Writers of the Purple Page Trivia Quiz

Answer: China

Written by Luo Guanzhong in the 1300s, "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" begins with the reign of Emperor Ling, in the waning days of the Han dynasty. Time passes and Ling dies; his son is soon replaced by a figurehead. By the time the Three Kingdoms era begins in earnest, there are multiple competing emperors, and the rest of the book tells of the battles and intrigues that eventually bind China under one rule once more.

The book is hugely important to Chinese culture, occupying a place of honor similar to Shakespeare's in English. The canvas is vast and sprawling, the characters are fascinating, and their machinations are complex. Numerous Chinese proverbs originated in Luo's words, and the story is a favorite among Chinese artists. But then, any book that's still being read after 700 years would have to be good!

Answer: Aslan

Edmund Pevensie is one of the four English children who appear in Narnia in "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe"; on their next Narnian adventure, "Prince Caspian", the Pevensie children help the title character claim the Narnian throne. Shasta, a mistreated child, is the main character in "The Horse and His Boy". Aslan stands apart from all of them: a great lion, worshipped and feared in Narnia, he guides and drives the action in all seven Narnia books.

He often refers to his father, the Emperor-beyond-the-sea, who made both the Deep Magic from the Dawn of Time and the Deeper Magic from Before the Dawn of Time.

The "Narnia" books are Christian allegory, and the relationship between Aslan and the Emperor is meant to evoke that of Jesus Christ and God the Father.

Answer: Dune

Written by Frank Herbert, "Dune" is a gripping read, catapulting Paul from one grave peril to another. He begins the book at age 15, moving from one world to another at the whim of the Padishah Emperor Shaddam IV. He trains in the martial and political skills favored by his father, and he trains in the more mystical path favored by his mother, a member of the Bene Gesserit order.

Herbert vividly sketches a human society stretched across thousands of worlds, with various power structures competing on a galactic scale, while giving the reader a superhero who is truly terrifying.

Answer: Lois McMaster Bujold

In Bujold's science-fictional Vorkosigan saga, the warlike planet of Barrayar -- settled by mostly Russian colonists, isolated for centuries from the rest of the galaxy, and only returned to outside contact for a couple of generations -- rules over the restive colony domes of Komarr and the open frontier of Sergyar.

The Vorkosigan family, powerful members of the Barrayaran military caste, have a tradition of imperial service. Over the course of the series, readers see Emperor Gregor grow into a ruler worthy of that service, which is a lucky thing for humanity. I shudder to imagine what havoc Miles Vorkosigan would wreak if he served the expansionist *Cetagandan* emperor...

Answer: I, Claudius

When Caligula was murdered by members of his own guard in 41 AD, Claudius was the next in line, although he accepted his imperial duties reluctantly. (And who can blame him? After all, his predecessor was murdered by members of his own guard!) The historical Claudius really did have an interest in history and really did write an autobiography. That work has not survived, though, leaving an opening for Graves to tell the story of the early Roman Empire through the eyes of its fourth emperor. "I, Claudius" was followed the next year by "Claudius the God", a chronicle of Claudius's own reign.

The books together have been tremendously influential, and regularly appear in lists of great English-language novels.

Answer: The Elflands

Maia is, more accurately, the half-goblin emperor: youngest son of the elf Emperor, born to a despised goblin wife whom the Emperor had married for political reasons. The Emperor had several older sons, born to earlier marriages to other elves, and never expected Maia to succeed him. Just before the book opens, though, a catastrophe wipes out the rest of the line of succession - and Maia emerges from exile to rule at a court he has never known.

There isn't a lot of action or swordplay in this steampunk fantasy, although Maia does contend with some very intricate intrigues at court. The story is gripping, even so. Maia is a decent young man who is both ignorant of the court and very sensitive to all the privileges that high-born elves enjoy over everyone else in the Empire. Can Maia keep the throne without changing utterly? How much power does one man, even the Emperor, truly have to reform an unjust society? These questions kept me turning the pages.

Answer: Tutankhamun

Lord Meren is an appealing investigator, but what really charms in this series are the details of time and place. Robinson holds a doctorate in anthropology (with an archaeology specialty) and it shows in her rendering of ancient Egyptian culture, from the superstitions of the rich and poor, to the dangers of a hippopotamus hunt, to hired mourners dramatically wailing at the funerals of the murder victims. Much of the intrigue at Tutankhamun's court derives from religious upheaval: forced to convert to Akhenaten's new religion soon after he ascended to power, Egypt was then forced to convert back soon after he died, with power and wealth flowing accordingly.

The first book of the series, "Murder in the Place of Anubis," starts things off with a mysterious twist very specific to ancient Egypt: who would kill somebody in the sacred space where mummies are prepared for burial?

Answer: Foundation

Asimov inaugurated this series with the novel "Foundation" in 1951, and filled it in with both sequels and prequels over the ensuing decades. Seldon's idea - that the broad strokes of history can be precisely predicted through the applied psychology of crowds - is fertile ground for Asimov.

After serving in Emperor Cleon's government, Seldon founds a Foundation on a peripheral world, with the goal of refining psychohistory, guarding civilized knowledge, and guiding the galaxy out of its inevitable dark ages. Of course, things don't go smoothly, but that's half the fun.

Answer: On the island of St. Helena

The first published entry in this series was "Sharpe's Eagle" (1981); fans of the Napoleonic Wars might prefer to start with "Sharpe's Trafalgar", and chronological completionists should begin with "Sharpe's Tiger" and the title character's adventures in India. Sharpe and his associate Patrick Harper are memorable characters who bring the campaigns to vivid life, from politics to camp life to the field of battle. "Sharpe's Devil" is something of a postscript to the series: with the war long over and Napoleon imprisoned on a lonely island in the South Atlantic, Sharpe and Harper are enjoying lives of peace when an old friend begs them for help.

Her husband is missing in Chile, in the midst of rebellion, and there is no one else she can turn to. So they sail to Chile, stopping in St.

Helena just long enough to meet Napoleon and pick up another major plot thread. Their visit is an unforgettable scene; Napoleon is a man of charisma and threat, even in defeat and exile.

Answer: People who are well suited to their jobs

The tailors, of course, are scam artists, peddling clothes that don't exist - making this 1837 children's tale a cautionary one. Anyone who calls the tailors on their bluff runs the risk of exposing themselves as incompetent, perhaps leading to demotion or firing. Even the emperor has enough self-doubt not to say anything! It takes a little child not only to recognize the truth, but to dare to speak it out loud.