World Famous Comics: The Forgotten Beasts of Eld (Magic Carpet Books)
The Forgotten Beasts of Eld (Magic Carpet Books)
By: Patricia A. McKillip Publisher: Magic Carpet Books Average Rating: Binding: Paperback Label: Magic Carpet Books Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 352 Publication Date: January 01, 2006 Reading Level: Young Adult
Sixteen when a baby is brought to her to raise, Sybel has grown up on Eld Mountain. Her only playmates are the creatures of a fantastic menagerie called there by wizardry. Sybel has cared nothing for humans, until the baby awakens emotions previously unknown to her. And when Coren--the man who brought this child--returns, Sybel's world is again turned upside down.
Amazon.com Review: Almost destroyed because of a man's fear and greed, Sybel, a beautiful young sorceress, embarks on a quest for revenge that proves equally destructive. Winner of the World Fantasy award, this exquisitely written story has something for almost every reader: adventure, romance and a resonant mythology that reveals powerful truths about human nature. Locus praised it for its "marvelous heroine... and chilling sorcery" and The New York Times called it "rich and regal."
I've read a number of Patricia McKillip's books. Her writing is usually beautiful and very poetic.In The Forests Of Serre This - not so much. The plot and characters are interesting but the writing seems for a much younger level than what I'm used to from her. Still, I would defintely would recommend this book for any 'young adult' collection.
Good Book I had to read this for my english college course, and I'll admit it was a pretty interesting book. It has all the elements of a great fantasy novel like love, powers, sorcery, fear and hate. Relatively short read(finished in about 2 days), but still manages to tell a great story and provides an interesting look on elements of war through someone living in isolation with great powers. Overall, this is a good book for any fan of fantasy reading.
Verdict on the re-read: so-so I first read this book twenty-odd years ago; I can't recall much about my reaction to it then. I also couldn't recall too much about the plot prior to rereading, which may say something about the impression it made on me. I know I didn't go off looking for more Patricia McKillip to read afterwards. But I did keep the book, which indicates to me that I wasn't completely turned off by it.
Recently I came across it and decided to have another go (mainly because I couldn't remember a thing about it.) I believe my reaction now that I have reread it could be summed up in the current parlance as "Meh."
It isn't a big waste of time, being a quick read, and it has a certain charm to it. But it's talky and short on action, the characters are somewhat on the shallow side, certain crucial plot elements don't get developed very well, and the Tale-of-the-Ancient-Bard style sounds a little stilted after a while. Throw in a magical Boar who talks in riddles: "The Lord of Dorn ran three times around the doorless walls of the house of the Witch of Enyth, and then walked into the wall and it vanished like a dream." and the whole thing can start to sound a bit like a parody of itself.
In favor of the book, it centers on a powerful, if immature, female protagonist capable of taking care of herself. She grows in wisdom and ethics by the end, having learned something about herself, and something about the power of self-sacrificing love. It's clean enough to give to an older preteen with good reading skills; the seamiest moment in the whole book is when Mithran makes a pass at Sybel, and he isn't able to get past bodice-ripping and cleavage-nuzzling before Sybel zaps him. There's also little graphic violence, given the setting.
On the other hand, there's a two-dimensionality to most of the characters, and not just the secondary ones. Drede is just consumed with jealousy, suspicion, and fear; Sybel is just powerful, a little cocky, and a bit chilly; Coren is just profoundly in love with Sybel (and a wee bit vengeful, occasionally.) Maelga could have a darker side --on a couple of occasions it's mentioned that she's taken jobs more typical of Tony Soprano than Strega Nona-- but this is never explored and she's pretty much entirely a wise, maternal mentor to Sybel.
Considering the amount of intrigue that is generated in the course of the story, it would seem that there would be unprobed depths to these characters. Unfortunately, they remain largely unprobed. Why does the icy Sybel, who shuns the political machinations of ordinary humans, suddenly become so consumed by revenge as to insert herself right into the thick of them? Why does she give in to this so soon after breaking Coren of his thirst for revenge? Surely his claim against Drede is as legitimate as hers. Why is Drede so insecure that the presumed infidelity of one woman ultimately destroys his faith in almost everyone? Why the heck does Sybel, at the end, feel the need to let go not only of her revenge, but also all control of a looming disaster she has helped to launch? Couldn't she stick around to make sure the battle ends harmlessly, then release her animals? Doesn't she feel she owes that much to Tam and Coren? I can't say how I may have felt about Sybel's final abdication of power and responsibility at nineteen, but from the perspective of twenty-odd years more, I'm not inclined to go along quietly with the author's attempt to make a moral victory of it. Chalk it up to the Pottery Barn Rule.
I think many readers of fantasy, particularly those of the male variety, could find the book a disappointment. (I offered it to my eldest son, a certified fantasy geek, a few years ago. I don't think he made it past Chapter 2.) This book is too chatty by half, and too little of the chat is actually enhancing to what little plot or action there is. Some of it, at the end particularly, is downright confusing and leaves the reader wondering if the characters are exchanging information, or just talking past each other. Action is lacking, and usually brought up as an afterthought and secondhand. Pages are devoted to planning for a great battle; the battle itself is wrapped up without actual combat in a few paragraphs.
For a few hours' worth of light reading, this book beats a trashy romance novel. But if you're looking for a really good Norse epic, I'd stick with Tolkein or go all the way back to the source and find a good translation of the Eddas or Sagas or Beowulf.
Uninteresting...could not get into it BOOOOOORRRRRRIIIINNNNGGGGGGGGGG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I don't get it? Here's this girl who just randomly happens to have all these magical animals under her control?
I had to put this down within the first chapter. It was just horrid. Maybe I didn't give it a chance, but if I'm not at least semi-interested in the beginning, it doesn't have a chance to get any better.
The writing was confusing, I never knew who was speaking, a person or the magical creatures. There were too many creatures, I never knew what was what, and the main character was in no way likable.
Two thumbs down!
Never forgotten I read this book perhaps 30 years ago, fell in love with it and Patricia McKillip then, and I've just reordered it to see how it re-reads. Although it's fantasy fiction I actually learned a lot about self-awareness from The Forgotten Beasts of Eld. A beautiful book, wonderfully well written.
Anything Goes Trivia
Megaton Man
Tailipoe
Trevor
