Bokelskere.no

What a unique and inspiring work of fantasy!

This was my very first Lord Dunsany experience, and I'm genuinely impressed by his magical prose! It’s both flamboyant, beautiful and poetic, and the imagery is forever bright, verdant, exuberant and vigorous. It’s like the most wonderful dream filled to the brim with hope. So powerful and so mesmerizing.

(That was for instance the most vivid and awe-inspiring description of sword making I've ever witnessed!)

I love the atmosphere too; the entire world feels so alive.

I can see why it was so influential (to for instance Tolkien, Gaiman, Lovecraft), and how it’s relevant to an understanding of early development of both modern fantasy and weird fiction.

It’s an example of the forbidden love trope, of love between two souls of a different people and from different worlds. But it’s so much more than that. It’s a coming-of-age tale, it’s about never giving up, about marriage, discovery, family, loneliness, fear of the unknown, curiosity, finding your place in the world. Or worlds! I mean, the magic of Elfland is mysterious, weird and somewhat alien. Where exactly is it? What kind of place is it? What kind of magic do they wield? Why and how is time flowing differently there? Dunsany manages to contrast in the most effective ways the earthly realm and the fantastical one, never really favoring one over the other, describing them both with equal sense of marvel and wonder.

The prose is like part of the story, an integral part of the magical atmosphere. It’s an ideal language because it serves a literary purpose; its intention is to make the reader truly engaged and flown away to be immersed in a fantastical and otherworldly setting. It works because the language is equally fantastical or otherworldly. It’s like reading an ancient text from an old civilization of poets. Because his prose is so densely descriptive and his imagery so acutely atmospheric, each chapter is more like a prose poetry in that sense. Especially when the chapters are that short. If this is what he intended with his style, I'd say he succeeded.

Although I feel like you need to be in a certain state of mind and mood when reading it. You may need to read it slowly and in small doses! I've been reading one chapter at a time (mostly once a day), which felt just right. If I'd read three or more chapters at once, I'd probably be a little exhausted. I also wouldn't be able to fully grasp and absorb what he was trying to do or convey if I read too fast. So, one needs to read this slowly, I think. Patiently, with a mind in full focus and an open heart.

Sure, his characters are one-dimensional to a fault and their decisions may make very little sense, but they are nonetheless fascinating, delightful, lovely or intense in that good kind of way. Fine, the narrative might be confusing, its structure perhaps illogical at times and there are no discernable plot highlights. In addition, he is doing some horrible things to unicorns! But this story is, above all else, a perfect example of how life is all about the journey and not the destination.

I, for one, am truly grateful to have read it.