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The World
A borderline schizophrenic must stake his brain to enter a spiritual healing programme. His healing entails travelling to a world where each region is the inside of a Tarot card. He makes his way through the cards in his quest for The World, a place where everyday reality and magic fuse to become the gold of the Alchemists.
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First published November 20, 2014
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
January 2, 2016
In all its unreality, this book is one of the most real I have ever read. It reminded me of The Little Prince and The Magus (Fowles).
In the beginning of the novel, the protagonist, Arkin, finds a manifesto called "Initiation". It was this manifesto that made me sure I wanted to read the whole book. I recognised myself in the description of the initiatory crisis.
Arkin is diagnosed as being either a schizophrenic or somewhere between normal and schizophrenic. But the more I read and think about it, the more convinced I become that we are all somewhere on that scale, and that anyone who would read and understand this book would recognise him or herself in Arkin's struggle.
This book took me through a rainbow of emotions as I lived inside Arkin's head and listened to his sometimes crazed thoughts. He lives so much pain but also beauty, and the humility of standing in front of something far far greater than himself. The image from The Chariot really struck me, as Arkin creates worlds of reality through writing, propelling words from a typewriter whilst his angel supports him from the back of the chariot as they cruise through the night sky together.
As another reviewer said, the highest form of using the tarot cards is one of contemplation. I love that each chapter is a tarot card. Each one is a perspective through which you can contemplate yourself. This is a very compressed book, and is a lot to take in. I would recommend people to read even just one chapter and see themselves or something in their life through that prism, because even one chapter can be a lot to take in at one time. This is a short book but so bursting with meaning that I opted to take my time reading it.
As the Angel tells Arkin, once Arkin has got to the point when he is ready to hear it:
"Be a creator of worlds. Take this World and manifest it in what used to be quotidian existence until you see meaning everywhere, and everything you do is meaningful."
In the beginning of the novel, the protagonist, Arkin, finds a manifesto called "Initiation". It was this manifesto that made me sure I wanted to read the whole book. I recognised myself in the description of the initiatory crisis.
Arkin is diagnosed as being either a schizophrenic or somewhere between normal and schizophrenic. But the more I read and think about it, the more convinced I become that we are all somewhere on that scale, and that anyone who would read and understand this book would recognise him or herself in Arkin's struggle.
This book took me through a rainbow of emotions as I lived inside Arkin's head and listened to his sometimes crazed thoughts. He lives so much pain but also beauty, and the humility of standing in front of something far far greater than himself. The image from The Chariot really struck me, as Arkin creates worlds of reality through writing, propelling words from a typewriter whilst his angel supports him from the back of the chariot as they cruise through the night sky together.
As another reviewer said, the highest form of using the tarot cards is one of contemplation. I love that each chapter is a tarot card. Each one is a perspective through which you can contemplate yourself. This is a very compressed book, and is a lot to take in. I would recommend people to read even just one chapter and see themselves or something in their life through that prism, because even one chapter can be a lot to take in at one time. This is a short book but so bursting with meaning that I opted to take my time reading it.
As the Angel tells Arkin, once Arkin has got to the point when he is ready to hear it:
"Be a creator of worlds. Take this World and manifest it in what used to be quotidian existence until you see meaning everywhere, and everything you do is meaningful."
January 12, 2016
I will start this review with the candid declaration that I'm not smart enough to do this fine book justice.
My learned colleagues -- the other reviewers on this book's Amazon page -- speak of judeobiblical and Nordic traditions; of initiatory crisis and the spiritual significance of the Tarot cards that figure so prominently in this sweeping, image-filled narrative.
I can only speak of what this beautifully written novel meant to me, a mere reader.
I feel that I may be uniquely qualified to comment on the apocalyptic nature of the passages that give this exceptional work its lifeblood. As a clinically depressed, bipolar individual now firmly committed to antipsychotic medications in order to keep my own "visions" under day-to-day control, I can say with some certainty that the author has set down in writing many of the extraordinary hallucinations and mind-bending experiences those of us with mental illness undergo without benefit of therapeutic and, often, life-changing drugs.
Indeed, for many years of medically undiagnosed existence, I thought, as the central character in this book does, that I was "crazy," and "weird"-- a sentiment routinely reinforced by friends and family. It is, as Arkin notes, a singularly lonely state of being.
But, I digress. The task at hand is to try to offer a cogent review of a superbly rendered piece of transcendental fiction -- the story of a deeply troubled young man trying to come to grips with a near-constant state of mind that drives him to live in fear and the utmost anxiety of his perceived surroundings each day. The author portrays the visions of the mentally ill to almost cinematic perfection:
"Time drags past as she shreds my skin and I agonise helplessly. I look around for the big dog to save me from her again but he is nowhere to be seen. A woman in a white dress is standing in the doorway, her body moving in laughter inside a seashell. She straightens up and our eyes meet and lock. Her gaze is a twisting storm that draws me to its eye."
I have seen the big dog myself -- as have many undiagnosed and untreated schizophrenics and others with severe personality disorders. In most cases, however, it represents not safety but your own death stalking you constantly, and your mind regularly conjures figures of salvation -- not unlike the lady in white. Achingly lovely, but forever beyond your grasp.
In reading about Arkin's journey toward carefully controlled sanity with Dr. John Francis as his metaphysical guide, I was reminded often of the teachings of Don Juan in the groundbreaking books by Carlos Castaneda. Although Castaneda's visions were purportedly peyote-induced -- and, quite possibly, also fictional -- they struck resonant chords with me back then as I struggled, like Arkin, to find respite from my own "strangeness."
As I said, the other reviewers probably have much more insight into this excellent book's true meaning. But, taken all by itself, even without the scholarly interpretations, it still has much to say to those of us who have lived in Arkin's world and, thankfully, survived.
Five-plus stars to The World, and to its prescient author, Robin Wildt Hansen.
This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.
My learned colleagues -- the other reviewers on this book's Amazon page -- speak of judeobiblical and Nordic traditions; of initiatory crisis and the spiritual significance of the Tarot cards that figure so prominently in this sweeping, image-filled narrative.
I can only speak of what this beautifully written novel meant to me, a mere reader.
I feel that I may be uniquely qualified to comment on the apocalyptic nature of the passages that give this exceptional work its lifeblood. As a clinically depressed, bipolar individual now firmly committed to antipsychotic medications in order to keep my own "visions" under day-to-day control, I can say with some certainty that the author has set down in writing many of the extraordinary hallucinations and mind-bending experiences those of us with mental illness undergo without benefit of therapeutic and, often, life-changing drugs.
Indeed, for many years of medically undiagnosed existence, I thought, as the central character in this book does, that I was "crazy," and "weird"-- a sentiment routinely reinforced by friends and family. It is, as Arkin notes, a singularly lonely state of being.
But, I digress. The task at hand is to try to offer a cogent review of a superbly rendered piece of transcendental fiction -- the story of a deeply troubled young man trying to come to grips with a near-constant state of mind that drives him to live in fear and the utmost anxiety of his perceived surroundings each day. The author portrays the visions of the mentally ill to almost cinematic perfection:
"Time drags past as she shreds my skin and I agonise helplessly. I look around for the big dog to save me from her again but he is nowhere to be seen. A woman in a white dress is standing in the doorway, her body moving in laughter inside a seashell. She straightens up and our eyes meet and lock. Her gaze is a twisting storm that draws me to its eye."
I have seen the big dog myself -- as have many undiagnosed and untreated schizophrenics and others with severe personality disorders. In most cases, however, it represents not safety but your own death stalking you constantly, and your mind regularly conjures figures of salvation -- not unlike the lady in white. Achingly lovely, but forever beyond your grasp.
In reading about Arkin's journey toward carefully controlled sanity with Dr. John Francis as his metaphysical guide, I was reminded often of the teachings of Don Juan in the groundbreaking books by Carlos Castaneda. Although Castaneda's visions were purportedly peyote-induced -- and, quite possibly, also fictional -- they struck resonant chords with me back then as I struggled, like Arkin, to find respite from my own "strangeness."
As I said, the other reviewers probably have much more insight into this excellent book's true meaning. But, taken all by itself, even without the scholarly interpretations, it still has much to say to those of us who have lived in Arkin's world and, thankfully, survived.
Five-plus stars to The World, and to its prescient author, Robin Wildt Hansen.
This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.
February 28, 2016
I've updated this review to 5 stars after the author made some structural changes to the book, increasing its readability. It's an amazing book, well worth reading!
The World describes the metaphysical journey of Arkin from initiation to Magus through the structure of the four suits and the twenty-two major arcana of the Tarot deck. Arkin, the protagonist, may be schizophrenic; the voices he hears and the obsessions he has may be related to his emerging schizophrenia, or, they may be the manifestations of power that he is too frightened to embrace.
The World can be read allegorically, or it can be read as straight-forward fantasy, although my preference is for the former interpretation. Drawing on Norse, Christian, classical and Yoruba mythologies (those were the ones I recognized, at least), Arkin's journey through the labyrinth of his neurology, or through the labyrinth of initiation and testing, to his ultimate goal, is written in a mix of prose poetry, stream of consciousness, and straight-forward prose, not always the easiest read but one worth pursuing.
Just before I read The World I had - coincidentally - been reading about the religious experiences of subjects using mescaline or peyote in Aldous Huxley's Doors of Perception. There are strong similarities to parts of Arkin's journey, although I do not think the book is an indictment or an endorsement of the use of mind-altering drugs. Instead, I read The World as a alternative interpretation of differences in perception that the Western world sees as mental illness. I kept thinking of the classic (but very different) work of the 1960's, Joanne Greenberg's I Never Promised You a Rose Garden, which also delved into the mind of a young schizophrenic patient, and how she also communicated with gods and angels.
The World will not be a book for everyone. It isn't, as I said, an easy read, and a knowledge of at least the basic symbolism of western – and other - religions is likely necessary to appreciate Arkin's journey. I suspect I missed a fair bit, but understood enough to appreciate the roles that most of the beings that appear to Arkin played. The use of the Tarot deck to frame and structure the story is interesting. Many years ago I read – somewhere – that the purpose of a Tarot deck was to help the person for whom the reading was being done to break out of their automatic ways of thinking and search for new interpretations of what was happening in their life – in very simplistic terms, to help them see that what they thought of as a barrier might actually be a door. That interpretation of Tarot and Arkin's initiatory journey through the card's symbols resonated for me.
Review by Marian Thorpe, Goodreads Author.
The author provided me with a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
The World describes the metaphysical journey of Arkin from initiation to Magus through the structure of the four suits and the twenty-two major arcana of the Tarot deck. Arkin, the protagonist, may be schizophrenic; the voices he hears and the obsessions he has may be related to his emerging schizophrenia, or, they may be the manifestations of power that he is too frightened to embrace.
The World can be read allegorically, or it can be read as straight-forward fantasy, although my preference is for the former interpretation. Drawing on Norse, Christian, classical and Yoruba mythologies (those were the ones I recognized, at least), Arkin's journey through the labyrinth of his neurology, or through the labyrinth of initiation and testing, to his ultimate goal, is written in a mix of prose poetry, stream of consciousness, and straight-forward prose, not always the easiest read but one worth pursuing.
Just before I read The World I had - coincidentally - been reading about the religious experiences of subjects using mescaline or peyote in Aldous Huxley's Doors of Perception. There are strong similarities to parts of Arkin's journey, although I do not think the book is an indictment or an endorsement of the use of mind-altering drugs. Instead, I read The World as a alternative interpretation of differences in perception that the Western world sees as mental illness. I kept thinking of the classic (but very different) work of the 1960's, Joanne Greenberg's I Never Promised You a Rose Garden, which also delved into the mind of a young schizophrenic patient, and how she also communicated with gods and angels.
The World will not be a book for everyone. It isn't, as I said, an easy read, and a knowledge of at least the basic symbolism of western – and other - religions is likely necessary to appreciate Arkin's journey. I suspect I missed a fair bit, but understood enough to appreciate the roles that most of the beings that appear to Arkin played. The use of the Tarot deck to frame and structure the story is interesting. Many years ago I read – somewhere – that the purpose of a Tarot deck was to help the person for whom the reading was being done to break out of their automatic ways of thinking and search for new interpretations of what was happening in their life – in very simplistic terms, to help them see that what they thought of as a barrier might actually be a door. That interpretation of Tarot and Arkin's initiatory journey through the card's symbols resonated for me.
Review by Marian Thorpe, Goodreads Author.
The author provided me with a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
March 21, 2016
What just happened? Have you ever read a book so ludicrous that you just don't know what's happening anymore? This is the way I feel with regards to The World. It's all about a teenager called Arkin who is schizophrenic. In order to be "normal" once more, Arkin needs to go to a world where every area is named after a Tarot card. An exceptionally fascinating thing about this book is that the Tarot cards represent a perspective or an area in your cognizance. The World plays a little bit with your mind.
At first, I thought The World would be an interesting, messed up, yet amazing book. Be that as it may, my fervor began to decrease page by page. One of the reasons is the grammar and punctuation errors. It was very hard to read this book not because of the story but rather as a result of the absence of commas! There were so many sentences that were hard to follow through because it lacked a comma, period, and/or a semi-colon. I had to re-read many sentences because it was hard for me to know what was going on. I don't know whether the author, Hansen, did this intentionally in light of the fact that the fundamental character, Arkin, is schizophrenic. Many grammar and punctuation errors make reading feel like I am driving over potholes. With a gravy-stained map.
I understand that writers commit a considerable measure of composing errors since I do it constantly (including in this review). I wouldn’t have any problem if there were a few mistakes per page, but almost every sentence had some kind of error. When there are problems with either grammar or punctuation, they do make the reader’s excursion a troublesome one.
To keep reading more: http://fullofbooks.com/the-world/
At first, I thought The World would be an interesting, messed up, yet amazing book. Be that as it may, my fervor began to decrease page by page. One of the reasons is the grammar and punctuation errors. It was very hard to read this book not because of the story but rather as a result of the absence of commas! There were so many sentences that were hard to follow through because it lacked a comma, period, and/or a semi-colon. I had to re-read many sentences because it was hard for me to know what was going on. I don't know whether the author, Hansen, did this intentionally in light of the fact that the fundamental character, Arkin, is schizophrenic. Many grammar and punctuation errors make reading feel like I am driving over potholes. With a gravy-stained map.
I understand that writers commit a considerable measure of composing errors since I do it constantly (including in this review). I wouldn’t have any problem if there were a few mistakes per page, but almost every sentence had some kind of error. When there are problems with either grammar or punctuation, they do make the reader’s excursion a troublesome one.
To keep reading more: http://fullofbooks.com/the-world/
October 5, 2020
This book might be the story of Arkin, but can also be the story of The Soul. If received in its spirit, it is actually a book that can transform one’s life, making it grow from the dimensions of a small village into the vast world that is meant to be. While reading The World I felt I opened more and more to its magic and in the end I had the sensation of becoming the vast ocean which contains all kind of drops, containing all that is needed for creation. The first book in my life I read more with my body than with my mind, as I sensed the words moving the energy inside my body and cleaning and transforming it in my cells, making them working better and as a whole.
October 27, 2018
Actually a 3.5 rating.
This is the story of Arkin, a very troubled young man who fights against schizophrenia as he tries to get control of his mind. This process takes him through a fantastical journey, where he meets weird beings from the Tarot cards. Despite the fact that I know nothing of Tarot cards and mysticism, which might have enhanced my comprehension of certain scenes, I was able to enjoy this book nevertheless.
This is the story of Arkin, a very troubled young man who fights against schizophrenia as he tries to get control of his mind. This process takes him through a fantastical journey, where he meets weird beings from the Tarot cards. Despite the fact that I know nothing of Tarot cards and mysticism, which might have enhanced my comprehension of certain scenes, I was able to enjoy this book nevertheless.
August 26, 2018
Interesting
.Rich with imagery and symbolism..it kept me reading. I just wasnt sure what a lot of the symbolism was for and i wanted more connection to reality..but that was probably just my lack of knowledge in this field.
.Rich with imagery and symbolism..it kept me reading. I just wasnt sure what a lot of the symbolism was for and i wanted more connection to reality..but that was probably just my lack of knowledge in this field.
June 30, 2025
It is the most magical book I have ever read. Once is not enough. I am still gaining insights into my own process.
March 1, 2016
3.75 stars
First off, many thanks to the author, who provided a free copy of The World in exchange for an honest review.
This is a surreal little book. It’s sort of like taking a walk through a funhouse, while on an acid trip. I hardly know where to begin to describe it. I saw the influence of a few different authors, and at some points I marveled at just how many different mythologies were woven into this tale.
As this book begins the lead character, Arkin, is in bad shape. He’s hearing voices that are becoming more and more real to him daily. He has to count, and he has to organize things in groups, otherwise he feels like the entire stability of the world is in grave danger. After a breakdown, he is put in contact with two different doctors. One wants to medicate him into complacency, and when he kills himself study his brain. The other offers an alternative treatment, an opportunity to delve into his subconscious and try to resolve his psychosis on his own terms, within the bounds of his own brain’s imaginings. It could cure him - or it could kill him, driving off the edge of sanity permanently.
It was a little disjointed, but I felt like that was the only way this tale could have been told. The stream of consciousness type of writing was sometimes confusing, but often the best way to describe what was happening. I had a good time trying to figure out the symbolism and what was reality and what was not. It’s a headtrip, because the bulk of it takes place in Arkin’s mind. A lot of this book felt like a dream, which mostly I suppose it was, a dream or an astral projection type vision quest of a sort.
While it follows the order of Tarot cards, I got hints of many different religions, including Nordic traditions (the tree, and the fact that Arkin hung on it, identifying him with Odin) Christian traditions, hints of earth based Paganism, and Vodou. My hands down favorite character that Arkin crosses paths with (many times), is Eshu. I actually didn’t know it until I did some research after finishing the book, that Eshu is from the Yoruba people of Africa. It is their religion that is the basis of Vodou - their gods were the gods that were combined with the Catholic saints to make the “religious code” that makes up Vodou. I’m gonna pull a Spock here: I think that’s fascinating. From the moment Arkin meets Eshu, I recognized him as Papa Legba, Vodou’s Eshu. Papa Legba’s actually a pretty cool dude, and I was glad to see him every time he appeared. Anybody who likes a good rum can’t be all bad, right? I liked the way he was portrayed, not as some ominous dangerous figure as I’ve seen done before, but as he was meant to be - the guide, the gatekeeper to other realities. I’ve actually always wanted to do a comparison study between Eshu/Papa, Hecate, and St. Peter, in his guise as Gatekeeper - but I digress.
At the very least you could describe this book as an allegory for how a man with serious mental problems was able to resolve his own quirks and ticks into a way to function in society. By using this “initiation” as a way for his mind to cope with itself he effectively “made” his own “world” that can jive with reality.
Or you can take it on the nose, and believe that Arkin really did have all these adventures, and met all of these fantastical beings and creatures; that he really is the Magus, and shapes the world around him to his will.
And really, who’s to say that neither or both are correct?
First off, many thanks to the author, who provided a free copy of The World in exchange for an honest review.
This is a surreal little book. It’s sort of like taking a walk through a funhouse, while on an acid trip. I hardly know where to begin to describe it. I saw the influence of a few different authors, and at some points I marveled at just how many different mythologies were woven into this tale.
As this book begins the lead character, Arkin, is in bad shape. He’s hearing voices that are becoming more and more real to him daily. He has to count, and he has to organize things in groups, otherwise he feels like the entire stability of the world is in grave danger. After a breakdown, he is put in contact with two different doctors. One wants to medicate him into complacency, and when he kills himself study his brain. The other offers an alternative treatment, an opportunity to delve into his subconscious and try to resolve his psychosis on his own terms, within the bounds of his own brain’s imaginings. It could cure him - or it could kill him, driving off the edge of sanity permanently.
It was a little disjointed, but I felt like that was the only way this tale could have been told. The stream of consciousness type of writing was sometimes confusing, but often the best way to describe what was happening. I had a good time trying to figure out the symbolism and what was reality and what was not. It’s a headtrip, because the bulk of it takes place in Arkin’s mind. A lot of this book felt like a dream, which mostly I suppose it was, a dream or an astral projection type vision quest of a sort.
While it follows the order of Tarot cards, I got hints of many different religions, including Nordic traditions (the tree, and the fact that Arkin hung on it, identifying him with Odin) Christian traditions, hints of earth based Paganism, and Vodou. My hands down favorite character that Arkin crosses paths with (many times), is Eshu. I actually didn’t know it until I did some research after finishing the book, that Eshu is from the Yoruba people of Africa. It is their religion that is the basis of Vodou - their gods were the gods that were combined with the Catholic saints to make the “religious code” that makes up Vodou. I’m gonna pull a Spock here: I think that’s fascinating. From the moment Arkin meets Eshu, I recognized him as Papa Legba, Vodou’s Eshu. Papa Legba’s actually a pretty cool dude, and I was glad to see him every time he appeared. Anybody who likes a good rum can’t be all bad, right? I liked the way he was portrayed, not as some ominous dangerous figure as I’ve seen done before, but as he was meant to be - the guide, the gatekeeper to other realities. I’ve actually always wanted to do a comparison study between Eshu/Papa, Hecate, and St. Peter, in his guise as Gatekeeper - but I digress.
At the very least you could describe this book as an allegory for how a man with serious mental problems was able to resolve his own quirks and ticks into a way to function in society. By using this “initiation” as a way for his mind to cope with itself he effectively “made” his own “world” that can jive with reality.
Or you can take it on the nose, and believe that Arkin really did have all these adventures, and met all of these fantastical beings and creatures; that he really is the Magus, and shapes the world around him to his will.
And really, who’s to say that neither or both are correct?
January 12, 2015
Robin Wildt Hansens writing is a bit of a psychoactive rollercoaster ride along different trails of the western mystical tradition. The genre could be labelled as some sort of psycho-magical realism or perhaps “occult realism”. He builds a universe in which judeo-biblical and Nordic traditions are visible and important anchor points. But RWH’s world also includes the often ignored and omitted African part of occidental heritage, thereby making this book a truly transatlantic piece of hermeticism.
The book takes the perspective of a young man who has some sort of psychiatric malfunction. His world is falling apart, but he comes under the care of a psychiatrist who diagnoses his problem as “initiatory crisis” and aids him in the intense existential development that he has before him. Bit by bit the potential of what he thought of as a debilitating handicap becomes revealed on his initiatory voyage through the main symbols of the Tarot cards.
In spite of the depth of the base in cultural history that the story rests upon, RWH’s writing doesn’t for a moment loose the narrative into speculation and constructedness. The story remain experienced, pungent and real.
Watch your dreams when you travel into this book!
The book takes the perspective of a young man who has some sort of psychiatric malfunction. His world is falling apart, but he comes under the care of a psychiatrist who diagnoses his problem as “initiatory crisis” and aids him in the intense existential development that he has before him. Bit by bit the potential of what he thought of as a debilitating handicap becomes revealed on his initiatory voyage through the main symbols of the Tarot cards.
In spite of the depth of the base in cultural history that the story rests upon, RWH’s writing doesn’t for a moment loose the narrative into speculation and constructedness. The story remain experienced, pungent and real.
Watch your dreams when you travel into this book!
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews