Looks like I'm about to tumble down this rabbit hole. Hopefully I'll be slow enough when reading these books that GRRM will be done with the series by the time I'm all caught up.
So, this book is more or less accurately represented in the first season of HBO's adaptation. While there are a few differences (at least I thought there was only a few until I checked A Game of Thrones' wikia page), the most glaring -- and slightly disturbing -- difference is how young Martin wrote all the kids to be in books. Daenerys in particular bothered me. In the show, Dany seems to look in and around the age of 18 -- considering we see her naked, she should be. Then in the book, it's revealed that she's something like 13 years old. AH! I feel so dirty now. I've been told a reason why Martin may have wrote the kids so young is that the series is intended to follow them for years, watching them as they grow up. Not having read any further into the series, I have no clue if this theory holds true. The only thing I can say based off my impression of the TV adaptation is that not much time has elapse in these past four seasons (which has roughly covered up through books III and IV, maybe?). Feels like maybe a year or so at the most. Who can really tell?
All that aside, the book was really enjoyable and provides the much needed context to really help understand the characters in this world. Names and faces fly past you in the TV show to the point where it's easy to get lost or forget more minor details. The book helps cement those details. I am looking forward to the rest of the series as the plots for the books and TV show begin to depart more from one another.
Ah, there's one other big difference that bothered me. The final scene of the book that has Dany emerging from the fire with the three dragons not just hanging in her arms, but nursing on her breast milk. Taking the whole "Mother of Dragons" title a little too serious? You know what? I respect the storytelling and I respect the writing, but maybe don't write tales of prepubescent, little girls getting slammed by a barbarian and breastfeeding dragons...
...when you look like a pedophile who lures children onto his tugboat with promises of candy and tickling. Just saying.
#pleasedontsue
In SLIGHT fairness to Martin not quite being a pedophile, she's not prepubescent if she was capable of getting pregnant. Thirteen is thirteen wither way though, and, yes, it's a bit easier to just pretend she's eighteen while reading it. (Though a lot of her immaturity stems from this youth, naturally.)
ReplyDeleteRegarding the timeline, it looks like the show is sticking to "every season represents a year of the show" which is at once both a little silly (Arya and the Hound have been walking from King's Landing to the Vale for… a year?) and also feels honest to the natural aging pace of the actors. Both the show and the books start out in the year 298 (take that for what you will) but while the books are still, after five of them, in the year 300, the show (through the end of just the third book, or its equivalent) is already in the year 301 and will return for Season 5 in the year 302. Also apparently every character was aged up two years for the show (which would still make show Daenerys only fifteen, but, hey, it's the Middle Ages, what can you do?)
I'm very glad you're reading these.