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A review by mafiabadgers
The Owl Service by Alan Garner
adventurous
challenging
dark
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Reread 07/2024
Back in my day (approximately two decades before I was born), people wrote YA myth retellings, not because it was a profitable genre, but because there was something wrong with them. Just look at C.S. Lewis.
I very strongly remember having this book read to us in class (Year 6) a chapter or two at a time, and being bored out of my mind—probably because it was read to us in class a chapter or two at a time. My mum remembers being told to read it over her Year 7 summer holidays by a teacher, and being underwhelmed. Winning too many awards can be a terrible thing to happen to a children's book. Though it should be noted that Garner has said that "I certainly have never written for children."
I love his prose—or lack thereof—because this book is an exercise in constantly working out what's going on from the dialogue, which sounds frustrating but kept me engaged and on my toes. It's a remarkable economy of language, show-don't-tell dialled up to eleven, and gives the whole book a real sense of discovery. And there's so many dividing lines amongst the characters: young/old, middle/working class, English/Welsh, intelligent/stupid (or perceived as, which amounts to the same thing), local/tourist, present in/haunting the story, all being played off against each other. 84% of StoryGraph reviewers said this book did not have diverse characters. I think that this does it a disservice. An owl disservice?
I was initially stymied by the ending, which seemed to be a complete cop out. It took me a good half hour of pacing to arrive at the conclusion that it'snot just Blodeuwedd who comes to realise that she's not owls, she's flowers: it's Alison, who has spent the whole book being torn between doing what her family wants, being the person she's expected to be (paralleled by Blodeuwedd's loveless marriage with Lleu Llaw Gyffes), and the 'infidelity' of being herself, and living the life she wants to live. 'The way to save the day is to be yourself' is an incredibly cheesy message, but mostly it becomes didactic when used without subtlety. This was oblique enough to work, and to work well, though I still think that Roger should have killed Gwyn and escaped without consequences because of his English Privilege, thereby starting another turn of the cycle.
Back in my day (approximately two decades before I was born), people wrote YA myth retellings, not because it was a profitable genre, but because there was something wrong with them. Just look at C.S. Lewis.
I very strongly remember having this book read to us in class (Year 6) a chapter or two at a time, and being bored out of my mind—probably because it was read to us in class a chapter or two at a time. My mum remembers being told to read it over her Year 7 summer holidays by a teacher, and being underwhelmed. Winning too many awards can be a terrible thing to happen to a children's book. Though it should be noted that Garner has said that "I certainly have never written for children."
I love his prose—or lack thereof—because this book is an exercise in constantly working out what's going on from the dialogue, which sounds frustrating but kept me engaged and on my toes. It's a remarkable economy of language, show-don't-tell dialled up to eleven, and gives the whole book a real sense of discovery. And there's so many dividing lines amongst the characters: young/old, middle/working class, English/Welsh, intelligent/stupid (or perceived as, which amounts to the same thing), local/tourist, present in/haunting the story, all being played off against each other. 84% of StoryGraph reviewers said this book did not have diverse characters. I think that this does it a disservice. An owl disservice?
I was initially stymied by the ending, which seemed to be a complete cop out. It took me a good half hour of pacing to arrive at the conclusion that it's