I love birds in general - they all have their own little characteristics. As for magpies, I'd normally be put off by the 'stories' [in denial] of them eating eggs and other baby birds, but they are just so lovely... I'm not a big fan of opera, mainly just went to that one because it featured a magpie - I found it a bit repetitive.
Tell me more about the mythology if you get a minute.

The Norse God Odin has two ravens - one called Huginn and the other Muginn, they were kind if like scouting out the world for him brining him back tidbits of gossip and what not. ( i.e. was Freya's hair REALLY blonde?!)

They would leave at sunrise and return at dusk and perch on his shoulder whilst imparting their juicy stuff.

Translated into English Huginn means 'thought' and Munin 'memory'. An old Norse text contains the following verse:

'The whole world wide, every day,
fly Hugin and Munin;
I worry lest Hugin should fall in flight,
yet more I fear for Munin.'

One of Odin's titles was 'God of the Ravens' and his daughters the Valkyres were often thought to assume the form of the Raven.

Ravens are also imbuded with powers of omen and foresight, and a sa guide for the dead...hence the association with Valkyres I suppose....

Sorry for the overload.

Shanghaichica I read saving fish from drowning a few months ago - it's ace.
I've read every single one of Tan's books. Its a slight departure from her other stuff but really good all the same. By favourite book of all time is Hideous Kinky by Ester Freud, but generally I am a big fan of asian authors and anglo asian lit When we were orphans by Kazu Ishiguro is another all time fav of mine & Shanghi baby by Wei Hui.
I am reading On Beauty by Zadie Smith at the mo - so far so good. A lot of it is set on a US campus and most of the key characters are academics and I am really enjoying her analysis of university life & intellectual rivalry - very caustic but oh so true

Don't apologise. Do you like/have you read Beowulf? I started it but didn't finish it yet...will have to go hunt it out.
I also saw La Rondine, and I have to say I think I did like that better than the Rossini opera (but the magpie overture rocks).

Beowulf rocks! But I have only read the e-book version of it on my Palm Pilot (or rather the Palm Pilot I sold after I realised how much better paper and a pen was). So I shall re-read a paper copy of it!

It takes concentration though, what with being used to modern english!

Pea, if you like anglo-asian literature I think you'll love "What The Body Remembers" by Shauna Singh Baldwin (if you haven't already read it). It's based around a Sikh family during Partition, but the real story is how the arrival of a second wife affects the relationship between the man and his principal wife. Good stuff.

cool, ta Juno I'll check it out when I have finished On Beauty.

too many to choose! Margaret Attwood-The Handmaid's Tale, Truman Capote-In Cold Blood, J.D Sallinger-The Catcher in the Rye.

The Count of Monte Cristo (Alexandre Dumas)
One you just can't put down ;)

Ooooh, I have a copy of "What The Body Remembers" by Shauna Singh Baldwin (since yesterday) but only managed to read the first chapter and a half so far (my bloke was being extra annoying last night). Love it so far - thanks Juno

I read the Kitchen God's Wife the other week and thought it was not bad.

Has anyone else noticed the increase in amount of biographies/memoirs about people talking of their child abuse?

Glad you like it H; I loved it.

Wouldn't read a book about child abuse; who wants to be thinking about that just before falling asleep? I like books for escapism.