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Wolf Time
A DRAFT FROM THE PASTThere's something unnerving about the October north wind. It makes a wolf in the wilderness turn southward, in search of dangerous prey. It gets inside people's ears, opening their minds to bizarre ideas. It gets under their skin, inclining them to violence.Of course there's the comet too, a spectacular one, tracked by ordinary people in back yards, and by not-so-ordinary cult members at the top of a makeshift observatory.Something's gusting into Epsom, Minnesota. A witch in her quiet house feels it with dread. A young disc jockey feels it with confusion. A world-famous Norwegian poet greets it with triumph. And Professor Carl Martell listens to its song with worry—because Martell cannot tell a lie, but he knows one when he hears it.At the publisher's request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management).Praise for Lars Walker's Erling's "... many fierce battles, both with men and with sendings from the other gods.. . a Norse saga wrapped in a hair shirt.. . introspective and bloody...." —VOYA
306 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 1, 1999
1 person is currently reading
58 people want to read
About the author
Lars Walker
19 books30 followersWalker is a native of Kenyon, Minnesota and lives in Minneapolis. He has worked as a crabmeat packer in Alaska, a radio announcer, a church secretary and an administrative assistant and is presently librarian and bookstore manager for the schools of the Association of Free Lutheran Congregations in Plymouth, Minnesota. He is the author of "The Year of the Warrior" and other novels and is the editor of the journal of the Georg Sverdrup Society. Walker says, I never believed that God gave me whatever gifts I have in order to entertain fellow Christians. I want to confront the world with the claims of Jesus Christ.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
July 18, 2019
Excellent cover art by Gary Ruddell
One day, I'm either going to reconcile myself to the fact that chaos visits me frequently enough, often in the company of deadlines, that I am NEVER going to get caught up; OR, I'm going to drag myself out into the front yard and beat myself up for being such a slacker.
I rather think that the reconciliation is more likely, although it has yet to occur.
Now, in THIS particular case, I am NOT late posting a review that should have been done shortly after publication. That would make this review 20 years late, as it was originally published in 1999. I'm not entirely sure, but I believe I read it shortly after that, but I wasn't writing reviews then.
However, in April of this year, I reviewed one of Lars Walkers more recent works, “The Elder King,” and decided I would enjoy re-reading something that had given me great enjoyment on first perusal. Hence, my decision to pick up “Wolf Time.”
And then: forms of chaos. And it wasn't until TODAY, after clearing away a GREAT deal of items needing immediate attention, and making room for one of the cats to sit on the arm of my chair and stare at the computer screen, that I returned to this review.
I started to say that there are two themes running through the book, but that's not really accurate. I'm guessing there might be as many as six, maybe a few more. However, for the purposes of the review, I'm only dealing with two.
The first is a howling great none-rational eruption of Scandinavian myth into the life of the present day world, as expressed in a tiny college in Epsom, Minnesota. That's a real place, by the way, but it's ONLY a place; nothing there but Minnesota. This is not the semi-gentle Minnesota that Garrison Keillor spoke of; this is a place that has no lasting identity, but is desperately running around in all directions, looking for one. So, the Scandinavian horror suits them just fine, at first. It is, after all, a way of deriving identity. Later, when people start getting eaten, chopped to bits, etc, they have other thoughts. Usually, coming a bit too late.
The second aspect of the story is a biting commentary on certain aspects of American society and the educational system that are aggravating. At the core of the irritating bits the the idea that everything is great and equal, EXCEPT for saying that everything ISN'T great and equal. That's a VAST oversimplification, but I believe it's true to the bit of the book that veers a bit toward message fiction.
NOTE: if it wasn't actually HAPPENING, this wouldn't be message fiction at all. It would just be: fiction. It's what seems to be the desired outcome of the most abrasive elements of society that have given this book what may be regarded as a political spin. But, that was the choice made by the Influencers, not by Walker. He was just writing a book.
And here's what he has one of his characters say:
“A good, hard fact is the best defence there is — against everything except tears. There's a whole generation of debators in the church who've learned that you don't have to refute an argument if you can only burst into tears and make your opponent look like a cad.”
I don't suppose that at the time he wrote that, it was reasonable to predict that the bursting into tears would be supplemented by hitting people in the head with bicycle locks. Unfortunately, that has turned out to be the case.
We can hope, however, that mysterious and evil bits of pre-history do not suddenly appear in our neighborhoods. The calling together of elements of Ragnarok and Armageddon, etc, IS a popular topic in fiction, according to the movie feeds that cross my line of sight. However, Walker rightly points out that the alleged noble and peaceful Viking traders, promoted by deconstructionist historians, are not quite the flavor we will get if they move in next door to us.
Re-reading has been a great visceral release. The good guys are good, the bad guys are bad, and usually, the difference between the two is evident. However, this is NOT 'Fun with Dick and Jane.' Characters are conflicted and have multiple motivations, so be prepared for that.
But: do yourself a favor, okay? Go ahead and get this one.
One day, I'm either going to reconcile myself to the fact that chaos visits me frequently enough, often in the company of deadlines, that I am NEVER going to get caught up; OR, I'm going to drag myself out into the front yard and beat myself up for being such a slacker.
I rather think that the reconciliation is more likely, although it has yet to occur.
Now, in THIS particular case, I am NOT late posting a review that should have been done shortly after publication. That would make this review 20 years late, as it was originally published in 1999. I'm not entirely sure, but I believe I read it shortly after that, but I wasn't writing reviews then.
However, in April of this year, I reviewed one of Lars Walkers more recent works, “The Elder King,” and decided I would enjoy re-reading something that had given me great enjoyment on first perusal. Hence, my decision to pick up “Wolf Time.”
And then: forms of chaos. And it wasn't until TODAY, after clearing away a GREAT deal of items needing immediate attention, and making room for one of the cats to sit on the arm of my chair and stare at the computer screen, that I returned to this review.
I started to say that there are two themes running through the book, but that's not really accurate. I'm guessing there might be as many as six, maybe a few more. However, for the purposes of the review, I'm only dealing with two.
The first is a howling great none-rational eruption of Scandinavian myth into the life of the present day world, as expressed in a tiny college in Epsom, Minnesota. That's a real place, by the way, but it's ONLY a place; nothing there but Minnesota. This is not the semi-gentle Minnesota that Garrison Keillor spoke of; this is a place that has no lasting identity, but is desperately running around in all directions, looking for one. So, the Scandinavian horror suits them just fine, at first. It is, after all, a way of deriving identity. Later, when people start getting eaten, chopped to bits, etc, they have other thoughts. Usually, coming a bit too late.
The second aspect of the story is a biting commentary on certain aspects of American society and the educational system that are aggravating. At the core of the irritating bits the the idea that everything is great and equal, EXCEPT for saying that everything ISN'T great and equal. That's a VAST oversimplification, but I believe it's true to the bit of the book that veers a bit toward message fiction.
NOTE: if it wasn't actually HAPPENING, this wouldn't be message fiction at all. It would just be: fiction. It's what seems to be the desired outcome of the most abrasive elements of society that have given this book what may be regarded as a political spin. But, that was the choice made by the Influencers, not by Walker. He was just writing a book.
And here's what he has one of his characters say:
“A good, hard fact is the best defence there is — against everything except tears. There's a whole generation of debators in the church who've learned that you don't have to refute an argument if you can only burst into tears and make your opponent look like a cad.”
I don't suppose that at the time he wrote that, it was reasonable to predict that the bursting into tears would be supplemented by hitting people in the head with bicycle locks. Unfortunately, that has turned out to be the case.
We can hope, however, that mysterious and evil bits of pre-history do not suddenly appear in our neighborhoods. The calling together of elements of Ragnarok and Armageddon, etc, IS a popular topic in fiction, according to the movie feeds that cross my line of sight. However, Walker rightly points out that the alleged noble and peaceful Viking traders, promoted by deconstructionist historians, are not quite the flavor we will get if they move in next door to us.
Re-reading has been a great visceral release. The good guys are good, the bad guys are bad, and usually, the difference between the two is evident. However, this is NOT 'Fun with Dick and Jane.' Characters are conflicted and have multiple motivations, so be prepared for that.
But: do yourself a favor, okay? Go ahead and get this one.
August 4, 2008
In a Minnesota college town, a born-again Christian, country-music DJ is recruited by a fundamentalist terror group. A professor of Scandinavian history finds himself suddenly unable to tell even the smallest lie. And a poet and concentration camp survivor arrives from Norway just after an incredible, rune-covered artifact is discovered in a farm recently acquired by a cult attempting to revive the Old Religion. So begins Lars Walker’s Wolf Time, a fantasy novel in which the social and metaphysical issues, along with sharply drawn characters, drive the plot along almost without pause or falter.
And in fact, Wolf Time is no typical fantasy-genre thriller, but a thoughtful--sometimes touching, sometimes very funny--social satire with solid fantasy roots. Setting his story in the very near future, Walker addresses our culture of political correctness, the spread of intellectual barbarism in elite circles, and the ever-present threat of mob mentality among shallow and compassionless ideologies. In the beginning, some readers may feel that all this social criticism--as effortlessly and fittingly as Walker weaves it into his plot--fits uncomfortably with the swords-and-sorcery genre. After a few chapters, however, we find this a fairly natural marriage of form and content, and this is less surprising when we consider the classic satirical novels written in the fantastical or speculative-fiction mode, from Gulliver’s Travels to Brave New World.
One other facet of the book that will surprise some readers is Walker’s emphasis not only on general metaphysics but on the full spectrum of Scandinavian religion. Here we encounter the ancient, mythological religion in the form of both a massive, roaming wolf and a familiar, bearded, one-eyed wanderer in a ragged cloak and floppy hat. And Scandinavia’s Lutheran heritage, now having lost most of its societal influence, is represented by an aging, lame preacher and the trappings of a formerly-religious college. Finally, there is the new religion, the neo-paganism seen to spread not only through popular culture but also through mainline Christian churches straining to be viewed as inclusive and broadminded. Frankly, it isn’t much of a mystery to guess where Walker’s sympathies lie. However, to his great credit, he never sets up straw men opponents and has a strong, cultivated sense for character and authentic dialogue. Thus, he always allows his antagonists not only some of the best lines in the novel but also a platform for making comprehensive and articulate arguments--many of these arguments possibly more compelling for the “other side” than what Walker’s readers have ever heard.
And in fact, Wolf Time is no typical fantasy-genre thriller, but a thoughtful--sometimes touching, sometimes very funny--social satire with solid fantasy roots. Setting his story in the very near future, Walker addresses our culture of political correctness, the spread of intellectual barbarism in elite circles, and the ever-present threat of mob mentality among shallow and compassionless ideologies. In the beginning, some readers may feel that all this social criticism--as effortlessly and fittingly as Walker weaves it into his plot--fits uncomfortably with the swords-and-sorcery genre. After a few chapters, however, we find this a fairly natural marriage of form and content, and this is less surprising when we consider the classic satirical novels written in the fantastical or speculative-fiction mode, from Gulliver’s Travels to Brave New World.
One other facet of the book that will surprise some readers is Walker’s emphasis not only on general metaphysics but on the full spectrum of Scandinavian religion. Here we encounter the ancient, mythological religion in the form of both a massive, roaming wolf and a familiar, bearded, one-eyed wanderer in a ragged cloak and floppy hat. And Scandinavia’s Lutheran heritage, now having lost most of its societal influence, is represented by an aging, lame preacher and the trappings of a formerly-religious college. Finally, there is the new religion, the neo-paganism seen to spread not only through popular culture but also through mainline Christian churches straining to be viewed as inclusive and broadminded. Frankly, it isn’t much of a mystery to guess where Walker’s sympathies lie. However, to his great credit, he never sets up straw men opponents and has a strong, cultivated sense for character and authentic dialogue. Thus, he always allows his antagonists not only some of the best lines in the novel but also a platform for making comprehensive and articulate arguments--many of these arguments possibly more compelling for the “other side” than what Walker’s readers have ever heard.
October 28, 2014
I thought this was an odd book, with quite a few different elements which seemed jarring when all mixed together. This is a fantasy book set in relatively recent times on Earth. In this book, the following things are all portrayed as true: Christianity, witchcraft, and Norse mythology. Yep, these things are all merged together into one story. We have Norse gods, we have witches who can see the future, and we have angels and levitating Christians.
This story has a dystopian setting, but it didn’t feel at all believable to me. It felt like I’d gotten lost inside the head of the type of person who always jumps to the worst possible conclusion about everything. Throughout the book, there were constant references to extreme viewpoints held in this fictional society that had presumably come about as a result of some of real-life society’s more recent trends. But it seemed very over-the-top and alarmist to me. I was never quite certain if the author meant it to be funny or serious or prophetic or what. Within the fictional world, however, they were definitely serious.
One theme the author seemed particularly fond of taking to extremes was political correctness. Here are a couple of quotes from the book: “We will not rest until all vestiges of ableism are removed from the games, and Olympic medals have nothing whatever to do with strength, speed, agility or coordination.” and “…if a court determines that a victim showed insufficient vigilance and so enticed the criminal to take advantage of them, they would be liable to pay the convicted criminal damages…”.
I felt that the book was a bit preachy and heavy-handed with the Christian themes, although truthfully the characters in the story had a tendency to drift into monologues about a variety of topics, not just Christianity. However, I wasn’t very far into the book before I had to double check that this really was published by Baen. It didn’t feel at all like what I’ve come to expect from Baen. It felt like it was an indie, or perhaps published by a Christian publishing house.
When the characters had actual dialogue, I sometimes found them difficult to follow because the author had an odd tendency to break a few sentences out into two or more paragraphs. The proper quotation conventions were used, but I often missed the omitted quotation mark because I didn’t expect the author to start a new paragraph after only one sentence when the same character will still speaking. Combine that with the fact that the author rarely indicated who was speaking beyond the initial volley, and I frequently had to re-read some of the dialogue to verify who was saying what.
I suspect that some people might find this book uproariously funny, although I’m still confused about whether or not it was intended that way. For perspective, I also disliked The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy which I know is a much-beloved book for many people. Not that these two books have the slightest thing in common, but it might help explain what kind of humor I like. I love humor, but I like realistic humor. If it’s too ridiculous, it pulls me out of the story and I get bored by it. The story was somewhat interesting, in-between the things I didn’t like, but there was a lot that I disliked and the ending seemed trite to me.
This story has a dystopian setting, but it didn’t feel at all believable to me. It felt like I’d gotten lost inside the head of the type of person who always jumps to the worst possible conclusion about everything. Throughout the book, there were constant references to extreme viewpoints held in this fictional society that had presumably come about as a result of some of real-life society’s more recent trends. But it seemed very over-the-top and alarmist to me. I was never quite certain if the author meant it to be funny or serious or prophetic or what. Within the fictional world, however, they were definitely serious.
One theme the author seemed particularly fond of taking to extremes was political correctness. Here are a couple of quotes from the book: “We will not rest until all vestiges of ableism are removed from the games, and Olympic medals have nothing whatever to do with strength, speed, agility or coordination.” and “…if a court determines that a victim showed insufficient vigilance and so enticed the criminal to take advantage of them, they would be liable to pay the convicted criminal damages…”.
I felt that the book was a bit preachy and heavy-handed with the Christian themes, although truthfully the characters in the story had a tendency to drift into monologues about a variety of topics, not just Christianity. However, I wasn’t very far into the book before I had to double check that this really was published by Baen. It didn’t feel at all like what I’ve come to expect from Baen. It felt like it was an indie, or perhaps published by a Christian publishing house.
When the characters had actual dialogue, I sometimes found them difficult to follow because the author had an odd tendency to break a few sentences out into two or more paragraphs. The proper quotation conventions were used, but I often missed the omitted quotation mark because I didn’t expect the author to start a new paragraph after only one sentence when the same character will still speaking. Combine that with the fact that the author rarely indicated who was speaking beyond the initial volley, and I frequently had to re-read some of the dialogue to verify who was saying what.
I suspect that some people might find this book uproariously funny, although I’m still confused about whether or not it was intended that way. For perspective, I also disliked The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy which I know is a much-beloved book for many people. Not that these two books have the slightest thing in common, but it might help explain what kind of humor I like. I love humor, but I like realistic humor. If it’s too ridiculous, it pulls me out of the story and I get bored by it. The story was somewhat interesting, in-between the things I didn’t like, but there was a lot that I disliked and the ending seemed trite to me.
June 11, 2009
Exciting supernatural thriller with a strong Christian theme, well-defined characters, and a clever, engaging plot. Highly recommended.
June 7, 2019
Lars Walker has a gift, weaving threads of a story together. Not only is he a colorful, imaginative writer, but he writes so that you can feel the vulnerabilities and strands as they pull, stretch, and snap.
What characters will become significant? What twists and images will be revealed? How can the author bring all these things together?! Yet he does! He really does!
I'm glad I could read this in just a setting or two, so I could take it all in, both overall and details. Well worth reading, and very satisfying, especially when in the mood for some intensity.
What I can call this book: near-future, religious dystopian; mythopoeia with norse crossover; provocative; pro-vocation; and, hopefully not but possibly prophetic fiction.
The setting is our own, only further along its current leanings. But, while one won't wonder long how the author must feel about our own modern issues, his cultural insinuations are accompanied by sympathetic characters. There is definitely darkness in this book, but you see the tensions of good people trying to do their best. And that includes an atheist and a Lutheran pastor, trying living out Bible-based Christianity.
There are cultural, philosophical, and theological questions. And, while the author is certainly Christian, you will wonder just who the good and bad guys really will be! But the book is written in such a way that you're left to wrestle with the questions rather than receive some insipid answer.
Good reading, and I look forward to reading more!!
What characters will become significant? What twists and images will be revealed? How can the author bring all these things together?! Yet he does! He really does!
I'm glad I could read this in just a setting or two, so I could take it all in, both overall and details. Well worth reading, and very satisfying, especially when in the mood for some intensity.
What I can call this book: near-future, religious dystopian; mythopoeia with norse crossover; provocative; pro-vocation; and, hopefully not but possibly prophetic fiction.
The setting is our own, only further along its current leanings. But, while one won't wonder long how the author must feel about our own modern issues, his cultural insinuations are accompanied by sympathetic characters. There is definitely darkness in this book, but you see the tensions of good people trying to do their best. And that includes an atheist and a Lutheran pastor, trying living out Bible-based Christianity.
There are cultural, philosophical, and theological questions. And, while the author is certainly Christian, you will wonder just who the good and bad guys really will be! But the book is written in such a way that you're left to wrestle with the questions rather than receive some insipid answer.
Good reading, and I look forward to reading more!!
October 10, 2020
Fantastic Christian Fiction!
This book is captivating from the first word to last. What a excellent way to share the struggles of modern Christianity in of modern new age culture. The characters feel like people you know and the plot is terrific. Looking forward to reading more from Lars Walker.
This book is captivating from the first word to last. What a excellent way to share the struggles of modern Christianity in of modern new age culture. The characters feel like people you know and the plot is terrific. Looking forward to reading more from Lars Walker.
June 14, 2015
I had a difficult time deciding whether I liked this book more or not. It is a good fantasy story well told, with a lot of clever ideas. It mixes Norse mythology into an American Midwestern farmland setting, small college town in Minnesota, I think. It is near-term future, and a lot of his ideas about what will happen in society are on one level a bit frightening. Smokers have been classified as a protected class, so no one can complain about their smoking. The Definition of Religion Act has determined that people are free to believe whatever they want as long as it does not involve any claim that anything specific is true. Everyone receives a number of "Victim Quotient Points" based on race, economic background, and other factors, and a high number can prevent you from being sentenced for a crime or give you automatic high grades in a college course.
Our small college town is (of course) very Lutheran, with a Lutheran school that no longer teaches anything to do with faith and a Lutheran church whose elderly pastor has been moved to assistant so a younger modern-thinking woman very interested in incorporating her idealized conception of paganism into the lives of her parishioners can take over. The main character is an agnostic who has the ability to recognize whenever anyone is lying (even in print) but suffers the inability to lie himself. Other significant characters are the aging pastor and his sister, a Christian radio announcer who escaped from the streets of one of California's cities, a Jewish author, the hero's "girl who got away", and a Nobel-prize-winning Norwegian poet who extols paganism, laughs at America's notions of pluralism and fancies himself Odin reincarnated.
One thing that appealed to me about the book was its reality. I have been an announcer on a Christian radio station in the middle of nowhere, and attended a Lutheran Bible College, and known quite a few Lutherans and Lutheran churches, and been connected to the Jesus Movement, and all these things felt quite right to me. The running gag that the DJ talks about Jesus, condemns rock and roll music, and plays country music records whose typically country music titles announce that they are about infidelity and drunkenness and such is one with which I am familiar from the Christian Rock Music debates of the seventies and eighties. The unreality seems like plausible unreality; the supernatural enters the story quite naturally. It is in some ways exactly the kind of book I like--somewhat on the order of Charles Williams (Descent Into Hell, The Greater Trumps, War in Heaven) with its quite natural integration of the spirit and material worlds. I feel like I ought to like it more than I do, and cannot put my finger on why I do not.
Perhaps it is only that this was a bad time in my own life, and so I did not get as much enjoyment from the book as I might otherwise have done; but this was the second time I read the book, having seen it lying on the bedroom floor dislodged from some hiding place and deciding to pick it up rather abruptly. I do not think I was more enthused about it the last time. It is a good book, but I would not class it with the great ones I have read.
I believe I have Eric Ashley to thank for it; he has sent me a few boxes of books in the past, and this was undoubtedly one of those. I do recommend it as well worth reading.
Our small college town is (of course) very Lutheran, with a Lutheran school that no longer teaches anything to do with faith and a Lutheran church whose elderly pastor has been moved to assistant so a younger modern-thinking woman very interested in incorporating her idealized conception of paganism into the lives of her parishioners can take over. The main character is an agnostic who has the ability to recognize whenever anyone is lying (even in print) but suffers the inability to lie himself. Other significant characters are the aging pastor and his sister, a Christian radio announcer who escaped from the streets of one of California's cities, a Jewish author, the hero's "girl who got away", and a Nobel-prize-winning Norwegian poet who extols paganism, laughs at America's notions of pluralism and fancies himself Odin reincarnated.
One thing that appealed to me about the book was its reality. I have been an announcer on a Christian radio station in the middle of nowhere, and attended a Lutheran Bible College, and known quite a few Lutherans and Lutheran churches, and been connected to the Jesus Movement, and all these things felt quite right to me. The running gag that the DJ talks about Jesus, condemns rock and roll music, and plays country music records whose typically country music titles announce that they are about infidelity and drunkenness and such is one with which I am familiar from the Christian Rock Music debates of the seventies and eighties. The unreality seems like plausible unreality; the supernatural enters the story quite naturally. It is in some ways exactly the kind of book I like--somewhat on the order of Charles Williams (Descent Into Hell, The Greater Trumps, War in Heaven) with its quite natural integration of the spirit and material worlds. I feel like I ought to like it more than I do, and cannot put my finger on why I do not.
Perhaps it is only that this was a bad time in my own life, and so I did not get as much enjoyment from the book as I might otherwise have done; but this was the second time I read the book, having seen it lying on the bedroom floor dislodged from some hiding place and deciding to pick it up rather abruptly. I do not think I was more enthused about it the last time. It is a good book, but I would not class it with the great ones I have read.
I believe I have Eric Ashley to thank for it; he has sent me a few boxes of books in the past, and this was undoubtedly one of those. I do recommend it as well worth reading.
October 20, 2012
Since Lars was kind enough to let me have a copy of his book "Troll Valley" to review last spring {{put in links to both}}, I thought I probably should read the rest of his books. And, some months later, I finally have.
Like much of today's popular fiction, Wolf Time takes place in a dystopian world, and like many of them, the dystopia passes itself off internally as being just two steps short of a utopia. But unlike many of them, it isn't a post-apocalyptic dystopia (it might be a pre-apocalyptic dystopia, but that's a different discussion), so many of the characters actually remember better times. Instead it's a dystopia based on political correctness gone mad, and as such I find it far scarier than other dystopian literature I've read recently.
The story takes place in a small mid-western Christian college, shortly after a federal bill passed that defined legitimate religions, and only allowed full freedom of speech to them. There is also a small group of terrorists convinced they're doing the Lord's work, a small cult group in a farm on the edge of town, and a scary, but usually genteel, old man who may or may not be the incarnation of Odin. And miracles happening on both sides. Altogether a very weird, but interesting book. Fortunately, I've always liked weird.
I'd say my favorite part of the book though, is toward the end, when one of the characters gets a vision of the two rather stern founders of the college. It seems that in heaven, they were given the task of learning vaudeville, since it appears that God thought that one of the main things lacking in their lives was a sense of frivolity.
Like much of today's popular fiction, Wolf Time takes place in a dystopian world, and like many of them, the dystopia passes itself off internally as being just two steps short of a utopia. But unlike many of them, it isn't a post-apocalyptic dystopia (it might be a pre-apocalyptic dystopia, but that's a different discussion), so many of the characters actually remember better times. Instead it's a dystopia based on political correctness gone mad, and as such I find it far scarier than other dystopian literature I've read recently.
The story takes place in a small mid-western Christian college, shortly after a federal bill passed that defined legitimate religions, and only allowed full freedom of speech to them. There is also a small group of terrorists convinced they're doing the Lord's work, a small cult group in a farm on the edge of town, and a scary, but usually genteel, old man who may or may not be the incarnation of Odin. And miracles happening on both sides. Altogether a very weird, but interesting book. Fortunately, I've always liked weird.
I'd say my favorite part of the book though, is toward the end, when one of the characters gets a vision of the two rather stern founders of the college. It seems that in heaven, they were given the task of learning vaudeville, since it appears that God thought that one of the main things lacking in their lives was a sense of frivolity.
August 20, 2016
I picked up Lars Walker's books recently without understanding what I was getting into. Lars Walker walks in a realm that has been forgotten of late, the Christian-fantasy, once trod by the great Christian author C.S. Lewis. The story is a beautiful mix of Norse mythology and Christian love that leaves you awestruck as if you'd just experienced water and oil mixing together. returnreturnThe book is in a politically correct world and I though as I read it, "Oh, he must have stolen these situations from recent headlines." Only this book was written almost 15 years ago. Instead, Mr. Walker predicted these strange, quasi-religion situation and that made the story's backdrop a bit scary for me. It makes me want to watch for even more politically correctness to unfold.returnreturnAs a Christian, he even made me feel a quite a bit uncomfortable. I'm sure he meant it! It's never easy to hear your religion ripped to bits and all it's guts exposed. Nobody likes admitting mistakes, even reading about mistakes.returnreturnThe characters are very real and I even found myself wanting to pray for one! How silly to have to remind myself that it's just a storybook.
January 13, 2012
This book was a bit of a surprise to me. I found it at the Free Library at the Baen EBooks site, and gave it a shot. At first I wasn't sure what angle the author was taking with the book, as he had both racist, bigotted Christians as well as over-the-top, politically correct secularists. The story centers on Carl Martell, a college professor who knows whenever someone tells a lie (even on television commercials) and is incapable of telling a lie himself. Strangely enough, as important as this was to the plot, it wasn't really the focus of the book, so much as it is just a facet (important as it may turn out to be) of Martell's character.
You may want to brush up on your
Over all, it was a fun read, and I was very pleased to read a book that surprised me
You may want to brush up on your
Over all, it was a fun read, and I was very pleased to read a book that surprised me
January 6, 2008
Too Slow...
Available at Baen Free Library.
Carl Martell, history professor at the non-Christian Christiana College, cannot tell a lie. But he can sense when others do. And when acclaimed Norweigan Poet, Sigfod Oski, comes to town, Martell is certain the greatest deceiver of all is in their midst. Peopled with such endearing characters as the quiet but courageous Lutheran pastor, a born-again disk jockey, and the mythological wolf, Fenris, "Wolf Time" pulls you into Walker's all-too-realistic vision of where America is heading, and what believers will be called upon to endure.
Available at Baen Free Library.
Carl Martell, history professor at the non-Christian Christiana College, cannot tell a lie. But he can sense when others do. And when acclaimed Norweigan Poet, Sigfod Oski, comes to town, Martell is certain the greatest deceiver of all is in their midst. Peopled with such endearing characters as the quiet but courageous Lutheran pastor, a born-again disk jockey, and the mythological wolf, Fenris, "Wolf Time" pulls you into Walker's all-too-realistic vision of where America is heading, and what believers will be called upon to endure.
April 2, 2013
Fair book. Brush up on your Norse mythology before reading. This is offered for free at Baen Books.
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