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archergal's review against another edition
4.0
This was a challenging read in more ways than one.
The language the book was written in was a bit of a challenge. I did spend a good part of one evening's reading in reading aloud to myself. That really helped me get used to the words and to pull the meaning out. It definitely gets easier as you go along and you get more used to the writing.
I've seen this described as a post-apocalyptic novel. The apocalypse, in this case, was the Norman invasion/conquest of England in 1066. We follow the story of Buccmaster of Holland, whose world was absolutely shattered by the invaders. We come to learn that Buccmaster, however, was pretty broken himself long before the French came. He sees himself as one of the last of the true men of England.
Unfortunately, as we come to see, his self-assessment may not be quite accurate.
It's a sad, rather brutal story. It's not gory, just harsh and unflinching. And very well done.
The language the book was written in was a bit of a challenge. I did spend a good part of one evening's reading in reading aloud to myself. That really helped me get used to the words and to pull the meaning out. It definitely gets easier as you go along and you get more used to the writing.
I've seen this described as a post-apocalyptic novel. The apocalypse, in this case, was the Norman invasion/conquest of England in 1066. We follow the story of Buccmaster of Holland, whose world was absolutely shattered by the invaders. We come to learn that Buccmaster, however, was pretty broken himself long before the French came. He sees himself as one of the last of the true men of England.
Unfortunately, as we come to see, his self-assessment may not be quite accurate.
It's a sad, rather brutal story. It's not gory, just harsh and unflinching. And very well done.
stellarya's review against another edition
The description of The Wake sounds so interesting! I did read the part about it being written in modified Old English, so that didn't surprise me. However, after a few pages, I realized that it's just not what I'm looking for in my leisure reading. I'm excited that an author would choose to play with language in this way, and I'm glad that the book found an enthusiastic audience, even though I can't count myself as a member of it.
messbauer's review against another edition
5.0
It definitely takes a little effort to click with the faux Old English used by Kingsnorth, but it's worth sticking with it. The use of what is essentially a created dialect is a really novel way to create a unique sense of place and time, and it works well here. Buccmaster's tale is so epic in his own mind, and the reader's understanding of its smallness creates a profound degree of empathy for a man who is not entirely sympathetic.
yulannu's review against another edition
4.0
If I were to judge this book only by its prose and language then this would be the best historical fiction I have ever read. The hybrid of old and modern English that mr. Kingsnorth devised to make the story sound "triewe" was a great bonus and in no way a hindrance. English is my second language and after few pages of getting used to this hybrid, it became easy to read and I would have it no other way. The story is told by Buccmaster of Holland. At first he comes off as strong and introspective; however, he strangely devolves into a petty, cowardly creature until finally we see him for what he is - a madman. If this transition was happening through longer period of time it would perhaps work but this happens in a span of 2 years. It was not the Buccmaster who filled my heart with yearning and sadness for the dying magic of his fens, lakes and forests. Such deep love for the earth and its magic couldn't come from a cowardly heart, it came from mr. Kingsnorth and perhaps it was the great smith Weland who wove such spell over me:)
dansumption's review against another edition
5.0
This is an extraordinary novel, one which will live in my bones for a very long time.
The Old English-style language in which it is written is, of course, the first thing you notice. Initially you suspect that this "shadow tongue" may be a piece of trompe-l'œil, clever, eye-catching, but obscuring a lack of real depth to the story. Gradually though, as events spiral out from the fenland home of its protagonist buccmaster of holland, the tale gets its claws into you, the characters become terrifyingly real, and the suspense builds towards an inevitable tragic ending of an England ruled by the French.
The language makes reading the book relatively hard work - more difficult than books like Riddley Walker or Vernon God Little simply because some of the words are not "soundalikes", so you will need to refer frequently to the glossary to decipher terms like fugol (bird), cenep (moustache), whit (animal) and wyrd (herb). But gradually these terms too become familiar, and you find yourself increasingly inhabiting both the landscape and the mindscape of the "angland" of 1000 years ago.
The Old English-style language in which it is written is, of course, the first thing you notice. Initially you suspect that this "shadow tongue" may be a piece of trompe-l'œil, clever, eye-catching, but obscuring a lack of real depth to the story. Gradually though, as events spiral out from the fenland home of its protagonist buccmaster of holland, the tale gets its claws into you, the characters become terrifyingly real, and the suspense builds towards an inevitable tragic ending of an England ruled by the French.
The language makes reading the book relatively hard work - more difficult than books like Riddley Walker or Vernon God Little simply because some of the words are not "soundalikes", so you will need to refer frequently to the glossary to decipher terms like fugol (bird), cenep (moustache), whit (animal) and wyrd (herb). But gradually these terms too become familiar, and you find yourself increasingly inhabiting both the landscape and the mindscape of the "angland" of 1000 years ago.
themadhatton's review against another edition
3.0
The rating may be a bit harsh! I must admit the main pull about this book for me once I started reading was the language. I became so absorbed in it that I lost track of the plot, however I will definitely re-read it in order to get a fuller sense of the narrative. Great writing though, I absolutely loved the language - even if the grammar was non-existent!
mattburris's review against another edition
4.0
That was really something. Not the easiest book ever but it really takes you somewhere. Worth the trouble.
nonsenselliot's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
drewsof's review against another edition
5.0
What a fascinating, sometimes infuriating, absolutely unique novel.
Written, as you've likely heard, in a 'ghost language' iteration of Olde English -- Kingsnorth's best attempt at capturing the sound and pace of language from 1066 -- and depicting a period of two years around the outset of the Norman invasion of England, it follows one man's journey at the ending of his world. This is an apocalypse novel, as bleak as THE ROAD, and it is a novel of madness like AMERICAN PSYCHO or anything by Shirley Jackson. It is incredibly dense and deserves to be read under your breath if not aloud, in order to better grapple with the language.
And then something amazing happens, something I equate to learning Shakespeare or learning a foreign language: it starts to click. You start to find it easier going, linguistically, even if the novel itself remains stubborn and dense.
I would've given this a thousand stars were it maybe 75 pages shorter -- but fuccan hell, I'll give it five for being what it was. I've never read anything like this, and I can't imagine I will ever again. I'm so curious to see what the rest of the Buccmaster trilogy looks like...
Written, as you've likely heard, in a 'ghost language' iteration of Olde English -- Kingsnorth's best attempt at capturing the sound and pace of language from 1066 -- and depicting a period of two years around the outset of the Norman invasion of England, it follows one man's journey at the ending of his world. This is an apocalypse novel, as bleak as THE ROAD, and it is a novel of madness like AMERICAN PSYCHO or anything by Shirley Jackson. It is incredibly dense and deserves to be read under your breath if not aloud, in order to better grapple with the language.
And then something amazing happens, something I equate to learning Shakespeare or learning a foreign language: it starts to click. You start to find it easier going, linguistically, even if the novel itself remains stubborn and dense.
I would've given this a thousand stars were it maybe 75 pages shorter -- but fuccan hell, I'll give it five for being what it was. I've never read anything like this, and I can't imagine I will ever again. I'm so curious to see what the rest of the Buccmaster trilogy looks like...