A Green Man Review

Cats have a way of always having been there even if they’ve only just arrived.  They move in their own personal time.  They act as if the human world is one they just happened to have stopped off in, on their way to somewhere that is possibly a whole lot more interesting. — Terry Pratchett in “The Unadulterated Cat”

The Kitchen followed through on their promise to Béla to cook choucroute garnie, a hearty pork and cabbage dish… Actually it’s even better than usual as it’s garnished with homemade kraut that we did last year with cabbages we grew and cider we made here.

I’ve got a whisky that I think you should try, it’s Toiteach which is a wonderfully peaty single malt from the Bunnahabhain brewery. Served neat with neither water nor ice is how we do it as there’s no single malts here that shouldn’t be appreciated that way. If you’re interested in knowing more about Scots whiskeys, take a look at the review by Stephen of the late Iain Bank’s Raw Spirit: In Search of The Perfect Dram as I believe it’s simply the best look at single drams ever done.

It’s our usually grey beginning to December here in the Scottish Highlands: rainy, cold and blustery winds to boot. Even the most diehard of Estate staff find going outside unless their duties require to do so are quite willing to stay inside. Iain’s has been keeping to his hiding spot and I myself are spending time off duty in the Kitchen quite content to play tunes and nosh on whatever the staff there feels we should be eating such as blackberry cobbler, the very last of the fresh fruits here.

So there’s no theme this edition, but rather is whatever the Editors found interesting with our usual mix of new materiel along with some older material from the Archivesinvluding all our book reviews being on works by Terry Pratchett. So let’s get started.

Christine got a big surprise when she read Terry Pratchett’s Night Watch after taking a break from Discworld for several years. ‘Discworld has changed since last I visited. There are still plenty of laughs to be had here, but they are almost overshadowed by the sheer darkness of this story, and by the remarkably sympathetic, shockingly un-bumbling lead character Sam Vimes. The man is actually deep. He’s sensitive, conflicted, intelligent, and I’ll be damned if he’s not a do-gooder! What’s going on here?’

Gary reviewed several Discworld books, including Thief of Time. ‘The book’s plot centers on one Miss Susan, a beloved school teacher in Ankh-Morpork who ignites her young students’ passion for learning. She also happens to be a human-immortal hybrid, the granddaughter of Death — you know, the skeleton guy in the hooded cape who sometimes carries a scythe? Her grandfather enlists her in a quest to stop a plot by The Auditors to halt time, thus ending the disturbances caused in their orderly universe by the pesky presence of people.’

He also read Pratchett’s first YA Discworld title: ‘The Amazing Maurice is a retelling of the Pied Piper legend (in fact the subtitle is The Pied Piper of  … Discworld?), told in Pratchett’s typically skewed way.’

Gary got a kick out of The Last Hero, the story of Discworld’s Cohen The Barbarian. ‘This one is special, since it’s illustrated by Paul Kidby, who has previously collaborated with Pratchett on book covers and calendars. It’s a big coffee-table book, loaded with gorgeous paintings of Discworld, drawings, sketches and hilarious renderings of the story’s characters and situations.’

And he especially enjoyed the 25th installment of Discworld in which the Printing Press is invented. ‘As a former newspaperman myself, I got a real kick out of a lot of the gags in The Truth. As a former journalist, Pratchett got a lot of details right. He also takes every opportunity to draw on many 20th century forms, from the detective novel to the newspaper movie about bumbling reporters and hardbitten editors.’

Kathleen found the U.S. publication of a facsimile edition of Pratchett’s first Discworld novel to be revelatory. Of The Colour of Magic, she says, ‘I first read this book in my callow 20s, and I dismissed it as a light piece of fluff, funnier than most fantasy (a definite plus) but derivative. I was wrong.’

She also reviewed one of Pratchett’s non-Discworld YA books, Nation. ‘This is a story of worlds ending. Everyone’s world ends differently, but sometimes those endings overlap, forcing the survivors to join forces. Eventually, too, new worlds begin. They are seldom what we expect them to be, and the world’s ending usually reveals that that world wasn’t what we thought it was, either.’

Kathleen beat the drum for Wintersmith, the third installment of Pratchett’s YA series that began with The Wee Free Men. ‘Wintersmith is a wonderful book, and I advise all adult fans of Pratchett to get it and read it. Give it to your children to read. Better yet, read it with your children. This is a story you can all happily share.’

Rachel had some thoughts about Pratchett’s YA novel The Wee Free Men: ‘…this review is mainly going to be of interest to two groups: those who have never read anything by him and are wondering if The Wee Free Men is a good starting point; and those doubtful fans who are wondering if the cutesy title and the fact that it’s marketed as a young adult novel mean that it’s dumbed down or less good than or different from his recent Discworld novels for adults. In order: yes, it’s a great introduction to Pratchett; no, it’s not dumbed down …’

She also reviewed the follow-up, A Hat Full of Sky. ‘Tiffany Aching is back. So are Granny Weatherwax and the Nac Mac Feegle. If that means nothing to you, be aware that I’m writing about the sequel to The Wee Free Men, in which young Tiffany Aching and a band of rowdy fairies rescued her sticky little brother from the Fairy Queen. A Hat Full of Sky stands on its own, but you should read the first book anyway; it’s good.’

She also found Monstrous Regiment unexpectedly weighty. ‘It’s funny as hell, especially if you’ve watched a lot of war movies or had slogans like “One blow, one kill” yelled at you by a sergeant or sensei. But it’s more a serious novel that also makes you laugh a lot than a comedy that has serious bits. Reading it is an enjoyable experience, but not a comforting one.’

Richard Dansky has been our most prolific Pratchett reviewer. He went in-depth on The Fifth Elephant when it was part of a campaign to release early Discworld books in the U.S. ‘As much as the dedicated Pratchettian (such as myself) may wish to rush into reading the story, the book itself demands attention, and causes consternation as well.’

He definitely enjoyed the book in which “music with rocks in it” comes Discworld. ‘Soul Music – the novel – rests pretty much in the middle of the Discworld canon. The story of a young druid named Imp Y Celyn who heads off to the big city to seek his fortune playing music, the novel is certainly enjoyable, but it lacks the marvelous inventiveness of The Colour of Magic or the emotional clout of Reaper Man. It is, however, funny as hell… ‘

He says there’s a lot going on in Hogfather. ‘That’s because the book is really the Disc’s take on all things Christmas, thinly disguised here as “Hogswatchnight.” Pratchett’s not about to let such a juicy target go by without peppering it from every angle he can. That’s not to say that Pratchett is anti-Christmas, indeed, far from it. But he clearly differentiates the spirit of the holiday from the way it is celebrated in some circles, and finds those celebrants wanting.’

Richard says it took a while for Pratchett to get around to skewering vampires. ‘One gets the suspicion that Pratchett’s been looking forward to this one, though, as Carpe Jugulum isn’t just a book about vampires on Discworld. It’s also a meditation on tradition, knowing your place, modernity, Goths, Highlander, parenthood, faith, religious crises, identity and most important of all, keeping your Igor happy. Got all that? No? Then read the book.’

Finally, Richard reviewed Terry Pratchett: Guilty of Literature, a book of literary criticism which he found mostly unsuccessful. ‘In their attempt to expose as many critical takes on Pratchett as possible, Andrew M. Butler, Edward James and Farah Mendlesohn have gathered together what can only be described as an encircling barrage of approaches. In some instances, the writing is incisive, insightful and useful in opening new approaches to reading Pratchett’s work. In others, it’s turgid, self-righteous and poorly supported, making one long for a good Edmund Wilson-style smackdown.

And then there’s Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett … Kathleen rejoiced when their early joint project Good Omens was put back in print. ‘Good Omens is a very funny, very serious book about the end of the world. The Antichrist has been born and is now 11 years old, and all manner of classically predicted phenomena are manifesting. Naturally, most of them are being ignored, misinterpreted or missed altogether. And since this is the work of Gaiman and Pratchett, there is a darkly comic twist to the action.’

Kelley then enjoyed the audio version of Pratchett and Gaiman’s (or Gaiman and Pratchett’s) Good Omens, though not without a few quibbles. ‘Despite my criticism of a few accents, I thoroughly enjoyed Martin Jarvis’s rendition of Good Omens. He met the challenge of a massive number of voices head on, always sounding as though he had a sly grin hidden away in the pit of his stomach.’

And Cat thoroughly enjoyed Gaiman’s screenplay for … well, not exactly Good Omens, although it’s related. It’s rare, and it’s actually called just A Screenplay. ‘It’s fun, it’s fast-paced, it reads like Neil at his very best. Stylistically, it’s similar to both Coraline and Wolves in the Walls. Unlike the War for the Oaks treatment where it really helps if you”ve read the novel, it stands on its own very nicely.’

Zina has a story for us about something quite wonderful: ‘For me, the inky little cups of Turkish coffee are exactly that — it’s not so much the coffee itself that’s so wonderful, but what tends to happen over the cups of it, even if I’m drinking it alone. I was in a tiny, tiny village in the pastoral English countryside visiting friends a bit ago, and after dinner we had Turkish coffee, some tunes, and a great deal of talking and laughing, in the lovely, warm, hospitable dining room of that unbelievably old house.’

Richard reviewed one of the animated adaptations of a Discworld story. ‘Wyrd Sisters is not a masterpiece. The animation is far too clunky for that. It is, however, a faithful, enjoyable rendition of the book, and neither Pratchett fans nor newcomers will find much cause to complain.’

Graphic review

In new music, Daryana gives us a fresh review of Mua, the second full-length release from the Karelian band Ilmu. ‘The album’s 13 tracks delve into the essence of primordial Earth, capturing the magic of nature’s dance and the raw beauty of life and death. Collaborations with artists like Saylyk Ommun and Tuomas Rounakari add depth to the sonic landscape, infusing traditional folk songs with a contemporary arrangements.’

Gary reviews some new Quebecois music: ‘Guitarist and singer Yann Falquet steps outside the familiar confines of Genticorum, the Quebecois folk trio in which he has recorded and toured for more than two decades, with a set of traditional songs on Les Secrets Du Ciel. Though it represents a slightly different direction than usually followed by Genticorum, his warm baritone vocals and textured guitar playing still feel familiar and comforting.’

Gary also enthusiastically reviews Canadian singer songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Abigail Lapell’s latest. ‘Anniversary is an album full of love songs and a certain amount of introspection as Lapell hits her 40s and ponders time, the past and the future, the present, and loved ones alive and ghostly.’

He also enjoyed the aptly titled Exuberance by Christopher Zuar Orchestra. ‘Exuberance is a sprawling, need I say exuberant chronicle of his relationship with the woman who’s now his wife, animation filmmaker Anne Beal. But don’t expect lush slow dances and waltzes; this is a clear eyed romp through the highs and lows (but mostly highs) of a relationship between two, as they say, “creatives.” ‘

From the Archives, our Jayme Lynn Blaschke turned in reviews of several releases by the prolific Louisiana-based Scottish folk band Smithfield Fair. We’ve pulled several from the archives including Cairdeas (Kinship), Highland Call, The Winter Kirk, Jacobites By Name, and Winds of Time. ‘Smithfield Fair is a band that has adopted a rustic, rugged sound that eschews glossy adornments or slick production and, for the most part, succeeds admirably,’ he says.

Jayme also enthused about Across the Water by the American Celtic band SixMileBridge. ‘Altogether, this former Houston band (now based on the U.S. East Coast) puts out a confident, vibrant sound that at times hints at a wide range of influences that include such notables as the Cranberries and Ashley MacIsaac. You can’t really say that there is a “SixMileBridge sound”; they’re all over the place, picking and choosing from a wide variety of musical traditions, with one song sounding nothing at all like the one preceeding it. And that, for what it’s worth, is a good thing.’

John O’Regan turned in an omnibus review of Celtic music with an international twist. ‘This omnibus review features bands from the UK, Ireland, Canada and the USA [including Smithfield Fair] whose basic approach would be to buck the obvious ideologies associated with Celtic music. Some have mixed lineups nationality wise, and others just like taking chances with the music and adding their own personal flavours to the brew. The fact that the bulk of the material on 90% of the seven CDs under review contains mostly all original material says enough for the personalised viewpoint expressed on things Celtic.’

Mike Stiles got into the Smithfield Fair act as well, reviewing their disc Burns Night Out! ‘For this CD they put on their best Broad Scots in homage to the immortal Robbie Burns. They pack 18 of his pieces into three-quarters of an hour, but nothing is rushed or short-changed as they put their unique stamp on the old familiar material.’

What Not

Coda

Dear Anna,

Imagine an old forest witch, a crone with a cackle and gnarled hands. Well Justina did one of those when she was here the first time. Alas the Troll proved more elusive in design. Much more elusive. And of course, this troll was not the vision of just Justina, the potter, but instead was created on a collective basis.

There aren’t many descriptions of them in Old Norse and what exist are more intent on describing their personality as in the Prose Edda:

Troll kalla mik trungl sjǫtrungnis, auðsug jǫtuns, élsólar bǫl, vilsinn vǫlu, vǫrð nafjarðar, hvélsveg himins – hvat’s troll nema þat?

Which roughly translates as:

They call me a troll, moon of the earth-Hrungnir, wealth sucker of the giant, destroyer of the storm-sun, beloved follower of the seeress, guardian of the “nafjord”, swallower of the sun: What’s a troll if not that?

Other Old Norse sources note they are magical creatures with special skills, but that doesn’t say if that was good or evil. In J. R. R. Tolkien’s universe, trolls are large humanoids of great strength and poor intellect.

What they found with the help of Iain, who called on what he calls L-Space to ask private estate librarians in Norway to dig deep into their archives for folk material not commonly accessed by folklorists, was that they are dark and slow of movement and covered with a tangle of foliage, like a forested mountain brought to life. Now this of course added a whole new level of complexity to this project as most trolls under the bridge projects use a smooth looking design with almost no fine work. Justina, however, noted this actually made the project easier as the leaves, moss and such would make hiding the seams easier.

The first step was what is called a one sixth scale model of the troll-to-be. Now keep in mind that no one expected Justina to work full-time on this so she danced a lot, gossiped in the pub while listening to the Neverending Session, spent hours reading in the Library, taught the Several Annies (and anyone else interested) basic and advanced pottery.

That model went through, I think, at least a dozen iterations before it was considered right by just about everyone present here this Winter. It was indeed leafy, mossy, and similar to what one of Tolkien’s Ents might have looked like if it was far more stocky and a great deal shorter. (One of the models now lives in a museum in the home city of the Norwegian Several Annie who got the project going; Justine took one with her; and four got sold by us on behalf of her.) And so the project stood until after Candlemas as we agreed no one should would work on it during the Winter Holidays.

And that’s where I’ll leave the tale for now, as Chasing Fireflies, the contradance band that I’m calling for this coming weekend, wants to go over the list of dances they’re considering. Gossip has it that they’ve been intensely interested with the dances of John Garden, the Australian composer and Jane Austen scholar, so it’ll be interesting to see what they’ve come up with!

Affectionately, Gus

You think foxes only hunt with their eyes? — Tale of The Nine-Tail, a Korean serial

Chilly breezes are still with us, but we’ve hit that time of year when the outside temperatures may be anywhere on the scale — spring’s not quite here, but winter is starting to let go, so we’re in a thaw-and-freeze time. All of which makes walking a bit of a gamble — one needn’t wade through snow drifts (the paths are clear), but it’s always a question of whether a puddle is actually a puddle or a sheet of ice. It pays to have fast reflexes, just in case.

And on mild days, everything drips, so walking under the trees may very well mean icy water down the back of your neck. A broad-brimmed hat is very useful.

The birds don’t seem to mind — the crows actually seem very happy, now that some of the snow cover is gone and they can poke around in hopes of something tasty. The sparrows, as well, are foraging around the clear places, looking for any seeds or buds they’ve missed before.

The squirrels are starting to nip the ends off of twigs: they’ll wait for the sap to start dripping out, and lick it off, as a nice side to the flower and leaf buds that are just starting to swell. The rabbits are still hunting down the last of last year’s dried grasses and herbs — it’s still a bit early for tender new shoots, but they remain hopeful.

And although there’s a lot going on outside, right now it’s a bit raw and blustery, so I’m just as happy to be curled up next to the fire putting this edition together. But, given the mood — well, we have to be prepared for anything.

Let’s talk about a few foxes in fiction.

Ben Aaronovitch’s What Abigail Did That Summer, a Rivers of London novella, has one Abigail, a fascinating teenager of quite some standing on her own, but also a talking fox named Indigo.

Rita Mae Brown’s Let Sleeping Dogs Lie is one in her series of American no kill fox hunting series where all the animals are intelligent including of the foxes.

Charles de Lint’s The Cats of Tanglewood Forest naturally being set in a very old forest has to have at least one fox among the characters that our girl Lillian will meet; this one is named charmingly T. H. Reynolds.

In “Fox Wife” by Hiromi Goto, we learn the tale of a kitsune wife. You can find this included in Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling’s The Faery Reel: Tales from the Twilight Realm.

The animated Hellboy: Sword of Storms has a most charming Japanese kitsune as one of its characters.

Jon Courtenay Grimwood’s 9Tail Fox plays off the kitsune myth in some unexpected in ways in its story of a dead Asian ancestry SF detective sort brought back to life. Possibly. I’m actually more fond of the cover art done for the trade paper edition as I like the kitsune there.

Denise has a review of Lindt Excellence Roasted Hazelnut Dark for us: ‘Dark chocolate! How lovely. Breakfast of champions, some may say. Well, I say that all the time, so I think that counts. Toss in some “heart-healthy” hazelnuts, and I’ll live forever, right? Don’t answer that. But in my quest to have my chocolate and eat it too, I drooled when Dear Editor sent me some Lindt. And while squares of dark chocolate with chopped hazelnuts mixed in might not be the superfood I desire it to be, it sure is delicious.”

After a successful run of more than 25 film festivals, Abby Berendt Lavoi and Jeremey Lavoi’s Roots Of Fire will see theatrical and streaming release in a little more than a month. Gary reviewed the documentary about Cajun music and culture in the 21st Century in late 2022. ‘Anyone who enjoys Francophone Louisiana roots music and music documentaries in general will love Roots of Fire. The film focuses in particular on the young musicians who are bringing Cajun music into the 21st century, honoring their past and their forbears while moving the music forward and making it their own.’

J.J.S. Boyce turned in a thoughtful review of Brad Meltzer, Rags Morales, and Michael Bair’s Identity Crisis, about the Justice League of America. ‘There’s a lot of history here: the JLA is a Silver Age comic book creation, while most of its core members are themselves Golden Age heroes. There’s a definite sense that Meltzer pokes subtly at the fourth wall — some of the newer and less prominent members of the team seem to speak for the audience in holding the League history, and the old battles of timeless heroes like the original Flash, Green Lantern, or Batman, on a kind of pedestal. They aren’t just talking about the universe of the story itself, they’re talking about our perception, as fans, of how and why these guys became legends. Why, no matter how old we get, we’ll never outgrow Superman, even if we think we’ve outgrown comic books.’

In new music, Gary has high praise for everything about the self-titled six-song EP from Wonder Women of Country: Kelly Willis, Melissa Carper, and Brennen Leigh, including stripped-down, mostly acoustic arrangements on solid Americana songs. ‘What those sparse arrangements do, of course, is make room for the vocals, particularly the three-part harmonies, which is what this power trio is all about. (The mixes on all of the tracks by Steve Mazur subtly push each of the lead singers’ vocals to the front but also leaves a lot of room for the backing of the other two.) I can’t decide which song provides my favorite moments of delicious harmony.’

Also in American roots music, Gary reviews the self-titled debut of a very talented quartet. ‘Remember back in the early 2000s when you first heard and were struck dumb by the youthful virtuosity of Crooked Still? Or perhaps, a decade or so later, by the stringband supergroup vibe of The Goat Rodeo? I sure do, and those are the same feelings I got when I heard the first notes of the self-titled debut from what may be this decade’s roots supergroup Ezra.’

Gary also enjoyed Gordon Grdina’s The Marrow. ‘Canadian Grdina is a Vancouver-based guitarist, composer, improviser, and master oud player who is incredibly active in improvisational and experimental music of many kinds, most of it based around Middle Eastern and specifically Persian themes. On The Marrow he and a top notch jazz ensemble join with Persian vocalist Fathieh Honari on a deeply trance-like set that focuses squarely on his masterful oud playing.’

He also got a kick out of the eclectic Norwegian family band Hulbækmo & Jacobsen Familieorkester’s Rundsnurrknurr, which has a kitchen sink’s worth of instruments played by its four members. ‘At 17 tracks full of such a variety of sounds, it comes very close to the line beyond which is “too much of a good thing.” But it’s an hour’s worth of wonderful, fun, creative music. Put it on your Nordic folk playlist and I guarantee you’ll love each track that comes up on shuffle.’

There’s also more Russian folk music from Gary. ‘The Russian folk rock band Otava Yo is dealing with the turbulence facing their part of the world by doing what they do best — making music. And what music! Their latest album Loud and Clear is full of stirring and uplifting music — Slavic folk tunes and songs played on a mix of traditional and modern instruments in a style that’s appealing to modern audiences, and full of exciting vocal harmonies.

From the archives, Brendan had high praise for Finality Jack’s Glory Be. ‘The mellow, melodic nature of this music may fool the listener into not really paying attention to it but just letting it flow into the ears. But, unlike a great deal of contemporary instrumental music, each tune here stands up well to concentrated listening, opening up more and more upon each repeat. This is actually remarkably complicated music, almost experimental in its mixing of styles and various melodies.’

Craig was intrigued by a CD by “Blumpkin Nation” that was really more of a various artists’ compilation. ‘With a title like The Invisible Movie Soundtrack — to which there is no accompanying film — it is difficult to listen to this album without wondering just what kind of cinematic experience this would accompany.’

David was fond of Jeff Black’s Tin Lily. ‘Every song is strong but there are some highlights. There’s the driving “Libertine,” and the piano-rocker “Free At Last.” And then there’s “Closer” and “All Days Shine” or “Heaven Now” and “These Days”; but whether an acoustic love song or a solid rocker, each song brings you closer to the conclusion that Jeff Black is the real thing.’

Lars found that the box set The Remains of Tom Lehrer was a dream come true. ‘Well, this box is a jewel. You get both the studio and the live versions of the first two albums, the third LP and eight bonus tracks never seen on LP. With it you get a 80-page book with a full biography, Lehrer’s answers to some common questions, all the lyrics and notes on the recordings.’

Peter was disappointed by an offering from Dick Gaughan, Lucky For Some. ‘The album was recorded in the Vegas Suite studio, and (in my opinion) it is spoilt by too much ’empty hall’ reverb being added. It made it very hard to catch the lyrics; in fact it was almost impossible on several tracks. I had to resort to reading them in the cover notes booklet. It was only then, on reading the lyrics, that I realized there might be one or two decent songs here with a lot of potential. It will be interesting to see what they sound like live, or if other artists do covers of them.’

Our Coda today is courtesy of Brighton, England, based singer/songwriter, novelist, poet, and playwright Nick Burbridge and his musical vehicle named McDermott’s 2 Hours (when he’s not collaborating with the Levellers). Nick can slip easily from Irish folk to really great folk rock, so it won’t surprise you ‘tall that Nick’s a favorite of many of us here including myself and we even interviewed him once upon an afternoon.

So he most generously said we could use anything on the McDermott’s 2 Hours Live at Fernhame Hall recording, so let’s part company with their ‘Fox on the Run’. No, it’s not about fox hunting.

In a circle of stones they placed the pot,

In a circle of stones, but barely nine
They heated it red and fiery hot
‘Till the burnished brass did glimmer and shine.

They rolled him up in a sheet of lead
A sheet of lead for a funeral pall.
They plunged him in the cauldron red,
Melted him, lead and bones and all.

At the Skelf Hill the cauldron still
The men of Liddesdale can show
And on the spot where they placed the pot
The grasses they will never grow.

Albion: A Guide to Legendary Britain.

The above bit of British history and folklore seems appropriate as we approach the Vernal Equinox. It’s a time when our thoughts turn to things old and weird — standing stones, bonfires, fertility rituals, and the like. For your enjoyment this outing we’ve a sampling of folk music old and new, intriguing fiction and non-fiction, and  bits and pieces of the usual entertainments and diversions.

Cat had the pleasure of reviewing a special offering, the Author’s Preferred Text and The Reader’s Copy of same, of Neil Gaiman’s American Gods. ‘It features over 12,000 words, roughly 40 pages, of new material that did not appear in the trade edition of the book. It have heard that this material did appear in a very limited edition printing by Harper Collins, but nowhere else! Did this additional material add to my enjoyment of the story Gaiman is telling. Oh, yes. It’s a story with enough difference from the previous version to make sure that you too will pay close attention to the story once again.’

Christopher found Scott Mebus’s Gods of Manhattan to be a bit of a pastiche. ‘He begins by borrowing the underlying concept from Neil Gaiman’s excellent novel American Gods, namely that those individuals who are remembered and perhaps even revered by a sufficient number of people live on as gods. He then moves down the shelf to liberally grab elements from the Potter series: a reluctant boy hero, with a special gift he’d gladly relinquish for a normal life with a whole and normal family; a dark, mysterious villain seeking the boy’s destruction; a magical mentor; a parallel world unseen by all but the select few. Finally the author grafts on bits and pieces from a middle school textbook on the history of Manhattan.’

Gary says the City of London is one of the supporting characters in The System of the World, the third installment of Neal Stephenson’s Baroque Cycle. ‘The plot is as convoluted as a four-dimensional map of that city, but at its heart is Daniel Waterhouse’s mission to attempt to reconcile Newton and Leibniz, who have developed competing philosophies of Life, the Universe and Everything. Newton’s remains based on the ancient principles of alchemy while Leibniz’s is based on monadism, which is a bit closer to our own current molecular and atomic system, which was developed over the ensuing couple of centuries.’

Joseph was nervous about reading Amy M. Clarke’s lit-crit book Ursula K. Le Guin’s Journey to Post-Feminism. ‘I deeply love Le Guin’s writing. Reading The Left Hand of Darkness I learned how science fiction can plumb the depths of human experience. Her Earthsea series taught me more about character growth and development than any course ever could. And her strong female characters in a hyper-masculine genre gave me the courage to include the rarest of characters in SF, non-stereotypical gay males. I did not know what I would do if I learned that somebody whom I’ve placed on the most precarious of pedestals may actually be a flawed human.’

Lenora gave a thorough review of Susanna Clarke’s beloved novel Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. ‘The world Susanna Clarke creates is altogether as thoroughly detailed as Tolkien’s Middle Earth, if rather more prosaic and less full of wonder. The story we read is only a late part in a much longer history, set in a few small locales in a much broader universe. The sense of just how much world there is outside the story — in England, Europe and the rest of our world, in Faerie, and in even less known worlds — is one of its riches.’

Michael reviewed what is obviously one of the foundational texts of Green Man Review, Neil Gaiman’s American Gods. ‘This is, without a doubt, his best work to date, certainly one of his most impressive. Freed from the constraints of the 32-page monthly pamphlet format, allowed to go where the story takes him all in one sitting, Gaiman’s given us a hallucinogenic, hypnotic, insightful guided tour into the workings of our own belief structure.’

Robert got a lot of pleasure out of reading Daithi ÓhÓgáin’s The Lore of Ireland: An Encyclopedia of Myth, Legend and Romance. ‘It’s a treasure house of names, places, stories and ideas — everything from a short biography of Ní Mháille (Grace O’Malley, a sixteenth-century pirate queen who once visited Queen Elizabeth) to St. Patrick, and from pigs to fairies (not as far apart as you might think.) I admit it — I spent hours wandering from cross-reference to cross-reference.’

Jennifer read an entire series of books about Folklore Made Simple by Dr. Jeana Jorgensen, all about folklore, sex, fairy tales, sex, and sex education. ‘All four books are a lightning read. The tools of folkloric study are laid out clearly, the anatomy of fairy tales lovingly laid bare, the history of sex education swiftly yet thoroughly plundered, and the back end of each book crammed with juicy references and resources.’

Jennifer tries Red Ass Rhubarb Wine with a little dark chocolate mousse. Why rhubarb? And really with chocolate? Check it out, and, bonus, a mousse recipe so easy it’s a crime.

Michelle had very mixed feelings about the Walt Disney version of The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. ‘On the level of children’s fantasy, I can’t imagine that anyone could be dissatisfied with this film of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe regardless of whether one has read and enjoyed Lewis previously. It’s a fairly faithful adaptation of the book, and if there are images or themes in the filmed version that seem familiar from Harry Potter or A Series of Unfortunate Events, I suspect it’s because Lewis has been so influential on contemporary children’s authors rather than because of any borrowing on the part of the filmmakers.’

April filled us in on what John Constantine: Hellblazer: Rare Cuts was all about. ‘As with most monthly comics, Hellblazer has seen reprint in graphic novel form; however, until recently, a number of the earlier issues did not receive this treatment. The reason’s unclear: it wouldn’t seem to be for content reasons . . . few storylines could be more controversial than Garth Ennis’ version of the Annunciation, which was collected. For whatever reason, when Rare Cuts was published in 2005, it was a first look at some key stories seen only by those who collected the individual issues.

Camille liked what she saw in Eddie Campbell’s The Black Diamond Detective Agency. ‘The palette Campbell uses is soft, almost faded around the edges, reminiscent of an old sepia photograph or the yellowed parchment of worn maps. The occasional clarity and sharpness of hard black and jarring red effectively illustrate violence, emotional and physical. The looseness of line and blurry edges help soften the sharp delineation of time and space: between childhood and adulthood, between love and hate, between good men and bad, between innocence and guilt.’

Michael was quite pleased with Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden’s Baltimore: or The Steadfast Tin Soldier and the Vampire. ‘Golden and Mignola make a good team, as witnessed by their previous collaborations (Golden’s written a few Hellboy novels) and Baltimore is certainly a success for them both. It may have its flaws, but all in all, once I got into it, I couldn’t stop reading, eager to find out what manner of twisted horror would be thrown at the characters next, and whether they’d see a victory over the vampires terrorizing the world.’

In new music, Gary reviews releases from two Russian women’s ensembles, Slavyanochka Ensemble’s Molodoi Tud Wedding, and Vereya’s Soitua Maa. Of the former, he says, ‘As is typical of Russian and Ukrainian songs in my experience, the harmonies are less dissonant than you’ll find in Balkan offerings, but the performances here are fresh, energetic, and professionally performed and recorded.’ And of the latter, he explains, ‘The group was formed as an authentic folklore ensemble in 1995 in the city of Sortavala, in the Russian Karelian oblast that borders the Karelian region of Finland. This new release is the first attempt by founding director Margarita Berezhnaya to perform and record these songs in modern settings, and it succeeds quite well for the most part.’

From the archives, Gary reviewed Teddy Thompson’s second solo release Separate Ways. ‘No sophomore slump for Teddy Thompson. On the contrary, his second outing, Separate Ways, is altogether a more muscular and cohesive affair than his 2001 self-titled debut. He’s aided and abetted by dad Richard and mom Linda (on the hidden bonus track), in addition to a fairly hefty handful of other standouts, including Garth Hudson, Dave Mattacks, Smokey Hormel, Tony Trischka and the singing Wainwright sibs Martha and Rufus — oh, and another folksinging couple’s offspring, Jenni Muldaur.’

Naomi enjoyed The Lighthouse, a CD by Paul Cranford ‘and friends.’ ‘Should you like good Cape Breton fiddling and original compositions, then this is the disc for you. Paul Cranford is a talented fiddler with sensitive fingers and impassioned playing.’

And Naomi was thrilled at …and time goes on …, a CD of music and stories from Scottish Traveller Sheila Blair. ‘This CD contains a wide variety of tales and songs, from the dark and frightening to the magical and happily-ever-after. This CD will make you laugh, gasp, bite your lip in anticipation, and then sigh in relief. I really liked this delightful CD, and will listen to it many times in the coming years. Much to my surprise, my whole family actually sat and gave it a listen and enjoyed it — even the teenager who listens only to “metal.” ‘

Noam gave a mixed review to Kevin Burke’s In Concert. ‘This recording was made over the course of two evenings shortly before Christmas 1998 in Portland, Oregon, which is where the London-born Sligo-style fiddler Burke has lived for the past twenty years. Although Burke has recorded several albums with various line-ups, this is his first solo album since Open House, which was released in 1992. It contains twelve instrumental tracks, although there are actually something like twenty-five tunes contained within, since most of the tracks are medleys.’

Peter explored Polar Bear and Another World Away, a couple of early albums by multi-instrumentalist and singer songwriter Ben Walker. ‘Some of the subject matter and lyrics for his songs had me puzzled for a while, until I learned that Ben has worked as a psychiatric nurse and teaches a special-needs music class for adults with learning difficulties. Ben has drawn on his own life experiences and emotions, so then it all came into place.’

As our Coda, Gary offers up “Brobakken,” a new single by Norwegian folk rockers Gangar.