Runemarks

infobox Book |
name = Runemarks


image_caption = First edition cover
author = Joanne Harris
illustrator =
cover_artist =
country = United Kingdom
language = English
series =
genre = Children's fantasy novel
publisher = Doubleday
pub_date = August 2, 2007
pages = 500 pp
isbn = ISBN 978-0385611305
preceded_by =
followed_by =

"Runemarks" is a children's fantasy novel by Joanne Harris, first published in 2007. In it Odin, Loki, Thor and the other Norse gods come to life.

Description

Maddy, the central character in the novel is a bit of a loner. She was born with a rust-coloured runemark on her hand, which sets her apart from the other villagers. Animals born with runemarks are normally regarded as deformed and are routinely slaughtered. Maddy, being human, was spared, but is widely regarded with suspicion by the other villagers. Set in a post-Ragnarok world in which the Norse Gods have been stamped out of the history by the Order, an austere, puritanical regime, all mention of magic and the old legends is banned. The story begins with Maddy, now a teenager, working as a drudge in the local inn, discovering that goblins have got into the cellar again. Despite the fact that magic has been banned, the villagers occasionally find Maddy's latent magical ability useful, and dispensing with marauding goblins is one of those uses.

From this opening scene, the author leads the reader through a sequence of flash-backs, which illustrate Maddy's childhood, largely unhappy, until she met an old traveller, known as One-Eye (a much weakened Odin), who starts to teach her about the Runes, their meaning and their power. At the same time, he tells Maddy - and therefore the reader - some of the main Old Norse legends and the main characters, the Vanir and the Aesir and the events leading up to the battle of Ragnarok.

Once the background is established, Odin then embroils Maddy in a quest to find and ancient treasure which is buried deep beneath the local hill, Red Horse Hill, which is suspected locally to be the source of the marauding goblins. Together they open the sealed entrance hidden beneath the ancient hill carving of a running horse and start the adventure which will lead to encounters with many of the most famous Norse Gods (such as Loki, Thor, Skadi, Mimir, Frigg, Hel) and then to a confrontation with the Order and a new final battle between the forces of Order and Chaos.

In some ways the book reads like a classic fantasy quest, battle of good against evil, with a teenage heroine and a "race against time" to save the world - which Maddy and her allies do. However, the setting of the Norse legends is not often used for children's and YA fantasy and the way in which the author has attempted to capture the character of the squabbling between the gods and other characters such as the goblins introduces a strong strand of humour [cite web |url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/children/article2307684.ece |title=Runemarks by Joanne Harris: Children's book of the week |accessdate=2008-09-07 |date=2007-08-26 |publisher="The Sunday Times"] .

Background

Joanne Harris loved reading the Norse legends as a child. She says that she found them more attractive than the Greeks and the Romans, "funnier,more human and hugely more dramatic" Joanne Harris website: [http://www.joanne-harris.co.uk] .] . "Runemarks" is based loosely upon the first novel she wrote, aged 19, which was called "Witchlight", a hugely sprawling 1000 page monster of a story, which was rejected by every publisher. She carried on writing about the Norse Gods, creating a post Ragnarok world in which they played out their adventures. And then she moved onto other things, other books and became the bestselling author of "Chocolat", "Gentlemen and Players" amonst others and, most recently "The Lollipop Shoes" (2007).

And that might have been that, had it not been for the fact that Joanne has a daughter. One day, she dragged "Witchlight" out of a drawer to read to her. Her daughter loved the story, so Joanne started writing a new story, and read it to her, chapter by chapter. That story became "Runemarks".

The Runes

In "Runemarks", Joanne Harris uses the Runes of the Elder Script (Younger Futhark) and the New Script (Elder Futhark). Runes are thought to date back to the 1st and 2nd centuries BC and are most commonly associated with German, Swiss, Austrian and Scandinavian peoples.

Notes and references

External links

* [http://www.joanne-harris.co.uk Joanne Harris' website]
* [http://www.runemarks.co.uk Runemarks website]
* [http://www.rbooks.co.uk/product.aspx?id=0385611307 Random House website: Runemarks page]
* [http://www.booklore.co.uk/PastReviews/HarrisJoanne/Runemarks/RunemarksReview.htm BookLore review]
* [http://books.guardian.co.uk/review/story/0,,2199850,00.html#article_continue Guardian review]
* [http://www.thebookbag.co.uk/reviews/index.php/Runemarks Bookbag review]
* [http://www.kidsreads.com/reviews/9780375844447.asp KidsReads.com review]
* [http://worldsofwonders.blogspot.com/2007/12/runemarks-joanne-harris.html Worlds of Wonder review]
* [http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/01/27/RVTHU1CHV.DTL San Francisco Chronicle review]