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Title: The Forgotten Beasts of Eld (Magic Carpet Books)
ISBN: 0152055363
Author:
Patricia A. McKillip
Publicate Date: 2006-01-01
Publish: 2006-01-01
List Price: $6.95
Average Customer Rating: 4.5
Format: Paperback
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Amazon Lowest New Price: $2.13
Amazon Lowest Used Price: $0.50
Amazon Merchant Price: $6.95
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| Customer Review: |
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1: Beautiful, deep read about a girl who grew up on a mountain with fantastic animals
Sybil was raised on Eld mountain by her father. Her only company was the animals that her father called to the mountain. After her father died she maintained the animals and studied magic to become an unparalleled sorceress. She spends days upon days trying to call the one creature that she thinks can give her complete freedom, the creature called the Liralen. One day she is interrupted by someone at her gate; Coren wants her to take in and protect a baby named Tam. When Sybil accepts Tam into her mountain home she is drawn into a deadly conflict between two factions. Sybil struggles to remain separate from the world of men, but instead is drawn deep into it as Tam grows to manhood.
This book is a very deliberately paced book. It is beautifully written, in an older style but with lush description and very literature-like language. This is very much a traditional young adult fantasy. To be honest I had trouble getting through the first chapter which details Sybil's lineage and how she comes to live on the mountain; I kept falling asleep. After I got past the first chapter however I found myself intrigued by what would happen to Sybil and Tam as they were drawn further and further into man's conflicts. For such a simple story this book touches on many deep philosophies. It looks at living in isolation, the relationship to your mother and father, revenge, fear, peace, and love. The characters, especially Sybil, go through a tumultuous emotional growth throughout the story. The animals that Sybil "keeps" are delightful and represent aspects of human personalities; such as wisdom, fierceness, grace, direction.
This was a great read for children and adults alike. Despite some violence, it is definitely appropriate for younger children. I am always impressed with the beauty of McKillip's writing. I will say her books always make you think and always end up wandering into some deeper aspects of human philosophy.
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2: A beautifully written fantasy populated with intelligent and thoughtful characters and creatures
Upon reading the first page of this excellent young adult fantasy, you know that you are in the hands of a careful writer. Patricia McKillip's style and word choice are reminiscent of old fairy tales, yet they are not stiff and formulaic. McKillip's lyrical language moves wondrously, like a dream floating on the wind, and then settling softly in fresh-powder snow. Because the writing flows so well, one might be tempted to breeze through the book, but I suggest slowing down and savoring a good writer's craft. One thing I particularly enjoy is that although none of the characters could exist in the real world--that is, they feel like they belong in a different time and place--they are easy to recognize and sympathize with. It's refreshing to read such a seamless blend of setting and character. The story is at once a romance, a coming-of-age tale, a magical fantasy, and an adventure. There's just enough of each of those ingredients.
I can imagine some readers thinking the story is dull and moves too slow, but intelligent characters who are emotionally complex tend to hesitate. That's part of the suspense and wonder of the fantasy. Most fantasy novels position good opposite of evil, and so the plot proceeds quickly and surely, but The Forgotten Beasts of Eld is aware that good and evil are often relative, and the result is a rather quiet and haunting tale.
The heroine, Sybel, starts the novel at age sixteen, but she doesn't begin to wrestle with the emotions of love and hate until she's nearly double that age. At first I thought that this flew in the face of young adult literature, which typically has younger characters. But even though Sybel is older than the audience of this book, she has a severe case of arrested development, which makes her seem like a teenager. Thus, she's a woman trying to figure out what that means. And nothing could be more young adult than that.
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3: Not quite what I was expecting
I've read a number of Patricia McKillip's books. Her writing is usually beautiful and very poetic.In The Forests Of Serre This - not so much. The plot and characters are interesting but the writing seems for a much younger level than what I'm used to from her. Still, I would defintely would recommend this book for any 'young adult' collection.
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4: Good Book
I had to read this for my english college course, and I'll admit it was a pretty interesting book. It has all the elements of a great fantasy novel like love, powers, sorcery, fear and hate. Relatively short read(finished in about 2 days), but still manages to tell a great story and provides an interesting look on elements of war through someone living in isolation with great powers. Overall, this is a good book for any fan of fantasy reading.
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5: Verdict on the re-read: so-so
I first read this book twenty-odd years ago; I can't recall much about my reaction to it then. I also couldn't recall too much about the plot prior to rereading, which may say something about the impression it made on me. I know I didn't go off looking for more Patricia McKillip to read afterwards. But I did keep the book, which indicates to me that I wasn't completely turned off by it.
Recently I came across it and decided to have another go (mainly because I couldn't remember a thing about it.) I believe my reaction now that I have reread it could be summed up in the current parlance as "Meh."
It isn't a big waste of time, being a quick read, and it has a certain charm to it. But it's talky and short on action, the characters are somewhat on the shallow side, certain crucial plot elements don't get developed very well, and the Tale-of-the-Ancient-Bard style sounds a little stilted after a while. Throw in a magical Boar who talks in riddles:
"The Lord of Dorn ran three times around the doorless walls of the house of the Witch of Enyth, and then walked into the wall and it vanished like a dream."
and the whole thing can start to sound a bit like a parody of itself.
In favor of the book, it centers on a powerful, if immature, female protagonist capable of taking care of herself. She grows in wisdom and ethics by the end, having learned something about herself, and something about the power of self-sacrificing love. It's clean enough to give to an older preteen with good reading skills; the seamiest moment in the whole book is when Mithran makes a pass at Sybel, and he isn't able to get past bodice-ripping and cleavage-nuzzling before Sybel zaps him. There's also little graphic violence, given the setting.
On the other hand, there's a two-dimensionality to most of the characters, and not just the secondary ones. Drede is just consumed with jealousy, suspicion, and fear; Sybel is just powerful, a little cocky, and a bit chilly; Coren is just profoundly in love with Sybel (and a wee bit vengeful, occasionally.) Maelga could have a darker side --on a couple of occasions it's mentioned that she's taken jobs more typical of Tony Soprano than Strega Nona-- but this is never explored and she's pretty much entirely a wise, maternal mentor to Sybel.
Considering the amount of intrigue that is generated in the course of the story, it would seem that there would be unprobed depths to these characters. Unfortunately, they remain largely unprobed. Why does the icy Sybel, who shuns the political machinations of ordinary humans, suddenly become so consumed by revenge as to insert herself right into the thick of them? Why does she give in to this so soon after breaking Coren of his thirst for revenge? Surely his claim against Drede is as legitimate as hers. Why is Drede so insecure that the presumed infidelity of one woman ultimately destroys his faith in almost everyone? Why the heck does Sybel, at the end, feel the need to let go not only of her revenge, but also all control of a looming disaster she has helped to launch? Couldn't she stick around to make sure the battle ends harmlessly, then release her animals? Doesn't she feel she owes that much to Tam and Coren? I can't say how I may have felt about Sybel's final abdication of power and responsibility at nineteen, but from the perspective of twenty-odd years more, I'm not inclined to go along quietly with the author's attempt to make a moral victory of it. Chalk it up to the Pottery Barn Rule.
I think many readers of fantasy, particularly those of the male variety, could find the book a disappointment. (I offered it to my eldest son, a certified fantasy geek, a few years ago. I don't think he made it past Chapter 2.) This book is too chatty by half, and too little of the chat is actually enhancing to what little plot or action there is. Some of it, at the end particularly, is downright confusing and leaves the reader wondering if the characters are exchanging information, or just talking past each other. Action is lacking, and usually brought up as an afterthought and secondhand. Pages are devoted to planning for a great battle; the battle itself is wrapped up without actual combat in a few paragraphs.
For a few hours' worth of light reading, this book beats a trashy romance novel. But if you're looking for a really good Norse epic, I'd stick with Tolkein or go all the way back to the source and find a good translation of the Eddas or Sagas or Beowulf.
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