What is my Daemon?

Scholastic, £16.99

   I recently picked up the audiobook version of Philip Pullman's 'His Dark Materials', and while I'm really enjoying revisiting the sprawling story of armoured bears, witches, plucky pre-teens, and other-world physics, what I'm finding myself thinking about most is the idea of each person having a 'daemon' - an animal companion which is an external manifestation of your soul and character, an inseparable part of yourself.

   A quick 'what's my daemon' Google search will reveal lots of online quizzes (basically personality tests of varying quality) designed to give you an answer to this question. Among the various results I got today were: otter, cat, hare, and owl.
   Unfortunately, in direct contradiction of my strictly scientific ideas of the non-anthropomorphisation of animal behaviours, these pronouncements tend to evoke certain very definitely human traits. Where do these ideas of animal characteristics arise? Probably some are due to simple animal behaviour, some certainly have folkloric origins, and some (of mine, anyway) are absolutely traceable to childrens' literature. 

old edition

   The image I have of the otter as a playful, active, and mischievous animal takes me back to Brian Jacques' wonderful 'Redwall' series of novels. Now, some of you will shiver with disgust at the thought of whole books full of talking, anthropomorphised mice, badgers, squirrels, hedgehogs, rats, weasels, and otters, but these are delightful stories of adventure, bravery, nobility, and the beauty of country life. The animals are quite stereotyped - all the badgers are brave and noble warrior kings and queens; the hedgehogs are friendly bumpkins speaking in West Country dialect; the otters are playful river gymnasts; the rats, weasels, stoats, and snakes are always baddies; the mice are the everyman - humble, vain, brave, shy, inquisitive, creative, clever, and helpful. Which type of otter would be nice to have as a companion? I like the sound of the African clawless otter, which is described as being exceptionally playful, enjoying mock fighting, mud-sliding, and noisy, yapping chases.
   My feelings about cats are well-known to my family at least - I am most definitely a cat rather than a dog person. While I've read novels with cats as the main characters ('Thomasina', by Paul Gallico; 'The Incredible Journey', by Sheila Burnford), I don't have any anthropomorphic view of them as I might of other animals. I think the reason is that we always had cats as pets while I was growing up, so my main impressions of them are from direct experience. I think a cat would probably be quite a good match as a daemon for me - somewhat solitary and cautious, but also whimsical (ever seen a snobby grown cat suddenly abandon everything to chase a spot of light around the room?). I'd like a lovely ginger tomcat as a daemon, please. 

Lion Hudson Plc, £10.99

   In many mythologies, hares are symbols of femininity and fertility, with the meat of the hare being prescribed for male sterility by Pliny the Elder. In Elizabeth Goudge's 'The Little White Horse', Serena the Hare (rescued from a trap and adopted by the main character Maria Merryweather) is an elegant, noble, intelligent, and graceful creature. 'Hares are clever and brave and loving, and they have fairy blood in them. It's a grand thing to have a hare for a friend.'
   And an owl. I've been keen on owls for a long time now, ever since I first read the amazing Alan Garner novel 'The Owl Service' many years ago. If you haven't read it, I would highly recommend that you do. A heady mix of mythology and mystery, its extraordinary atmosphere is one that you'll remember forever. The owl is a sinister presence in the story - feathers mysteriously appearing, sounds in the night, prints of claws in the dust, sabotage, and madness. And yet it has caused a fascination in me for these birds, which are simultaneously associated mythologically with  death and wisdom. If I was to have an owl for a daemon, I would definitely want a beautiful Barn Owl. This species is now unfortunately quite rare in Ireland, although I did once see one in the woods where I used to live, like a ghost swooping through the trees.
   What would it be like to have a constant companion, a talking animal which (who?) shared your deepest character traits. I remember dreaming once, years ago, of wandering through a city alone, with a leopard by my side. But that was purely an animal, a protector. A daemon would be a walking, flying, hopping mirror of yourself, a conscience sitting on your arm, an advisor whispering in your ear, a comfort in the dark.
   

  

Oh, the Words!

   How exciting it is to be reading a great book and to come across a word that's either completely new to you, or just one that is never really used widely. I love the casual display of intellect and inventiveness.

Pan Macmillan, £7.99

   'Kraken' was my introduction to the world of China Miéville. I only picked it up because I misread the blurb and thought it would be a straightforward thriller, so it was a nice surprise as a Fantasy reader to start coming across references to 'knacks' - the term used in this instance for supernatural talents. Fun! Though all of his books contain elements of this fun, this is arguably Miéville's most light-hearted work to date, apparently a treat he gave himself (he's a bit of a cephalopod geek) after the hard graft of more serious books. The language is casual, urban, full of slang, and just plain weird, in a wonderful way. 

   'He had mentioned the phenomenon to people, and though some had reacted with alarm, many told some anecdote about horripilation or twitches when they were under pressure, and Billy remained fairly sanguine.'

   '"Say Rubenesque or zaftig at your peril," Leon had said.'

   '"Shall we say a black cloud in water already black? There's a koan for you, Billy."'

  'What do you call that? Billy thought.That reconstitutive intelligence, berserker meme-splicing, seeing in nothings first patterns, then correspondence, then causality and dissident sense.'

   '"The Archi-bloody-teuthis, Billy Harrow, yes. The giant squid. That thing in the jar. That. That got took. And is been and gone. Are you really surprised someone might worship it?"'

   'Billy had another dream at last, that night. He had been feeling vaguely guilty at the lack of oneiric insights. But at last he had a dream worthy to be so called, rather than the vague sensations of cosseting dark, cool, glimmerings, heaviness, stasis and chemical stench that otherwise filled his nighttime head.'

   'All the way over them all, the cloud moved fast. It took shape. Church-sized clots of it evanesced, leaving - it was not a mistake - a lumpy anthropoid outline in night matter, a man shape crude as a mandrake root, a great cruciform figure over the city.'

   And finally, the best curse word I've ever seen: 'Fucksnot'. What more is there to say?   

The Girl who read a Gorgeous Fairytale in a Bed of her own Making

Constable & Robinson, £6.99

   Well, I have a confession to make. In a contradiction of the title of this post, the bed probably wasn't really made properly when I was lying in it reading this treat, but it didn't affect the experience at all, thankfully!

   This is the stunning 'The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making' by Catherynne M. Valente. The UK edition is published by Corsair (9781780338330), and they've done an amazing job of it. It's a beautiful book in large paperback format with great shaded drawings at the start of each chapter. 

   I had discovered the buzz about this book online quite a few months ago, and was about to order it from the US when I saw that it was being released for the UK market in June. Even knowing that fact, I was so tempted to buy it when I saw it in bookshops in Florida on my holidays in May just because the US edition is so gorgeous as well.  

   Well, I was very patient and waited until the book arrived in the bookshop where I work before nabbing a copy. Reading it, I was constantly struck by the smooth, really flowing style. It seemed to me that the author had (although this was obviously not the case) written the book, drafts and edits and tweaks and all, entirely in her head before committing it to paper. 
   This is the story of a girl called September who is whisked away (without even a wave goodbye, as children so often are a bit heartless, apparently!) by the Green Wind from her parents' home in Omaha to Fairyland. She is quickly informed of some of the laws of Fairyland - no iron of any kind; the practice of alchemy forbidden to all except young ladies born on Tuesdays; air locomotion permitted only by leopard or licensed Ragwort stalk; all traffic travels widdershins; all changelings must wear identifying footwear. 
   In the course of her fabulous adventures, September travels with a wyverary (a dragon whose father was a library) called A-Through-L, loses her shadow, rescues a blue djinn boy called Saturday, and encounters her Death. A friendly golem scrubs clean her courage (and her elbows), telling her: 'When you are born, your courage is new and clean. You are brave enough for anything: crawling off of staircases, saying your first words without fearing that someone will think you are foolish, putting strange things into your mouth. But as you get older, your courage attracts gunk and crusty things and dirt and fear and knowing how bad things can get and what pain feels like. So most people go around with grimy machinery, when all it would take is a bit of spit and polish to make them paladins once more, bold knights and true.'
   I have to really highly recommend this book to anyone who loves a good story, from eight to eighty. It's fresh and new, bright and sweet.

  

Reluctant Reading

Vintage, £7.99

   I'm sure I'm not the only one who has, after having put it off for far too long, finally started a book I've been meaning to read (and dreading reading) for ages, and to have found myself really enjoying it. In this case, it was my Book Club's choice a few months ago - 'The Beginner's Goodbye' by Anne Tyler. While it isn't my usual genre (I tend towards fantasy and science fiction), in this case I was really rewarded for leaning out of my comfort zone.

   I felt strongly at the time (and said so in the subsequent meeting) that, in order to get the most out of this book, you would need to be in the unfortunate position of having lost someone you loved very much. There's something here for everyone, but most for that small subset of us. 

   A particular quote was frighteningly apt. After my brother died a few years ago, I did shortly afterwards have a dream in which he was present. In the dream, I remember vividly being aware that he shouldn't have been there, but knew that to call attention to the fact would be to ruin the whole thing. The book says:

   'You would hold your breath. You would keep as still as possible. You would will your loved one not to go away again.'

   Lots of other sentences or passages were very familiar, or so opposite to my experience that they were quite revelatory:

   'I opened every sympathy note and read it with the utmost care, because there was always the chance that somebody would give me an unexpected glimpse of my wife.' - I read all the cards avidly. I don't think this was particularly the reason...

   'It was a good thing I had a job to go to. My job was my salvation.'  - For the character, Aaron, this means straight away afterwards. While I did feel like this, it took a while.

   'I wished I did have pain. I hated my body. I hated sitting there like a dummy while stronger, abler men fought to rescue my wife.'

   'I made no attempt to discard things. Not yet.' - This is probably more what my mother was feeling than me, but I don't think I've ever got rid of anything.

   'I had a huge, thick biography of Harry Truman that I'd begun before the accident. But I couldn't seem to make much headway in it. "Reading is the first to go", my mother used to say, meaning that it was a luxury the brain dispensed with under duress.' - This inability to read was, thankfully, not something I experienced. But it does also seem appropriate.

   'That was one of the worst things about losing your wife, I found: your wife is the very person you want to discuss it all with.'

   'She would be the warmth behind me in the checkout line; she's be the outline on my right as I was crossing the parking lot.' - Beautiful. And I did have a similar experience once, which is a strange feeling for an atheist.

   'And that was how I discovered the pleasures of watching a lawn being watered.' - I really love this, and I think it's great to take such pleasure in small things, whimsical things.

   '...I think if you knew them well enough, if you'd listened to them closely enough while they were still alive, you might be able to imagine what they would tell you even now. So the smart thing to do is, pay attention while they're living.' - Well, of course, that's the clincher. I think this is the explanation for a lot of things. 

   Anyway, whatever your usual inclination, I would strongly recommend this book. It's small but perfectly formed, and should hit a lot of familiar notes with people. How did Anne Tyler get it so right?

Kilkenny Goodies

   I picked up a few gems in Kilkenny yesterday in the excellent Book Centre at the top of High Street (http://www.thebookcentre.ie/). I can easily accept that I'm biased in my judgement (I did work there for three years!), but I always manage to find something new and exciting every time I'm there. Buyer for the company, John Cotter, has always managed to keep his finger very much on the pulse of trends in the industry, and their relatively small size is no hindrance to range.

   The two delights I picked up were: 'Monsters: A Bestiary of the Bizarre' by Christopher Dell (9780500238769) and the Fantasy Art Journal (9781908150515). 

   'Monsters' is a lavish hardback from Thames & Hudson, originally published in 2010. The lime and chocolate-coloured non dust-jacketed cover is decorated (as is the entire volume) with copies of classical engravings, etchings, paintings, and artifacts depicting... you guessed it... monsters. Here be titans, golems, dragons, kelpies, sirens, werewolves, ghosts, demons, and shape-shifters. This bestiary in the classical tradition elucidates the history and mythology of each breed, and there are about three pages of text to every twelve of amazing (and horrifying) imagery from Bosch, Bruegel, Goya, and Durer, as well as more rarefied sources such as a c. 604-561 B.C. terracotta relief from the Ishtar Gate of Babylon and a late 18th century German witch's spellbook. Fans of classical mythology, fantasy writing, and plain old horror will find lots to pore over here, and all for the very reasonable price of £12.95! Anyone familiar with the fascination of vampires, werewolves, devils, and mutants will find a lot to enjoy in this volume.

   The Fantasy Art Journal is a beautiful notebook containing a combination of plain, lined, and grid pages, released in 2012 by Ilex Press. Each spread contains quotes from classic fantasy novels or series such as His Dark Materials, A Song of Ice and Fire, The Lord of the Rings, Beowulf, and iconic authors such as Ursula LeGuin, Patrick Rothfuss, Terry Pratchett, C.S. Lewis, and Neil Gaiman. The series also includes a Vampire Journal and a retro romance Lovelorn Journal. I can't wait to write ideas and plans in mine!

   'People want to forget the impossible. It makes their world safer.' The Graveyard Book, Neil Gaiman.

   'The hunger of a dragon is slow to wake, but hard to sate.' A Wizard of Earthsea, Ursula LeGuin. 

David Attenborough - Natural History Hero

When it comes to natural history heroes, they don't come more iconic than David Attenborough. His autobiography, 'Life on Air' should probably be required reading in schools, giving such an insight as it does into his lifelong passion for animals, plants, wild nature in all its glory, and the culture of indigeneous populations from all over the world.

Attenborough's background in BBC programming provides fascinating insight into the beginnings of that institution. When he started out in 1952, his position in the Talks Department involved organising any non-fiction programming. Attenborough recounts the story of trying to get hold of a particular Irish traveller-woman - who was a famous fiddler - for a series on folk music. He is told that the only way to get hold of her, as she had no fixed address, was to send a telegram to Garda stations all along the west coast, leaving the message that the next time she was picked up for being drunk and disorderly, she should be informed that there was a ticket to London there for her if she would be prepared to perform on television.

His first series of zoological programmes, 'Zoo Quest', introduced viewers to the thrills of seeing animals perform unique and amazing behaviours in the wilds of Africa, South America, Indonesia, and Australia. These first expeditions seem perfect examples of a flying-by-the-seat-of-your-pants type of exploring which gave way to a bit more organisation as more and more were undertaken. His programmes were among the first to show many spectacular species in the wild, such as Komodo dragons and Birds of Paradise. Attenborough's enthusiasm is never more apparent than when he is remembering the journeys and landscapes of his adventures.

A 1950s trip to Paraguay involved a meeting with his naturalist contemporary, Gerald Durrell. A recent reading of Durrell's fascinating 1970s commentary on the meaning and purpose of zoos in modern society, 'The Stationary Ark', was illuminating. While zoos have undoubtedly come a long way since that time, it is a testament to his vision that he proposes here the modern view of a zoo as a place both of education and for the conservation and captive breeding of endangered species. His trademark levity and wit is evident even in a more serious treatise of this sort, as opposed to his classic memoirs.

Attenborough's present status as a British 'national treasure' is clearly well-deserved. His ability to engage an audience with the natural world and its inhabitants is unparalleled, on the page as much as on the screen. His involvement in the development of natural history programming has resulted in some of the television classics of the modern era such as Planet Earth, one of the fastest selling non-fiction DVDs of all time. His legacy will be generations of people engaged in and enthusiastic about the world around them and its conservation.

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