Allyson Shaw > Recent Status Updates

I’m struggling through this book, stymied by the prose which confused: muddled with clauses, a jumble of research, random quotes and ideas with a sobering thread of Russian genocide of native peoplerunning throughout. 3/4 through it becomes a repetitive hammer, numbing the reader. The author seems to have little love for her subject.

So annoyed by the first person blow-by-blow narration- I should love this book, but besides the Russian sounding names, where is the world building? I’m past the middle point and suddenly the world is described as having a Christian church sharing power with the King- surely this would be an important part of a book built on the premise of magic? This just reads like a first draft to me.

Initially excited by a 2nd person narrative, this technique has since been abandoned by Faber. Also I have this sinking feeling that this is an 800+ page, one-character novel. I can tell from the spine creases smoothing out at this very point in my used copy that the reader before me chose not to finish...

Not exactly what I expected- this is a necessary approach to reclaim lost lore, but is a bit basic. Good for those starting out on the Heathen path, perhaps. I am enjoying this and am learning something.

I love this series but I’m finding the domestic violence in this one difficult & triggering for me, making it hard to really sink into it like I have with the others.

Oh man this is going to be dry....

This is my second attempt at reading this book. The first was when it had just come out. I abandoned it, despite using story as female liberation myself- fairy tales especially. I found the gender binary alienating. Also the talk of mothering- good mothers, bad mothers, unmothered women...I didn’t get it and sadly still don’t. Also this book needed an editor big time-

I’m sceptical, as with all things NG. I don’t understand the hype around his work. But this was staring me down at the library, so here goes. Having read many eddas and sagas in various translations maybe I’m not the audience for this. So far, so meh.

Weeping like a girl reading this book. Yet another reason to be vegan, really.

This book has become mired in the really uninteresting “romantic” dilemma and unsexy sex. I’ll finish it but what a slog.

Another book group read- I’m enjoying this, surprisingly.

I have never been so happy to get back to a book. After doing on the toxic masculinity of Cold Granite (for a reading group) it feels wonderful to get lost again in this planet of a novel.

Reading this Epic love letter to Russian literature- people smuggling books to each other, binding typed mss snuck out of labour camps, carrying microfiche of novels in their bodies across borders...totally compelling reading.

Chocolate cake to all the CBT books I’ve been reading

Discuss OMG this kind of book is like talking about a repair manual- in many ways they are, or should be. Of all the books I’ve read on this topic, this is by far the best. Too many breeze over tragedy & prejudice- assuming the reader has no “real” problems- they are all “in their heads”. This book makes no assumptions in this regard.

I am not going to finish this book; it’s so poorly written. The comparison stats- where you are in relation to others in your age group- are particularly unhelpful and triggering.

Why are so many mental health books condescending? Do physicians really see their papas this stupid? Also what about real problems that befall people- not just losing your X box or your boyfriend flirting with someone else or you feeling fat while your friends are all “ looking good in the latest styles”. Maybe this is for teens? If so then it is misleading.

This book is the best horror novel I’ve read in a good long while. It’s defiance of any genre must be why everyone isn’t talk about its amazingness all the time.