WolfHawke’s Reading List

So Weit die Füße Tragen
by Josef Martin Bauer
München, Germany: Franz Ehrenwirth Verlag KG. Im Bertelsman Lesering, 1957.

Synopsis: Arrested by the Russians at the conclusion of World War II, Clemens Forell is sentenced to the lead mines in Novosibirsk in eastern Siberia. Undimmed by the hardships of the train journey east through the frozen wastes, his will to survive and return home to southern Germany drives him to escape his Russian captors. Aided by a German doctor sent to the lead mines, Forell escapes his prison and starts a three-year trek south-westward to return home.

State of Fear
by Michael Crichton
New York: HarperCollins, 2005.

Synopsis: Philanthropist George Morton cares about the environment and will sacrifice any amount of money to save it — until he is alerted to the fact that NERF, the activist group he’s been funding, might be misusing his funds. And so, tailed by his assistant Sarah Jones and his attorney Peter Evans, he sets out to find out where the money has gone ... and stumbles onto a secret that costs him his life. Peter and Sarah find themselves following in Morton’s footsteps, aiding government agent John Kenner in thwarting the sinister plans of some very twisted environmentalists who seek to use modern technology to create natural disasters of horrific magnitude. And at the bottom of all of this is NERF’s pending law-suit against the United States government for causing global warming.

Evaluation: I’ve read quite a few of Michael Crichton’s novels in the past and I must admit that this is the one that I’ve like the best so far. And it doesn’t have to do with the fact that I’ve always been a little mistrustful of the environmentalist movement. That part of the story makes for a good yarn, but it’s the underlying facts that really make this book worth reading. Crichton documents everything that he alleges about the lack of global warming, the fact that sea levels aren’t rising, Antarctica is cooling rather than warming, glaciers are growing, etc. What struck me the most is a short passage in the book where a mad professor sits down with Peter Evans during the Conference for Abrupt Climate Change and discourses on how governments and other organizations use fear to control the populace and that most of the discussion on global warming and the deteriorating environment are simply a tool to keep us all scared and thus control us. This rings very true for me, as I realize that fear is one of Satan’s greatest tools against humanity. And the one thing that counteracts fear is faith. This book is worth buying, if just for that short passage. The rest is exciting, but it only leads up to this passage, which is arguably the reason for the title and the whole book itself.

Avalon
by Stephen R. Lawhead
New York: Avon Books, 1999.

Synopsis: In the near future the monarchy of Great Britain is on its knees, as the British Republic Party headed by Prime Minister Thomas Waring seeks to destroy the last vestiges of sovereignty from the Island of the Mighty. Then, when the last British king commits suicide, the tables are suddenly turned. Plucked from obscurity, Captain James Arthur Stuart suddenly finds himself the next King of Great Britain. Aided by the mysterious Embries, James begins a journey which leads him to realize that now king, he was once king before – the mightiest of all British kings, Arthur. Armed with this realization and the memory of Taliesin's Dream of the Kingdom of Summer, James sets out with the help of Embries to bring sovereignty back to Great Britain and inaugurate Avalon. But just as the forces of light are marshalling behind their champion, the forces of dark are gathering for battle, because not only has Myrddin Emrys returned, but so has Dread Morgian, the Queen of Air and Darkness. Thus begins the Battle for the Soul of Britain.

Evaluation: This is to my mind Lawhead's finest book, as he departs from his usual era of writing, the ancient past, and weaves a magnificent tale set in the near future. Actually last book of the Pendragon Cycle, Avalon picks up many of the characters from the original books and re-clothes them in modern guise. Arthur, Cai, Rhys, Gwenhwyvar and the mighty Myrddin Emrys all return in this epic book, and if you've read the Pendragon Cycle, you might end up speculating who of the supporting cast might be mirroring their predecessors. Lawhead not only brings a stunning conclusion to the Cycle, but also sets forth some very thought-provoking philosophy regarding kingship and the sovereignty of man and God on this planet. This is a must-read book.

The Pendragon Cycle
by Stephen R. Lawhead
Book 1: Taliesin (New York: Avon Books, 1987); Book 2: Merlin (New York: Avon Books, 1988); Book 3: Arthur (New York: Avon Books, 1989.); Book 4: Pendragon (New York: Avon Books, 1994); Book 5: Grail (New York: Avon Books: 1997).

The Pendragon Cycle is Stephen R. Lawhead's magnificent re-imagining of the Arthurian legends. Stripped of the moral mess in which these legends have wallowed for centuries and placed back into the post-Roman British-Celtic culture in which Arthur lived, the ancient tale soars to a new height.
     The story begins with Taliesin, in which Lawhead marries the legend of Atlantis with that of Britain's greatest Bard. Found by Elphin in a wier, Taliesin grows up in obscurity among the Cymry where he studies to be a bard under the patient tutelage of Hafgan. Meanwhile in the west Princess Charis watches as Atlantis collapses, first in chaos and war, then by sinking into the ocean. Charis and a few hundred survivors from Atlantis travel eastward to the Island of Prydain, where they are welcomed by the inhabitants and settle, becoming the fabled Fair Folk. But the Atlanteans are of a weak constitution and the Island begins to claim the lies of many.
     Taliesin and his tribe are forced from their homelands in what is modern-day Wales and travel south to the Summer Kingdom where Charis' father Avallach rules. There Taliesin meets Charis, the Lady of the Lake, and her half-sister Morgian. But much more importantly, he meets a Christian priest named Dafyd who teaches him about the One God and his son Jesu. Faced with the Truth, Taliesin must decide whether to accept it and Charis must decide whether or not to accept the love offered her by Taliesin, a love which will cut her off from her family for years.
     After the death of Taliesin and Charis' return to her father, the tale picks up in Merlin . The son of Taliesin and Charis, Myrddin is the Soul of Britain. Still-born, he is sung into life by his father, who soon after is assassinated. Merlin grows up, learning both to be bard and king. As a child he is stolen by the bhean sidhe to be a sacrificed, but then is raised as one of them, learning the secrets of the earth, of fire-gazing, and much more. Then, released to return to his family, Myrddin encounters Ganieda, the daughter of another Atlantean and his British wife. Their wedding and Myrddin's elevation to king of the Cymry makes all seem well, but the Saecsen are invading the island and they put an end to the dream as the Darkness truly begins to claim the Island of the Mighty. And Myrddin Emrys, the eternal Bard of Britain has locked himself away in the forest, mourning for his wife.
     Returned to civilization by a miracle, Myrddin takes up his task as Bard of Britain once more to find Vortigern on the throne, a cruel and ruthless man, whose only desire is to enrich himself. Myrddin then champions Aurelius ap Cornelius, elevating him to high king. Aurelius takes Ygerna as his wife, but then is slain in battle. His brother Uther is forced to take the throne, but is somewhat pleased as he's been in love with Ygerna for some time. Ygerna bears Uther Aurelius' child – Arthur. But upon Uther's death, the kingdom splits again and Myrddin must make a decision to accept the High Kingship or to save it for another.
     The third book, Arthur, chronicles the life of the most magnificent king Britain ever had. Arthur grows up under the tutelage of Myrddin Emrys and is able to draw the Sword of Britain from the stone into which Myrddin set it. With his steadfast friends Cai and Bedwyr by his side, Arthur becomes Dux Bellorum of Great Britain, the only title the petty kings will allow him. Gathering a band of mighty young warriors around him, Arthur begins the arduous task of uniting Great Britain and setting up the kingdom of summer. We are introduced to Arthurs Cymbrogi, or heart companions, Cai, Bedwyr, Gwalchavad, Llenlleawg, Rhys, Bors and Ban, Pelleas, Myrddin, and to the mighty queen Gwenhwyvar, Arthur's true love. All of the dark intrigue has been stripped away from the sunny character of Arthur, and while his demise at the hands of the son of Morgian, the Queen of Air and Darkness is inevitable, the tale rises to new heights. The true high point of Arthur is the Battle of Baedun Hill, where Arthur defeats the Saecsen and their allies once and for all. Pendragon tells the story of Arthur's war against the Vandali and Grail, told by Gwalchavad, tells of the quest to rescue the Grail from the hands of the hands of the faithless Llenlleawg and the evil Morgaws.
     To my mind the best book of the series is Merlin, as it is written in the most lyrical style and the character of Merlin, also known as Myrddin Emrys, comes most to the fore. The book that least fits the series is Grail and sometimes I wonder if Lawhead wrote it simply because his publisher wanted another book to add to the saga. All in all, this series takes Arthur back from the tales that have been entwined about him. Whether or not he was a real person, the key battles described in the series did happen and the Kingdom of Summer reigned for a time in the Island of the Mighty and we see its effects even today.

The Chronicles of Narnia
by C.S. Lewis
New York, NY: HarperTrophy, 1994. (Boxed Edition)

Order of publication: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (1950); Prince Caspian (1951); The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (1952); The Silver Chair (1953); The Horse and His Boy (1954); The Magician’s Nephew (1955); The Last Battle (1956).

Synopsis: The Chronicles of Narnia tell the story of the magical land of Narnia, where animals talk, trees walk, and the magical creatures of bygone eras live. The story begins with The Magician’s Nephew , in which the Great Lion Aslan, the Son of the Emperor Over the Sea, sings Narnia into existence. No sooner is the land created, than it is tainted by the arrival of evil, brought there by the boy Digory Kirke, who must then work to undo the evil. This evil is driven out, but returns to the land in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe in which the four Pevensie children, Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy get into the magical kingdom through a wardrobe and find themselves battling Jadis, the White Witch, alongside Aslan, who must make the ultimate sacrifice to save one of the four children. Triumphing over evil through the resurrected Aslan, Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy are crowned kings and queens of Narnia, during which time The Horse and His Boy is set. Shasta, the son of a Calormen fisherman escapes with the Narnian horse Bree, who has been in servitude in Calormene since he was a young foal. Together they join up with the Tarkheena Aravis and her talking horse Hwin and work to avert an invasion of Archenland and Narnia by the evil prince Rabadash.
     The next book in the series is Prince Caspian, which picks up the narrative of the land nearly a thousand Narnian years after the Pevensies have returned to their own world. Called back into Narnia by Susan’s magic horn, the four children must now aid the young Prince Caspian, king of the True Narnians, to take back the land from his evil uncle Miraz, the king of the Telmarines, who have conquered Narnia and driven the fairytale creatures into hiding. Then in The Voyage of the Dawntreader, Edmund and Lucy join Caspian, along with their cousin Eustace, on a quest to find seven lost lords of the Telmarines who were exiled by Miraz. The Silver Chair tells of Eustace and his friend Jill’s trip to Narnia to find Caspian's son Rillian who has been kidnapped by an evil witch who has stolen him away to an underground kingdom from where he will break forth to conquer Narnia. And the last book of the series, The Last Battle, tells of the fall of Narnia into darkness and how Aslan solves the issues of evil in that world once and for all.

Evaluation: In some sense I was trying to avoid reviewing these books, as I figured they were pretty well known, but after talking to some friends after the release of the movie version of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (which, by the way, is an excellent adaptation of that book), I realized that I should add them to my reading list. So here goes.
     Lewis’s series has been beloved by young and old ever since it was first published in the 1950s. The series is a great story for children, as it offers adventure, wonder, and magic, but it is also excellent for adults, as Lewis tackles some important spiritual truths and has very many witty asides and observations about human nature that most adults will find very humorous. Many people have tried to dismiss the spiritual side of the Chronicles, but that has been built into them on purpose. Lewis wrote the first one as a “suppositional” tale – suppose the Son of God came to a world populated by talking animals, what form would He take? Would He still sacrifice Himself for Adam’s sinful race? And the reappearance of Aslan throughout the series makes it more and more clear that he is truly meant to reflect what Jesus is like. And it’s clear that C.S. Lewis knew Jesus very well.
     My personal favorites in the series are The Horse and His Boy and The Last Battle. The former I like a lot because I’m a romantic at heart, and it's the only one in the series that has a nice romantic story (though Lewis’s confirmed bachelorhood shines through in his explanation of why two of the protagonists marry at the end). I’ve also always loved The Last Battle because of the last few chapters after Eustace, Jill, and Tirian pass through the stable door and find themselves in Lewis’s description of what heaven might be like. Just those last three chapters are worth all of the heart-break that has gone before.
     This is, to my mind, a series that every child should have read once and that every father should sit down and read with his kids – as my father did with my brother and me. And the fact that it has passed the test of time puts it in the category of the best books of all times.

The Chronicles of Brother Cadfael
by Ellis Peters

Chronological Order: A Rare Benedictine (New York: Mysterious Press, 1991), A Morbid Taste For Bones (New York: Mysterious Press, 1994), One Corpse Too Many (New York: Mysterious Press, 1994), Monks-Hood (New York: Mysterious Press, 1992), Saint Peter's Fair (New York: Mysterious Press, 1992), The Leper of Saint Giles (New York: Mysterious Press, 1995), The Virgin in the Ice (New York: Mysterious Press, 1995), The Sanctuary Sparrow (New York: Mysterious Press, 1995), The Devil's Novice (New York: Mysterious Press, 1997), Dead Man's Ransom (New York: Mysterious Press, 1997), The Pilgrim of Hate (New York: Mysterious Press, 1997), An Excellent Mystery (New York: Mysterious Press, 1997), The Raven in the Foregate (New York: Mysterious Press, 1997), The Rose Rent (New York: Mysterious Press, 1997), The Hermit of Eyton Forest (New York: Mysterious Press, 1989), The Confession of Brother Haluin (New York: Mysterious Press, 1989), The Heretic's Apprentice (New York: Mysterious Press, 1991), The Potter's Field (New York: Mysterious Press, 1991), The Summer of the Danes (New York: Mysterious Press, 1992), The Holy Thief (New York: Mysterious Press, 1994), Brother Cadfael's Penance (New York: Mysterious Press, 1996). Note: All editions listed here are reprints.

Synopsis: Set in Shropshire during the turbulent years of the war between King Stephen and the Empress Maud, Ellis Peters' (a pseudonym for Edith Pargeter) magnificent series tells the story of Cadfael, a Benedictine monk of Welsh extraction who is the herbalist of Shrewsbury Abbey of Saint Peter and Saint Paul. The twenty chronicles, which properly begin with A Morbid Taste For Bones, pit the wily former crusader against various mysteries, mostly involving murder. Cadfael solves these mysteries with a mixture of cunning and common sense and usually (though not always) the culprit is caught and brought to justice.

Evaluation: Being a history buff, I find the Chronicles of Brother Cadfael to be a magnificent series from the fact that Ellis Peters lets history be what it is. She tries not to be revisionist in her novels, but simply describes culture, thought processes, class consciousness, and faith and religion as they would have been in that time. She does seem to have something against hypocrites or against people who do not recognize the weakness of the human being though, but still pokes at the holier-than-thou crowd very gently to the point that even her most abrasive, self-righteous characters are enjoyable and even somewhat likable.
      I love these books both for their magnificent characters, such as Cadfael, Hugh and Aline Beringar, Abbot Radulfus, Sister Magdalen, and Brother Mark, as well as the philosophy and faith that Peters evidences. Being an Evangelical, I am sometimes just a bit miffed about the Roman Catholic emphasis on praying to saints, the attributing of God's miracles to saints, and such things, but I remind myself that this was part of the culture then and that even so God ends up getting the glory more often than not. One of Cadfael's favorite lines is, “God has the right to expect some help from fallible men now and again.” And I agree.
     For those who worry that such Mediaeval stories would suffer for the lack of strong women because male and female roles were more strictly defined than they are today, I would suggest reading any of the chronicles where Sister Magdalen or Aline Beringar show up, or focusing on The Rose Rent with the masterful Judith Vestier, The women here are not pushovers and more frequently than not they are the ones making the plays and at times even Brother Cadfael finds himself at a loss from the wiles of women. Not only does he respect them, he knows that there are times when he must put things into their hands to see them done, because he is unable to do so.
     The only complaint I have against the series is how the books are pretty repetitive with someone being accused of murder who couldn't possibly be at fault for it and Brother Cadfael doing everything he can to find the true murderer and clear the suspect. This gets old after about the fourth book in the series, but fortunately the side characters and the romances that pepper the novels here and there make up for the repetitiveness.
     The first-time reader should start the series from the beginning with Cadfael's turning from the crusade to the cloister in A Rare Benedictine, and then continue on with A Morbid Taste for Bones in order to Brother Cadfael's Penance. Because each book builds on the previous one, you'll find that it is to your benefit to read the entire series in order at least once.
     With so many books in the series, the reader will naturally pick his or her favorites. Mine are as follows:

1. The Pilgrim of Hate, for it's magnificent insights into the nature suffering, the fact that it can be transcended, and that God rewards those who suffer patiently in the most amazing of ways.
2. An Excellent Mystery, for an unusual marriage and the affirmation of what it truly means to be married and that this goes far beyond a mere living together and procreating.
3. The Rose Rent, for its beautiful love story and the fact that it is the good, upright man who triumphs at the end.
4. The Confession of Brother Haluin, for its careful treatment of forgiveness and its results in the life of one man.
5. Brother Cadfael's Penance, because of Cadfael's selfless and self-sacrificing quest to save his son.