B2MeM 2012: O - 62 (Review)

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B2MeM Challenge: 'Read Before But Never Reviewed' on the “Review” BINGO card
Format: Review
Genre: Short story
Rating: PG
Warnings: This review contains spoilers.
Characters: N/A
Pairings: N/A
Summary: This is a review of the short story: "The Greatest Vanyarin Invention" by Darth Fingon. (This is the first chapter in the collection: "Stupid Stories For Irreverent Elves" and can be read as a stand-alone.)The link can be found here: http://www.silmarillionwritersguild.org/archive/home/viewstory.php?sid=876&chapter=1

This is a clever and insightful look at a very young Fëanáro, who is less than happy about his father’s impending marriage to his second wife Indis and by extension, her Vanyarin family.

Elemmírë has been given the onerous task of entertaining Fëanáro on the afternoon before the wedding. Despite his best efforts, Elemmírë soon discovers that Fëanáro has little interest in botany, and strongly dislikes being treated as a small child. It also becomes apparent that Fëanáro has very little tact under the best of circumstances (though whether or not this only applies to the Vanyar in general, his new stepfamily in particular or both is left to the reader to decide.)

Further discussion between them reveals that even at such an early age, Fëanáro has a highly practical turn of mind and loves to discover new things to invent. To his chagrin, Elemmírë discovers that what he thinks of as significant Vanyarin contributions to society are laughingly dismissed by an unimpressed Fëanáro.

In a last effort to impress his young guest, Elemmírë takes Fëanáro to his house to show him the latest Vanyarin invention – paint. Fëanáro is duly impressed by the painted walls and promptly announces that he wants paint. Unwilling to wait for his father to order the new invention, Fëanáro asks Elemmírë for paint so that he may “try it to see if is any good.” Trying to act as a good host, a naïve Elemmírë gives him some left over paint to try – with predictably disasterous results.

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