The Tower of Beowulf

by Parke Godwin

A reconstruction of the tale of Beowulf finds a disgruntled young warrior engaging in suicidal battle in order to convince himself that he is not a coward, until his confrontations with Grendel and his mother make him a renowned hero. 10,000 first printing.

Genres: Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy

246 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 1995

About the author

Parke Godwin was an American writer known for his lyrical yet precise prose style and sardonic humor. He was also known for his novels of legendary figures placed in realistic historical settings; his retelling of the Arthur legend (Firelord in 1980, Beloved Exile in 1984, and The Last Rainbow in 1985) is set in the 5th century during the collapse of the Roman empire, and his reinterpretation of Robin Hood (Sherwood, 1991, and Robin and the King, 1993) takes place during the Norman conquest and features kings William the Conqueror and William Rufus as major characters. His other well-known works include Waiting For The Galactic Bus (1988) and its sequel The Snake Oil Wars (1989), humorous critiques of American pop culture and religion.

Parke Godwin also worked as a radio operator, a research technician, a professional actor, an advertising man, a dishwasher and a maitre d' hotel.

Godwin's short fiction has appeared in several anthologies. His short story "Influencing the Hell out of Time and Teresa Golowitz," was the basis of an episode of the television series The Twilight Zone.

Reviews

[Gary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tower of Beowulf is well written with insight and depth. Parke does an excellent job of combining the elements of mythology and the orignal story to create an insightful view of the hero and of his nemisis. Most retellings of Beowulf stray far from the original story but Parke's version sticks very close to the original tale and still uses many of the often conflicting elements of the tale to give his version greater insight. Love Parke's writing and his take on the ancient tale.

[Deedee · Rating 2 out of 5]

Parke Godwin stayed very close to the actual plot of the epic poem Beowulf. There's Grendel and Heorot Hall, just like the original poem. The changes the author made: added a backstory to Grendel and his mom; added romance; and, added a Christian monk (who became the moral authority in the novel). Each change made by Godwin moved the tale from a pagan tale of blood and glory towards a Christian fable (a process admittedly begun by the Christian monks centuries ago who wrote down the epic, pagan poem). The result didn't quite work. There were too many pagan elements to be a satisfactory Christian fable; and too much of the pagan elements were removed to stay true to the original poem. Still, it was an OK book read, especially for those who are unfamiliar with the original Beowulf poem.

[Tim B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story. The additional details in the story added to the Beowulf tale. Recommend it for fans of the original. The writing style is fairly slow and laborious, but the story is really interesting. Just a slow paced read.

[Rowdy Geirsson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pretty solid novelization of Beowulf. Certainly worth the read if you like that old story and enjoy 90’s fantasy novels, as it’s very much of that era— highly descriptive as opposed to the more ”lyrical” (vague and less verbose) storytelling found in so many novels of the present century. Some of the details are off (Thor’s chariot is pulled by horses) and Beowulf’s internal conflict a bit too dramatic (”I’ve already died SO MANY times!”) but overall this is a well-told novel that ties the Beowulf legend and Norse mythology together in a well-thought out and compelling manner.

[thebookworm · Rating 5 out of 5]

a great book! highly recommended for ages 13+ as there is a bit of violence and cruelty.

[Leelan · Rating 5 out of 5]

It has been years since I reread this book. I forgot how fantastic it is. Of all of Parke Godwin's retelling of old stories and myths this one an "Firelord", a retelling of King Arthur's life, are the absolute best. I can't count how many times I've read "Firelord" but I have read this one three times now. Once when I bought the hardback and twice when the paperback came out September 1996 and thrice just now. I've read Beowulf of course in school. And I translated the Old English poem in college. In the translation Beowulf is a paragon of a warrior, mortal but as unbending as the hardest steel. He's hard for the reader to really identify with. In the Old English he is much the same but the language paints him as much of a monster as Grendel and Grendel's mother. "aglæca/æglæca" is the Old English word that is applied to all three of them. It means monster and/or hero depending on the context. Godwin's retelling really brings this home and magnifies it beautifully. His Beowulf is a man and a monster. A monster to himself and to others. But he is a monster who wants to be a man just as much as Grendel does. This is very much a tragic tail for all of them. But in this retelling, all of them are relate-able. You really feel for each of them in turn. Read this book!

[Danielle Stoll · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book for my Hero & Quest class. It was different from other types of stories, but by the end of it I liked it. Discussing parts in class gave me a better understanding and a stronger appreciation for it, but it still isn't my favorite because our Beowulf unit was just so long and we read more than one version which became tedious. But, this book by itself (perhaps with a little background) isn't a bad read.

[Joelendil · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a clever re-imagining of Beowulf, plot-wise. However, the author has too much of a tendency to reveal characters' motivations and inner struggles through tedious, extended monologue or dialogue.

[Belle Meade School]

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