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Original Essays | September 17, 2013

Lyanda Lynn Haupt: IMG Celebrate Fiercely: Creative Life in Wild Cities

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A couple of years ago I had the pleasure of being interviewed by Michael Toms for the iconic New Dimensions radio show. Toms, often called the... Continue »
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1 Beaverton Literature- A to Z
9 Burnside Featured Titles- Miscellaneous Award Winners

Grendel

by

Grendel Cover

ISBN13: 9780679723110
ISBN10: 0679723110
Condition: Standard
All Product Details

 

Staff Pick

It's easy to find oneself in the thrall of hanks of blond hair and mead-fueled heroism, but it is a more difficult task to regard, with care, the heart of a monster. The monster (but is he?) in question is Grendel, an introspective animal who loves his mother and also has a taste for Danes. Gardner's novel is an accounting of the tale of Beowulf from Grendel's perspective; it's a story of a monster's hunger, love, and grief, and also those of men. Consider the original poem Beowulf: How is it that the happy endings of men and their stories are those that are soaked in blood?
Recommended by Gin, Powells.com

Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

The first and most terrifying monster in English literature, from the great early epic Beowulf, tells his side of the story.

Review:

"This is storytelling at its best." Library Journal

Review:

An extraordinary achievement...very funny, original and deft, altogether lovable, poignant, rich with thought and feeling...immensely enjoyable. John Gardner has become a major contemporary writer." The New York Times

Review:

"A marvelous novel — absolutely marvelous: witty, intelligent, delightful...a celebration and a conservation of what we most need in one of the greatest poetic myths we have...I cannot recommend it too highly." Newsweek

Review:

"It deserves a place on the same shelf as Lord of the Flies, Cat's Cradle and Catcher in the Rye." Christian Science Monitor

Synopsis:

US
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About the Author

John Gardner was accorded wide praise for his works of imagination, of criticism, and of scholarship. He was born in 1933 in Batavia, New York. Among the universities at which he taught are Oberlin, San Francisco State, Northwestern, Southern Illinois, Bennington, and the State University of New York-Bennington. The Art of Fiction was completed before his death in 1982.
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What Our Readers Are Saying

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Average customer rating based on 3 comments:
Hillwalker, January 4, 2011 (view all comments by Hillwalker)
So why is Grendel trashing Hrothgar's mead hall so regularly? Well, everyone has to have a hobby. But Beowulf has crashed the party and is set on spoiling all the fun.

After reading the classic myth from Grendel's point of view, I'm not sure who's side I'd be on.
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m0martin, March 2, 2007 (view all comments by m0martin)
Simply breathtaking. Grendel's forlorn and foreign longing to share in the harp-player's tales of misty legend reveal the tenderest of hearts in solitude. As Grendel muses, he's never seen a wolf treat another wolf the way these humans treat each other, in war, in plunder, in idiotic slaughter. The book is also very, very funny. My highest recommendation!
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Simone, November 8, 2006 (view all comments by Simone)
John Gardner's poetic language and monstrous, fantastical descriptions in this novel of the old Grendel and Beowulf tale make for a constantly fascinating read. Grendel is pitiable as the outsider, looking into a firelit human world he cannot comprehend, and he is more human than his victims when he finds an enemy more vicious than he imagined in the fabled warrior, Beowulf. There is so much in this book that is worth returning to, I recommend it very highly to any reader of myth or dark fantasy.
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Product Details

ISBN:
9780679723110
Author:
Gardner, John
Publisher:
Vintage
Location:
New York :
Subject:
Literary
Subject:
Fiction
Subject:
American
Subject:
Literature
Subject:
Fantastic fiction
Subject:
Fantasy
Subject:
Historical fiction
Subject:
Monsters
Subject:
Epic
Subject:
Beowulf
Subject:
Epic poetry, English (Old)
Subject:
Fantasy fiction
Subject:
General Fiction
Subject:
Literature-A to Z
Copyright:
c197
Edition Number:
Vintage Books ed.
Edition Description:
Trade paper
Series:
Vintage
Series Volume:
No. 5
Publication Date:
19890514
Binding:
Paperback
Grade Level:
General/trade
Language:
English
Illustrations:
Y
Pages:
192
Dimensions:
7.65x5.29x.57 in. .40 lbs.
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Featured Titles » Literature
Featured Titles » Miscellaneous Award Winners
Fiction and Poetry » Literature » A to Z
Fiction and Poetry » Science Fiction and Fantasy » Fantasy » Epic
Fiction and Poetry » Science Fiction and Fantasy » Fantasy » Historical

Grendel Used Trade Paper
0 stars - 0 reviews
$7.95 In Stock
Product details 192 pages Vintage Books USA - English 9780679723110 Reviews:
"Staff Pick" by ,

It's easy to find oneself in the thrall of hanks of blond hair and mead-fueled heroism, but it is a more difficult task to regard, with care, the heart of a monster. The monster (but is he?) in question is Grendel, an introspective animal who loves his mother and also has a taste for Danes. Gardner's novel is an accounting of the tale of Beowulf from Grendel's perspective; it's a story of a monster's hunger, love, and grief, and also those of men. Consider the original poem Beowulf: How is it that the happy endings of men and their stories are those that are soaked in blood?

by Gin
"Review" by , "This is storytelling at its best."
"Review" by , An extraordinary achievement...very funny, original and deft, altogether lovable, poignant, rich with thought and feeling...immensely enjoyable. John Gardner has become a major contemporary writer."
"Review" by , "A marvelous novel — absolutely marvelous: witty, intelligent, delightful...a celebration and a conservation of what we most need in one of the greatest poetic myths we have...I cannot recommend it too highly."
"Review" by , "It deserves a place on the same shelf as Lord of the Flies, Cat's Cradle and Catcher in the Rye."
"Synopsis" by , US
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