Review
Joanne Harris has already proved her versatility with her books
for adults such as
Chocolat (1999),
Five Quarters of the Orange (2001),
Holy Fools (2004) and
Gentlemen and Players (2006); now she breaks new territory with a novel
for teens - and what a great read it is!
500 years after Ragnarok (the end of the world according to Norse mythology),
Maddy Smith lives a quiet life in a sleepy village a long way from the center of
power at World's End. So far away that even the Examiners of "The
Order" rarely visit; so while the "ruinmark" on Maddy's hand and her
inquisitive nature have caused
her to be set apart from the others in the village, who believe imagination to
be a sin, with some even mumbling "witch"
behind her back, at least she has been saved from the Cleansing which would
definitely have resulted...
Beyond the Book
Norse mythology
Norse mythology is the best preserved version of Germanic paganism,
sharing the same essential pantheon with Anglo-Saxon mythology. Both have
their roots in a hypothetical Indo-European mythology that is believed to be at
the root of most pre-Christian religions in Europe and India (including
Hinduism, Jainism and Zoroastrianism) because they all share significant
commonalities. For example, Zeus, Jupiter, Thor and Indra are all thunder-gods
and all are associated with the same day of the week - Thursday: English derives
Thursday from Thor, while the French
Jeudi and Italian
Goivedi
come from the Latin
Jovis (or
Iovis)
Dies meaning Jupiter
Day.
Norse mythology is a collection of believes, not...
