mike_brough's review against another edition
4.0
This is going to take a lot of re-reading to get anywhere near its meaning. I suspect I'll have to go back to the first two books in the trilogy and trace things through. But that will be a pleasure.
richard_farley1976's review against another edition
2.0
Confusing, self indulgent and not an end to a trilogy. Very disappointing. Weird experimental writing.
paracyclops's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Boneland is the sequel to two children's fantasies, 'The Weirdstone of Brisingamen', and 'The Moon of Gomrath', that were formative in my introduction to literature in general, and to the genre of fantasy in general. I was keen to see what Alan Garner would do with his setting in a book for adults, and I certainly enjoyed the echoes of that world that can be heard in this book—the sleeping warriors beneath the stone, the ineluctable contusion of past and present… One of the protagonists of those earlier books is the grown-up protagonist of this one, an autistic astronomer in his sixties, struggling to recover or avoid the memories of his youthful adventures. His journey is paralleled by that of an unnamed Mesolithic shaman, trying to mystically transmit his cultural inheritance to future generations. These two characters are linked by an ancient stone axe, buried and recovered at the axis of the radio telescope where the later one conducts his research. The denouement of these two stories is beautifully ambiguous, richly symbolic—a compelling poem of place and experience. However, almost every element of the contemporary narrative fails to convince. The main character's autism is represented in a heavy-handed and simplistic manner. His professional life is depicted in apparent ignorance of the procedures and conventions of scientific research—surprisingly, as Garner has said he prefers the company of scientists to that of writers. The dialogue is wooden, and curiously archaic, cleaving to idioms and social niceties that were sixty years out of date at the time the book is set (around 2010). The characters give little indication that they have any life or complexity beyond the surface that they show to the narrative. I've heard this book described as 'experimental', and it certainly doesn't hold the reader's hand, but all of those structural and creative elements are well-crafted—and much of the language is extremely beautiful. Where it falls down is in the basic technique of novel-writing. I'm afraid that Garner isn't that interested in the ways that other people think and talk, and as one of those other people, I felt as though he'd forgotten how to tell me a story.
lordenglishssbm's review against another edition
3.0
There's something intriguing and beautiful about this book, even at a conceptual level. Garner wrote the last book in the series back in the 60s, and returned to the world 50 years later for a follow-up. The last book was written for children, while this one is written for adults.
It's a book about growing up. About how childhood is lost to adulthood, and how our memories of the time are recontextualized by who we are. About coming to terms with a past we can't quite understand. It is what The Magicians aspires to be, and it does it all in a relatively small number of pages. It is a bit repetitive, but that can be forgiven since it follows a man unable to move on from a thing which may or may not have happened to him. It was an appropriate choice to make it repetitive, and the story never unfolds too slowly or too quickly.
Garner's prose has not lost its edge, but the pity is that even now his characters still hew too closely to archetypes for their own good. They develop and interact, but aside from some remarkable bits of dialogue are never truly surprising. It's remarkable that he can take these ideas as far as he has, but I wish he had strengthened his fundamentals a bit more.
It's a bit stunning to see an old middle-grade book series end like this one, and I would not have done it, but it's a testament to Garner's skill that this somehow it feels right.
It's a book about growing up. About how childhood is lost to adulthood, and how our memories of the time are recontextualized by who we are. About coming to terms with a past we can't quite understand. It is what The Magicians aspires to be, and it does it all in a relatively small number of pages. It is a bit repetitive, but that can be forgiven since it follows a man unable to move on from a thing which may or may not have happened to him. It was an appropriate choice to make it repetitive, and the story never unfolds too slowly or too quickly.
Garner's prose has not lost its edge, but the pity is that even now his characters still hew too closely to archetypes for their own good. They develop and interact, but aside from some remarkable bits of dialogue are never truly surprising. It's remarkable that he can take these ideas as far as he has, but I wish he had strengthened his fundamentals a bit more.
It's a bit stunning to see an old middle-grade book series end like this one, and I would not have done it, but it's a testament to Garner's skill that this somehow it feels right.
nicktomjoe's review against another edition
5.0
I did write "I can't rate this book yet. I've now read it twice and really need to digest this complex meditation on time, landscape and religion." I'm still not sure I can really do it justice with a review or reduce it to star rating. Probably this and allied blog posts http://nicktomjoe.brookesblogs.net/2016/12/07/return-to/ are the nearest I can get to its complex and scholarly narrative.
angus_murchie's review against another edition
5.0
Brilliant, mind bending and frustrating in equal measures. Requires a third reading at least - but I won’t wait 10 years this time.
It’s almost 50 years since I first read Elidor and The Owl Service, 40 since Weirdstone and Gomrath and 10 since I read all Alan Garner’s other books. I don’t think I understood Boneland at all when I first read it, then work got in the way of a reread - and also it absolutely wasn’t the book I dearly wanted it to be back then.
Last week my local Other Worlds Book Club was looking for suggestions for books and I put forward the four named books above because more people deserve to read and fall in love with those stories - everyone else in the club is too young for these to have been popular when they were children. That made me think I really should re-read Boneland. I’ve just finished it again and until Meg, Bert and Fey all disappeared from reality I thought I’d got it this time.
Now I feel like I have to go back and re- read the lot again, including Strandloper for the shaman writing, to try to properly process this. Hopefully I’ll make more sense of Red Shift this time too - but maybe my intrinsic thinking is just too linear to really grasp it all. Emotionally, I love the idea of Old Magic and a fundamental connection between the landscape, ancient legends, life today and recurring time-twisting themes. Logically I think it’s nonsense, and that gives me a sense of loss.
Maybe I’ll never get it - but at least these books have inspired 30 years of fantastic holidays at Avebury/Silbury Hill and all across the Peak District. Colin ran a hell of a long way along the Old Straight Track!
It’s almost 50 years since I first read Elidor and The Owl Service, 40 since Weirdstone and Gomrath and 10 since I read all Alan Garner’s other books. I don’t think I understood Boneland at all when I first read it, then work got in the way of a reread - and also it absolutely wasn’t the book I dearly wanted it to be back then.
Last week my local Other Worlds Book Club was looking for suggestions for books and I put forward the four named books above because more people deserve to read and fall in love with those stories - everyone else in the club is too young for these to have been popular when they were children. That made me think I really should re-read Boneland. I’ve just finished it again and until Meg, Bert and Fey all disappeared from reality I thought I’d got it this time.
Now I feel like I have to go back and re- read the lot again, including Strandloper for the shaman writing, to try to properly process this. Hopefully I’ll make more sense of Red Shift this time too - but maybe my intrinsic thinking is just too linear to really grasp it all. Emotionally, I love the idea of Old Magic and a fundamental connection between the landscape, ancient legends, life today and recurring time-twisting themes. Logically I think it’s nonsense, and that gives me a sense of loss.
Maybe I’ll never get it - but at least these books have inspired 30 years of fantastic holidays at Avebury/Silbury Hill and all across the Peak District. Colin ran a hell of a long way along the Old Straight Track!
hillersg7's review against another edition
4.0
A mysterious and gripping read, beautiful, poetic. I didn't understand it, but am enjoying allowing the story and questions to stay with me. Some great quotes, eg: "I'm for uncertainty. As soon as you think you know, you're done for. You don't listen and you can't hear. If you're certain of anything, you shut the door on the possibility of revelation, of discovery."
ohnoflora's review against another edition
5.0
Oct 2012 - I read this book in three days flat and am still processing it. It is everything that I love: place, myth, the interconnectedness of things, growing up. At one point Colin says, "it's not so much deep space that concerns me as deep place" and that seems as good enough a description of this book as any.
May 2013 - I just re-read this book and part of me wants to turn back to the start and begin all over again. It is heartbreaking, it's scary, it's funny and rich and truthful. There is so much packed into it - so many strands to follow. After reading Simon Armitage's translation of Gawain and the Green Knight (with facing original text) I found so many more allusions than I had seen the first time round - whole phrases lifted from it (pearl to a white pea, the description of hills with hats of mist, "I'm the governor of this gang") or ideas taken from it (Colin's scar on his neck that he associates with shame, his green and gold hood, the order of animals the prehistoric man hunts (deer then boar then fox), Meg lopping holly). I can't explain what this book is to me - it feels real - it is a true story.
May 2013 - I just re-read this book and part of me wants to turn back to the start and begin all over again. It is heartbreaking, it's scary, it's funny and rich and truthful. There is so much packed into it - so many strands to follow. After reading Simon Armitage's translation of Gawain and the Green Knight (with facing original text) I found so many more allusions than I had seen the first time round - whole phrases lifted from it (pearl to a white pea, the description of hills with hats of mist, "I'm the governor of this gang") or ideas taken from it (Colin's scar on his neck that he associates with shame, his green and gold hood, the order of animals the prehistoric man hunts (deer then boar then fox), Meg lopping holly). I can't explain what this book is to me - it feels real - it is a true story.
stewart_monckton's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
4.5
lyndiane's review against another edition
2.0
Oh...dear!
Having read and immensely enjoyed Weirdstone and Gomrath, my anticipation of greatness between the covers of this novel was immense. Alas, what a let-down. So different was this story in focus and writing style, I found it difficult to believe that it was linked to the series at all.
From the beginning, the story was almost incomprehensible, with mind-boggling technobabble about astroscience and telescopic settings (I have my own telescope so am not clueless about astronomy) in the same sentence as references to an unnamed dead woman and child. In desperation, I found myself scanning the pages to try and make sense of this novel. Other than realising that the now-adult Colin is seriously unhinged, there are multiple references to a taxi driver and a woman psychiatrist who both may or may not exist (a bit along the lines of "I am the Cheese"), there is no mention at all of Susan. The bit of 'heartbrokenness' that is manifested at the end left me totally unmoved.
Unless you are into long-winded psychiatric diatribes, perhaps you should skip reading this novel
Having read and immensely enjoyed Weirdstone and Gomrath, my anticipation of greatness between the covers of this novel was immense. Alas, what a let-down. So different was this story in focus and writing style, I found it difficult to believe that it was linked to the series at all.
From the beginning, the story was almost incomprehensible, with mind-boggling technobabble about astroscience and telescopic settings (I have my own telescope so am not clueless about astronomy) in the same sentence as references to an unnamed dead woman and child. In desperation, I found myself scanning the pages to try and make sense of this novel. Other than realising that the now-adult Colin is seriously unhinged, there are multiple references to a taxi driver and a woman psychiatrist who both may or may not exist (a bit along the lines of "I am the Cheese"), there is no mention at all of Susan. The bit of 'heartbrokenness' that is manifested at the end left me totally unmoved.
Unless you are into long-winded psychiatric diatribes, perhaps you should skip reading this novel