A Dark Horn Blowing

by Dahlov Ipcar

Stolen away from her family by the call of a magical horn, Nora becomes nursemaid to Prince Elver, the son of the evil Erl King, who has plans to make Nora his new queen, rather then let her go. Reprint.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Fiction, Novels, Childrens

258 pages, Paperback

First published June 20, 1978

About the author

Dahlov Ipcar was an American painter, illustrator and author.

Reviews

[Mir · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ipcar draws from the Child ballads and other folkloric sources to create an original story about a new mother who is bespelled away to Elfland to nurse the newborn prince. Her memories stolen, she forgets her husband and own baby, who in her absence suffer the attentions of the local witch.

The mythology is strong and even, and the prose, while not brilliant, has a pleasant feel and is mostly even (I felt the brief scenes in the human village broke from it a bit). However, for a story that hinges on love and loss, the emotions seemed muted. Also, the first half moved very slowly. My favorite bits were the ones from Owen's point of view.

The book picked up in the second half and the brewing conflicts came nicely into the foreground, but it wasn't enough to redeem the boredom of earlier chapters. I was especially disappointed by the dropping of Nora's and her husband's points of view so that we don't see any of the resolution from their perspective.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read this book so many times since I first was given a copy by my aunt when I was a teenager. And yet every time I read it, it's like the first time.

I've never known anyone else (besides my aunt) who has read this book, and I wish to goodness I did, because it is beautifully haunting and one of my favorite books. My copy is well-worn and hopefully isn't going to fall apart on me. I hope one day to give it to my children and watch as they (hopefully) enjoy it as much as I have.

[MaryAnn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was one of my favorite books as an adolescent. The story, told from three points of view, is of Nora who is lured away from her husband and newborn son to become a wet nurse for an infant prince in another land. Full of magic and old-world flavor, I still haven't tired of rereading this book every few years. A definite read if you enjoy fantasy, but may be difficult to find.

**UPDATE** Amazon has the book available again. It was out of print for several years, but has apparently reemerged. Just received my copy and can't wait to delve into this novel again!

[Mariele · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this when I was perhaps 12 years old, and I thought it was brilliant. It haunted me for years. I was in awe. The circumstances of Nora’s kidnapping and all those adventures she has to pass before she can return to her family kept me literally spellbound.

Back then, I read it in a German translation. Not knowing much about geography or history, I believed the story to be based on Scandinavian myths. Well, they cross a big sea in a dragon boat, and there are Hugin and Munin, and Odin is mentioned once.
Also, not knowing what kind of name “Dahlov Ipcar” could be, I was convinced that she must be Norwegian. Many years later, I was surprised to find out that the author was American. I have to admit that I was a little disappointed - it somehow tore at my childhood fascination with the story. I know now that it's childish, but unlike Astrid Lindgren, for example, Ms Ipcar did not grow up in a place where these old myths still somehow lived on. (Apparently, her father was Lithuanian, which might explain her first name. Ipcar, her husband's surname, seems to be Jewish – but that’s all I could find out on the internet.)

With adult eyes, there is much to find fault with in the writing. For one thing, it’s a mishmash of different sorts of folk tales (Scandinavian, British, Slavic). The beginning is slow, the language is fairly poor. Nora seems very wooden, as do most of the characters in Elfland. Her family, back in what is probably Northumberland, come across as more plausible characters. The actual Scandinavian mythological elements are limited and seem to have been thrown in merely for good measure. Since it’s a children’s book, little is made of the strong undercurrent theme of sexual desire.

(my version of Nora)

(sorry, I'm currently having fun with these pics & gifs, now that I've finally mastered the formatting)


The second half of the novel, which deals with all sorts of spells, conflicts and plot twists, really picks up the pace. It is convincingly woven together, with two intriguing father / son antagonisms and an interesting (yet shadowy) villain.



From an adult’s POV, this novel equals three stars; from a child's vantage point, though, it definitely deserves five stars.

[Paulina Binas · Rating 5 out of 5]

I encountered this book completely by accident, having found it in my rental house. It instantly drew me to itself by the strange and magical, yet quirky cover art. But it was the quote on the back cover, which really enraptured me:

"Far out across the sands stretching silver-white into the darkening bay, the cow was calling. That mourning, that sadness; it filled my whole soul with its sorrow. But there were words crying in the sound, and it was not the cow that spoke those words, but a small man with a horn standing by a long, black boat there at the edge of the tide. The cow's lowing became the dark horn blowing, and then it was too late - if ever I could have turned back, I could no longer."

This brought back the feeling of wonder I had when reading Tolkien back in primary school. That there are things mythical and beautiful and it's worthy venturing out your door to discover them. However this wasn't Middle-Earth, but the land of Erland also carried that same longing and sadness with it. I wish I could find such books more often.

[Camilla Chester · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've just returned to this book which I remembered vividly from reading over thirty years ago. My clever brother found it and sent me a copy for my birthday. It has sat on my shelf for ages. I was too scared to read it in case it was different to how I remembered and I was disappointed.

I still love it! What a relief!

Lyrical and righteous it is a fantastically woven story of fantasy and magic that leaves you feeling sated and satisfied. It breaks most of the rules because it follows the 'fairytale' approach to storytelling where the reader is told everything every step of the way. It doesn't matter though, because the characters and settings are so vivid and the story is full of twists and turns that carry you along on a wonderful fairground ride.

If you like fantasy then read it - you'll love it!

[André · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dieses Buch hat ca. 40 Jahre auf mich gewartet...
Eine wirklich tolle Überraschung und mit viel Spannung hab ich es jetzt endlich gelesen. Es wundert mich nicht mit welcher Geduld das Buch wartete denn es wusste um seine Wirkung. 😃
Eine interessante Geschichte, ein einfallreiches Märchen mit vielen guten Ideen, sehr gut erzählt und durch die verschiedenen Erzählperspektiven klug inszeniert. Die Übersetzung scheint mir sehr gelungen obwohl ich das englische Original noch lesen muss (darauf freue ich mich jetzt schon) um das zu bestätigen. Sehr empfehlenswert. Seltsam finde ich dass es nicht in andere Sprachen übersetzt wurde und auch sonst in der Medienwelt keine Umsetzung gibt, weder Film, Serie, Hörbuch, Hörspiel, nichts. Vielleicht ist es als Kinderbuch abgestempelt, weil es nur dort einen Preis erhielt?

[Jim Jepps · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was one of my favourite books from childhood and I would heartily recommend it to absolutely anyone - rereading as an adult I was surprised how adult the themes were, not just around love and loss but also avarice, jealousy and lust.

I think this was the book that really broadened my horizons - where I realised books could have depth as well as adventure. While being very dark the folkloric feel to the book gives you both an eerie otherworldly atmosphere and a close to nature, very humanist feel.

I adore this book from beginning to end. Like the characters in the book you will find yourself tangled up in pages and pages of its enchantments.

[Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

absolutely beautiful. i'm too sick to write a proper review but if you like robin mckinley and beautiful fairy tales you will like this.

i normally hate stories where mothers and babies are separated, but in this book it didn't bother me - there is a dreamlike quality about this book, and it's just so beautiful

the depiction of the fairy child in particular is unusually good. multiple chapters from his perspective, and throughout he's both believably childlike and believably... weird. other. fairyish

[Pam Baddeley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this a few years ago so don't recall a great deal about it. It commences with a mother being lured away to nurse a child in fairyland - the child of the king and queen - and what happens to her husband and her own child in her absence.

[Samantha Snowman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this novel. It was one of those books where I couldn’t readily predict nor see what was coming. I loved the writing style, loved the way the author flows. It was a great piece of fantasy, easy read, and kept me captivated the whole time.

[Maureen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A classic.

[Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't pick up fantasy books very often but this was a truly good one. Great storytelling based on myths.

[Marysia Kosowski · Rating 4 out of 5]

Someday I may write a real review.

This folkloric fantasy novel is pretty much perfect and fantastically written, but I do wish that we could hear from our heroine Nora's perspective one last time at the very end, which is why I'm docking a star. While it is a multiple POV story and the most prominent character actually seems to be the elf Prince Eelie rather than Nora, the book begins in Nora's point of view and her separation from her family forms the conflict of the story, so it seems kind of strange to witness the resolution of the story from another character's perspective rather than from hers.

[Macha · Rating 3 out of 5]

high fantasy set in faerie land. a bit slight going in, but in the end it feels like it might belong on the shelf with Lin Carter's Ballantyne series of classic fantasies: pretty good company. based on various ballads collected by Child and others, which gives it a different look and, with a Russian Baba Yaga thrown into the field to meddle with outcomes, it offers up a few twists on that trad cold hillside end.

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Found in the Teen section – a lovely faery tale in the ancient tradition. It’s even based on some of the Child Ballads – amongst other things. This novel is a great, lyrical-but-not-highfalutin’ treat for anyone who likes faery tales.

[Derek · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful and strange. Cousin to Eudora Welty's The Robber Bridegroom in its use of folklore and ballads.

[Pam · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5*