A Clash of Kings – Swans
From up here, she could see a small wooded island off to the northeast. Thirty yards from shore, three black swans were gliding over the water, so serene . . . no one had told them that war had come, and they cared nothing for burning towns and butchered men. She stared at them with yearning. Part of her wanted to be a swan. The other part wanted to eat one.
A Clash of Kings – Chapter 19 – Arya
I was going over my checklist and, to my embarrassment, realized I had missed Arya 5! Therefore I had to go back and correct this, with Arya scouting out a fishing village and seeing swans.
The biggest frustration of this picture is I’ve been drawing Arya barefoot for the entire book. Only to realize Mr. Martin mentions her getting rid of her shoes that are falling apart now. I suppose I could rationalize that since it’s mentioned in flashback she could have lost them as early as Arya II. Even so, it’s a stretch.
I know my continuing pet peeves about details don’t matter to someone who is just reading. It’s just frustrating how things that are assumed to be obvious are left out. Since everybody wears shoes why should anyone mention them unless they are lost? Another example is in the Theon chapters. Beyond having a lean and handsome face, Theon’s face is never described. However his entire family has aquiline noses, so unless he’s a bastard, Theon should have one too. (Though that may explain Balon’s opinion of him)