Asakiyume mita

24 more minutes of Wednesday, so this squeaks in ;-)

I really loved Aster Glenn Gray's World War II retelling of Gawain and the Green Knight. rachelmanija has a great review of it here, which I agree with 100 percent.

So rather than write a review, what I want to do here is call attention to some of the lines and phrases, that, for me, exemplify the wonderful voice AGG uses to tell the tale. It's beautiful language that's not *drenching* (sometimes beautiful language can be like a thunderstorm and leave your clothes heavy and wringing wet). Instead it's beautiful but light: think droplets on a spiderweb. And it's also strong: it does what it sets out to do, effectively.

Squadron leader Art, at the local where all the boys are drinking:

Like a clockwork figure he lifted [his pint] to his lips from time to time, but he did not drink, only sat with his face white and drawn.

The Green Man and Gawain are facing off:

The airmen bunched tighter around Gawain, their anger like a fog ...

There was a wrathful silence

After the Green Man has recovered from what should have been a fatal shot, the squad have to make space in their minds for what has just happened:

They had all seen the green man’s magic, and knew that it was true; yet they had not been raised to believe such things, and it went hard with them.

And then this longer passage which I loved for the graceful, economical way it deals with doing a good thing with an ulterior motive. Of course it would be Perceval who points out the problem with that:

As Gawain left the village he kept an eye out for a dog that might need a thorn removed from its paw, or a hare caught in a trap. But he saw nothing of the kind, and Percy surely would have pointed out that kindness done from conscious motive probably would not help him, anyway.

Here, lovely animals, and lovely interaction of Lord Bertilak with his horse:

The man spoke softly to the beast, with a tenderness in his voice that the horse answered in soft whickers. Gawain smiled, and tried not to drowse in the warmth that rose from the six cows, who regarded Gawain with thoughtful long-lashed eyes.

AGG's Lord and Lady Bertilak are wonderful characters, grand of stature and grand in their affection for each other and for Gawain, whom they call their little pilot--but the story must still play out. There's a library of mystery stories in the Bertilaks' tower, and Lord Bertilak and Gawain talk about them--about what constitutes justice for wrongdoing. “And justice has to be punishment?” Gawain asks. As well he might.

If you like the story of Gawain and the Green Knight, tales of the Round Table generally, or the lingering remains of the fairy realm in the modern world, you will love this retelling.