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letamcwilliams's review against another edition
3.0
The historical aspect was fun but the narrative wasn’t really there for me.
bfrodermann's review
dark
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.75
theladyjsays's review against another edition
3.0
This book was interesting and different but extremely depressing. Do not recommend if you are stuck at home in the middle of a global pandemic already feeling sad. But otherwise it is a lovely read.
kellian901's review against another edition
4.0
At the dawn of Ireland’s Christian era, a druid-turned-nun writes of faith, love, loss, and religion.
The book itself is rather short, but is written in a deceptively simple, enigmatic style. Oh, and is very clearly written with an agenda. Specifically, I think the author has had a negative experience with the Catholic Church, or with its representatives, in her past.
“I would live in a world full of Christ-like humans, but not one full of Christians.”
Through the fictional main character Gwynneve writing about her past, she depicts a small part of just how brutal the Dark Ages were, and how hypocritical the Church was.
“I think sometimes of His loneliness and of the way in which all time and all places converge in His suffering and weariness, and I want to weep for Him and the world.”
I am not up on my history, but this book has made me want to read more. Facts, or as close as I can get to them. (The period from the first century to the sixth is murky at best. If you have reading suggestions for me, please share!) What happened after the Apostles? How did Jesus’s teachings become so quickly twisted into the hierarchical, judgmental, greedy, fear-based, and barbarous “religion” that was spread across the world in his name?
I can’t say that I exactly loved this book, but it has given me a lot to think about and will stick with me for a while.
The book itself is rather short, but is written in a deceptively simple, enigmatic style. Oh, and is very clearly written with an agenda. Specifically, I think the author has had a negative experience with the Catholic Church, or with its representatives, in her past.
“I would live in a world full of Christ-like humans, but not one full of Christians.”
Through the fictional main character Gwynneve writing about her past, she depicts a small part of just how brutal the Dark Ages were, and how hypocritical the Church was.
“I think sometimes of His loneliness and of the way in which all time and all places converge in His suffering and weariness, and I want to weep for Him and the world.”
I am not up on my history, but this book has made me want to read more. Facts, or as close as I can get to them. (The period from the first century to the sixth is murky at best. If you have reading suggestions for me, please share!) What happened after the Apostles? How did Jesus’s teachings become so quickly twisted into the hierarchical, judgmental, greedy, fear-based, and barbarous “religion” that was spread across the world in his name?
I can’t say that I exactly loved this book, but it has given me a lot to think about and will stick with me for a while.
19paws's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoyed some parts of this, but it averaged out at about 2 1/2 stars for me.
The author uses her heroine—a semi-converted sixth century nun—to kind of hit the reader over the head with her own 21st century feminist and neo-pagan philosophy. The writing is often lyrical and enjoyable, but subtlety is definitely not Kate Horsley's strong point. In case you don’t get why pagans are good and Christians are bad, she sums it all up at the end with sixth century bullet points.
Still, there was much to like about this book and I’m glad I read it. It’s a pretty fascinating look at one person’s idea of what 6th century Irish life might have been like and also an interesting perspective on the overlap of Druid and Christian beliefs among new converts. Lots of quotable insights, too.
The author uses her heroine—a semi-converted sixth century nun—to kind of hit the reader over the head with her own 21st century feminist and neo-pagan philosophy. The writing is often lyrical and enjoyable, but subtlety is definitely not Kate Horsley's strong point. In case you don’t get why pagans are good and Christians are bad, she sums it all up at the end with sixth century bullet points.
Still, there was much to like about this book and I’m glad I read it. It’s a pretty fascinating look at one person’s idea of what 6th century Irish life might have been like and also an interesting perspective on the overlap of Druid and Christian beliefs among new converts. Lots of quotable insights, too.
shortsaga's review against another edition
3.0
a contrast/comparison of the druids and early Christians by a woman who has experienced both groups in power in her lifetime in 6th century Ireland
druids-God is found through pleasure and beauty, women have a say, a personal relationship with God is possible
early Christians-God is found through the denial of pleasure, women need guidance from men, priests are necessary middlemen to God
I appreciate that the narrator, Gwynneve, is weary of her own doubts and questioning.
I think this would have made more sense as an essay, but the author made it into a novel so people would actually read it.
druids-God is found through pleasure and beauty, women have a say, a personal relationship with God is possible
early Christians-God is found through the denial of pleasure, women need guidance from men, priests are necessary middlemen to God
I appreciate that the narrator, Gwynneve, is weary of her own doubts and questioning.
I think this would have made more sense as an essay, but the author made it into a novel so people would actually read it.
jackirenee's review against another edition
4.0
This book has been sitting on my tbr pile for a couple of years. A friend warned me that it was quite depressing, so I have put off reading this fictional account of an Irish Druidess turned Nun of Saint Brigit.
Once again I find myself wishing to go back and read historical accounts of our past. In this case, an account of Ireland just near the time of Saint Patrick and the conversion of the Irish to Christianity. I also wish to learn a bit more about the battle between the Pelagians and the Roman Catholic Church.
The account is presented well, although the writing is some times tedious (and you find yourself often wishing she would stop apologizing for being ignorant because Gwyneve is anything but). You also often find yourself wondering at her choices and wishing she had turned right when she had turned left. But Gwyneve is a brillant women during a time when women were rapidly watching their power and freedome be destroyed at the hands of foreigners and friends.
Ultimately, yes the book was depressing. However, it is a book worth reading. It illustrates well the confusion of those who had a new god introduced to their land and their desire to maintain what they believed with the safety of converting to the new religion.
Once again I find myself wishing to go back and read historical accounts of our past. In this case, an account of Ireland just near the time of Saint Patrick and the conversion of the Irish to Christianity. I also wish to learn a bit more about the battle between the Pelagians and the Roman Catholic Church.
The account is presented well, although the writing is some times tedious (and you find yourself often wishing she would stop apologizing for being ignorant because Gwyneve is anything but). You also often find yourself wondering at her choices and wishing she had turned right when she had turned left. But Gwyneve is a brillant women during a time when women were rapidly watching their power and freedome be destroyed at the hands of foreigners and friends.
Ultimately, yes the book was depressing. However, it is a book worth reading. It illustrates well the confusion of those who had a new god introduced to their land and their desire to maintain what they believed with the safety of converting to the new religion.
vavocado's review
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5