Snowy Tower: Parzival and the Wet Black Branch of Language

The Mythteller trilogy #2

by Martin Shaw

In Snowy Tower, Dr. Martin Shaw continues his trilogy of works on the relationship between myth, wilderness, and a culture of wildness. In this second book, he gives a telling of the Grail epic Parzival. Claiming it as a great trickster story of medieval Europe, he offers a deft and erudite commentary, with topics ranging from climate change and the soul to the discipline of erotic consciousness, from the hallucination of empire to a revisioning of the dark speech of the ancient bards. Ingrained in the very syntax of Snowy Tower is an invocation of what Shaw calls ‘wild mythologies’ — stories that are more than just human allegory, that seem to brush the winged thinking of owl, stream, and open moor. This daring work offers a connection to the genius of the margins; that the big questions of today will not be solved by big answers, but by the myriad of associations that both myth and wilderness offer.

Genres: Mythology, Arthurian, Philosophy, Nonfiction, Spirituality, Writing

272 pages, Paperback

First published February 28, 2014

About the author

Dr Martin Shaw is an acclaimed teacher of myth. Author of the award-winning Mythteller trilogy (A Branch from the Lightning Tree, Snowy Tower, Scatterlings), he founded the Oral Tradition and Mythic Life courses at Stanford University, whilst being director of the Westcountry School of Myth in the UK.

He has introduced thousands of people to mythology and how it penetrates modern life. For twenty years Shaw has been a wilderness rites of passage guide, working with at-risk youth, the sick, returning veterans and many women and men seeking a deeper life.

His translations of Gaelic poetry and folklore (with Tony Hoagland) have been published in Orion Magazine, Poetry International, Kenyon Review, Poetry Magazine and the Mississippi Review.

Shaw’s most recent books include The Night Wages, Cinderbiter, Wolf Milk, Courting the Wild Twin, All Those Barbarians, Wolferland and his Lorca translations, Courting the Dawn (with Stephan Harding). His essay and conversation with Ai Weiwei on myth and migration was released by the Marciano Arts foundation.

For more on Martin Shaw’s work:
cistamystica.com | drmartinshaw.com | schoolofmyth.com | martinshaw.substack.com

Reviews

[Nimue Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wild, poetic, beautiful, inspiring, challenging, unsettling.... everything I could want in a book, in fact. Highly recommended for Druids and anyone walking a bardic path.

[Nicholas Kotar · Rating 4 out of 5]

A difficult, brilliant, occasionally maddening book. So much to chew on! Almost too much :) The storytelling, as always, is the highlight.

[Infinidimincorp · Rating 4 out of 5]

One part nature writing, one part psychological commentary and one part his own version of the Percival legend, The Snowy Tower is the second book in Shaw's trilogy on storytelling. Though calling it a trilogy is misleading, this book stands entirely on its own.

Shaw's writing is rich, earthy, full of the playful abruptness and rhythm that show his decades of experience as an oral storyteller. His interpretation of the legend is strong, sticking very closely to medieval source in terms of narrative. His commentary is deep enough that I couldn't read the book quickly. Indeed, I made what I now consider the mistake of reading the appendix first, and thus consuming the whole tale of Percival in one go before going back and getting it in pieces interspersed with Shaw's thoughts. I would not recommend that! Let the story unwind at the same pace as the interpretation.

Ahh Percival. Shaw makes him far more relatable than de troyes ever did. It's a great story, slightly over filled with tertiary characters, that almost needs boiling down to its archetypal, mythic elements for the gold to be revealed. That's what this text does so well, and the decades that have gone into it are apparent- it has the potency of old, well matured port.

[Carol Sill · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a big fan of Martin Shaw, and the ending of this book is brilliantly empowering and inspiring. I love his language and the immediacy he brings to the Parzival story - with anecdotes, and other connections bringing the whole drama into our lives as part of our own progress. I'd give it a big 5 stars because the work is significant in bringing meaning that is beyond academic, historic, or psychological - but I can't give it to the book itself which is still screaming to be proofed one more time. For example, the beautiful cover has a random comma inserted into the title, and I'm not sure why. But none of that matters if you are like me and love Shaw's message.

[John Sperling · Rating 3 out of 5]

Episodes of magical thinking (the author claims to have seen other places through stones, given alms to spirits, et al) clouded the intellectual integrity of this book for me, but as a whole it is original and intriguing, a retelling of the myth of Parzival followed with commentary by the author.

[Jessica Pixie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Breathtaking and ripe with magic

[J.M. Hofer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Deep and vibrant, reads as poetry.

I can feel the ripples of its affect on me only starting to stretch. I know they will continue to swell as my psyche feasts on Shaw's rich banquet.

[Laurie McNeill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even more delicious than A Branch from the Lightning Tree. This is one of those book the reading which will take you on a personal and mythic adventure from which you will return changed utterly in some deep reach of your self and your relationship with everything.

Read it if you dare.