About

Leinad, also known as Keras the Unknown, also known as Thevarul, is a Christian teenage reader, writer, runner, board-game player and MK whose similarity to Gandalf goes slightly further than having a lot of names. This extra similarity is that he, like the famed wizard, is very irregular and is prone to disappearing from a place for months on end — only to reappear when least expected.

Leinad has been home-schooled for most of his life, and he’s proud of it, but recently he joined the Australian public school system from a distance. He has just completed his 12th year of school (Year 11), his first in the public school system, and his major academic achievements during that time include writing an essay which his Economics teacher said was “very interesting to read”, and writing a creative piece which his English teacher said was “funny”.

Other (less academic) achievements during the year include learning how to juggle; reading The Silmarillion and The Children of Hurin (thus qualifying as a Tolkien-nerd); and getting his 3 K and 5 K Personal Bests to a level he is pleased with.

The year has not been without disappointments, however, as this blog has almost died from lack of nourishment and his Khmer language, far from improving, has deteriorated. Still, what else could his final year of school be for but for renovating his blog and getting his Khmer up to speed? Studying for the HSC exams, you say? Surely just because the HSC contributed to one in eleven suicides among Australian adolescents in 2003 doesn’t mean studying for it takes that much time!

What books does Leinad like to read? All sorts. The very best news he has ever read is the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, found in the Bible. His favourite translation of the Bible is the New Living Translation, by virtue of its understandability to normal English speakers, coupled with its effort to translate things properly. In terms of favourite genres, fantasy is probably the trump suit, but he is not in the least exclusive (even if you’ll never convince him to read Twilight). In recent years he has found, to his surprise, that many “classics” — which he presumed earned their title by virtue of their supreme dullness — are in fact very good books. Some of these include Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen; Heart of Darkness, by Joseph Conrad; and To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee. Nonfiction often succeeds in keeping him entertained too, with Roald Dahl’s Boy and Going Solo, Ralph Moody’s Little Britches and sequels, and Ron Snell’s Rani Adventures all doing a fine job. His current two favourite authors are probably J.R.R. Tolkien and J.K. Rowling, although authors which have been previously ranked at the top (and whom he still enjoys) include Roald Dahl, Emily Rodda and C.S Lewis. Authors whom he has recently discovered and thoroughly enjoys include Cornelia Funke, Trenton Lee Stewart, Gary Schmidt and William Shakespeare.

If you like reading or writing, hang out here and read anything Leinad’s meandering mind happens to come up with! He will post book reviews, thoughts on writing, short stories, and a bit of anything else that he thinks should exist here, hopefully once or twice a week (though his similarity to Gandalf should not be forgotten). If you find what he says useful, good! If not, please tell him why (avoiding offensive language or unsavoury topics) and thus increase his wisdom (which is rather lacking). In fact, please comment on his posts regardless, because, quite apart from his desire to gain wisdom, he loves comments.

So whether you’re from New Zealand, or South Sudan, or the Vatican City, if you have an excess of time, feel free to spend it here.