Alan Garner has been a unique voice in British fantasy since
his first novel, The Weirdstone of
Brisingamen, was published in 1960, followed by a direct sequel, The Moon of Gomrath in 1963, Elidor two years later and The Owl Service two years after that.
Only one novel appeared in the 1970s (Red
Shift, already reviewed on this blog along with the first two), then there
was a pause of over twenty years before Strandloper,
followed by Thursbitch and finally Boneland in 2012. He has also written
short stories – I have an anthology in my reading pile.
There are two powerful elements which inform his stories.
The first is his deep knowledge of British history and mythology; the second is
a very strong sense of place which comes through, of both the visible geography
and the magic that can lie beneath it. The author I am most reminded of is
Robert Holdstock, and I think there may also be a flavour of Keith Roberts,
whose novel Pavane made a strong
impression on me long ago – I really must read it again.
Like most of Garner's stories, The Owl Service is set in the present day (well, the 1960s when it
was written!) and focuses on a family on a long summer holiday in a remote
house in central Wales, in a valley surrounded by mountains. We gradually
realise (Garner doesn't go in for infodumps, readers have to work things out)
that the family consists of a man and his new second wife, plus two adolescent
children: his own son (Roger) and his wife's daughter (Alison). The other
characters are a housekeeper and her adolescent son (Gwyn), plus a gardener who
appears to be somewhat soft in the head (Huw). The storytelling viewpoint
switches between the three children. One oddity is that while six of the seven
characters are well drawn and very distinctive, constantly appearing on scene,
Alison's mother hardly appears at all.
The discovery of an old crockery service decorated by
stylised owls and flowers sparks a puzzlingly strong reaction in the
housekeeper; the uncovering of a painting of a beautiful young woman also
causes consternation. These both seem to be linked somehow to an ancient Welsh myth
which appears to be coming to life once again and in which Huw plays a central
role. As the tensions between the characters rise and their differences emerge,
are the children in danger?
Garner has been characterised as a childen's or young
adults' author, but judging by Red Shift
he evolved away from that – it was more of an experimental novel in style;
clipped, elliptical and with little description, focused mostly on dialogue.
There is a flavour of that in The Owl Service:
there are atmospheric descriptions of places, but the reader has to gain
understanding of what is happening primarily through the conversations between
the characters. This is not a criticism, just an acknowledgement that Garner
makes his readers work a little harder than most authors.
The book is short (less than 200 pages) and I read it in two
sessions. What was most significant to me – and sadly uncommon these days – was
that I was really keen to pick up the book again and read the second half, I
was so drawn into the world the author had created. My only complaint is that
the ending seemed very abrupt and unexpected.
I already have all of Garner's other novels on my shelves or
in the reading pile except Strandloper,
which I am about to order. He is a distinctive author who is well worth reading.