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The Swan-Bone Flute
In Wellstowe, an Anglo-Saxon settlement where forest meets fen, trouble is brewing. Ursel, the headman’s strong-willed niece, defies her uncle to save a pregnant red deer hind from the hunt. She understands, but can’t explain, that all lives are woven together. If they devastate the wild, the people will perish too – and women will bear the brunt. He sees a disobedient girl who threatens his ambition, and beats her with the blunt end of his spear.
Into this storm strolls Hilda, the travelling storyteller – playing her swan-bone flute. She has a plan to wake up the women before thane and headman steal their rights. Her humour and passion inspire Meg, who yearns to become a storyteller too – but how can she, a slave-girl, dare to stand up before them all? She's shaken when the Thane targets her with his vengeful lust.
Hilda’s tales reveal an ancient world where women rule in Peony Valley: until fighters trample it and only the wise woman holds power to resist. Hilda despairs of the Wellstowe women when they turn on each other instead of standing up against oppression. Her stories begin to transform each of them. If she can help them work together, they may have a chance to bring back their traditions of respect for women, community and mother earth.
Headman’s wife Oswynne must decide whether to risk losing everything to support Elder Edith against the Thane. Seren the healer can raise magic mist – but will it stop the Thane taking over their Moot?
Into this storm strolls Hilda, the travelling storyteller – playing her swan-bone flute. She has a plan to wake up the women before thane and headman steal their rights. Her humour and passion inspire Meg, who yearns to become a storyteller too – but how can she, a slave-girl, dare to stand up before them all? She's shaken when the Thane targets her with his vengeful lust.
Hilda’s tales reveal an ancient world where women rule in Peony Valley: until fighters trample it and only the wise woman holds power to resist. Hilda despairs of the Wellstowe women when they turn on each other instead of standing up against oppression. Her stories begin to transform each of them. If she can help them work together, they may have a chance to bring back their traditions of respect for women, community and mother earth.
Headman’s wife Oswynne must decide whether to risk losing everything to support Elder Edith against the Thane. Seren the healer can raise magic mist – but will it stop the Thane taking over their Moot?
446 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
July 4, 2020
I tend to be slightly wary of historical fiction, non-crime anyway, feeling that I'd prefer to have my history lessons in non-fiction form. But I was buying this book anyway on the grounds of personal connection and feel glad not to have missed out because of a mild prejudice or pre-conception. This is a fine book and an absorbing read. The swan-bone flute is part of the toolkit of Hilda Hedgebackwards, an itinerant storyteller in Anglo-Saxon England. She fetches up at the settlement of Wellstowe on the edge of the Fens which is reeling from an incident in which a very young woman, Ursel, has prevented the headman from killing a pregnant deer and he beats her viciously for it. Both feel profoundly wronged and the matter must be dealt with by the community. Sometimes I shared the view of Thane Roger that it all takes so very long - it wasn't quite like waiting for English justice to get its act together in the 21st century but a similar feeling of waiting for a 'court date'
Meanwhile, Hilda who is dependent on her ability to entertain for the hospitality she needs, tells her stories to the women and children of Wellstowe, and perhaps especially to Meg, a British slave born to a British slave Seren. That's because Hilda is looking for an apprentice and successor and she thinks Meg might be it.
The story is not weighed down by period detail (author's notes at the end detail resources) but we are given a fascinating picture of the societal structure and way of life - the anxiety over ensuring there's enough to eat, the way the women manage their daily lives (if you don't know about the importance of cervical mucus, you will by the end). The characters all have interesting personal histories which the storytelling atmosphere and Hilda's personal skill draws out... including Hilda herself as she eventually realises she needs to share too. She's a kind of revolutionary (hence the regularity of being thrown out of places through a hedge backwards)
Other change may be coming too: there's the idea of banding together with other settlements under the notion of being under attack, with Thane Roger wafting in periodically to require assistance with military building and effectively pillaging for supplies, but with the apparent agreement of the headman Kendric. And there's a chilling episode where a mysterious Brother Michael tells his rather different sort of stories - Christianity does not look like 'good news', and especially not for women.
Hilda is very much a wise woman (like the author) but she remains human and she gets things wrong sometimes - unkind impulsive words slip out and she takes far too long to address the problems between Ursel and Meg, making things worse in the meantime. There are some funny bits such as when she and Meg find themselves on the water in a fog which may or may not have been called up by Seren's British spiritual rituals, rescuing but detaining someone who they need not to arrive at the village too soon. They don't tie him up with ropes but with scary stories.
What I especially loved about this book is the way we are shown, through the careful work of the Elders (and through Hilda) how significant that opening incident really is and the different concerns, all of which are ultimately viewed with respect and compassion... and all of which still have strong relevance today: the rights of women, the pressures on men, the relationship between humans and nature.
Meanwhile, Hilda who is dependent on her ability to entertain for the hospitality she needs, tells her stories to the women and children of Wellstowe, and perhaps especially to Meg, a British slave born to a British slave Seren. That's because Hilda is looking for an apprentice and successor and she thinks Meg might be it.
The story is not weighed down by period detail (author's notes at the end detail resources) but we are given a fascinating picture of the societal structure and way of life - the anxiety over ensuring there's enough to eat, the way the women manage their daily lives (if you don't know about the importance of cervical mucus, you will by the end). The characters all have interesting personal histories which the storytelling atmosphere and Hilda's personal skill draws out... including Hilda herself as she eventually realises she needs to share too. She's a kind of revolutionary (hence the regularity of being thrown out of places through a hedge backwards)
Other change may be coming too: there's the idea of banding together with other settlements under the notion of being under attack, with Thane Roger wafting in periodically to require assistance with military building and effectively pillaging for supplies, but with the apparent agreement of the headman Kendric. And there's a chilling episode where a mysterious Brother Michael tells his rather different sort of stories - Christianity does not look like 'good news', and especially not for women.
Hilda is very much a wise woman (like the author) but she remains human and she gets things wrong sometimes - unkind impulsive words slip out and she takes far too long to address the problems between Ursel and Meg, making things worse in the meantime. There are some funny bits such as when she and Meg find themselves on the water in a fog which may or may not have been called up by Seren's British spiritual rituals, rescuing but detaining someone who they need not to arrive at the village too soon. They don't tie him up with ropes but with scary stories.
What I especially loved about this book is the way we are shown, through the careful work of the Elders (and through Hilda) how significant that opening incident really is and the different concerns, all of which are ultimately viewed with respect and compassion... and all of which still have strong relevance today: the rights of women, the pressures on men, the relationship between humans and nature.
November 9, 2020
This beautifully written story - and the stories within the story, has been like a best friend to me over the last six months. For me savouring its gentleness, between reading and switching to more fantastical, fast-paced, sometimes aggressive, gory high octane novels, brought a wonderful sense of balance to my enjoyment of the written word.
I defy any woman, or man for that matter, not to feel empathy with at least one of the characters within this book. Full of wisdom and common sense set in an age long ago, but still not very different to the world we live in today.
Hilda the storyteller lives literally by the seat of her pants passing through villages, telling her stories in exchange for her food and lodgings. She stays at a village where all the women are silent heroes, who struggle to have a voice in a world of men. Hilda's stories and council sets about to address the balance in a diplomatic and uncompromising way.
I will miss this book by my bedside, not least for the stunning book-cover by Katherine Soutar. I am sorry that I have finished it.
I defy any woman, or man for that matter, not to feel empathy with at least one of the characters within this book. Full of wisdom and common sense set in an age long ago, but still not very different to the world we live in today.
Hilda the storyteller lives literally by the seat of her pants passing through villages, telling her stories in exchange for her food and lodgings. She stays at a village where all the women are silent heroes, who struggle to have a voice in a world of men. Hilda's stories and council sets about to address the balance in a diplomatic and uncompromising way.
I will miss this book by my bedside, not least for the stunning book-cover by Katherine Soutar. I am sorry that I have finished it.
November 19, 2019
Brilliant storytelling! I cried reading the last word, not knowing when Book 2 will come out! Delicious, juicy, spellbinding! Thank you Rachel!!!!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews