're teaching us about these special subjects. Keep them coming.
CD

Natasha said...

Wow, a whole lot of things to learn in one shot!

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails