I have to assume that a large majority of you studied the epic poem, Beowulf, when you were in high school. If you recall, this is often cited as the oldest example of an epic poem in Old English and it tells the story of the hero, Beowulf, who comes to aid a king who is plagued by a monster known a...
I'm embarrassed to admit that I had never read this fantasy classic until after I heard it recommended twice in one day at last year's World Fantasy Convention.Most English-speaking readers are familiar with Beowulf. Even if it wasn't foisted upon you in a high school or college English class, most ...
Read this back in high school. It was a banned book off and on then strictly for the cursing which wasn't smeared through the book. Just a little here and there. The story was good, for a teenager, but now looking back on what I remember it was a very dark and depressing book. I'm not a big fan ...
Interesting read. This was a heavy book to get through, deep with philosophical thinking. Gardner gave a very in-depth look into Grendel's mind in this retelling of Beowulf. Overall, it was good. I would have liked to see more action in the text. For the most part, Grendel mulls over life, but nothi...
Wow. This was a doozy of a book, and not at all what I expected. I expected a more sympathetic and in-depth look at one of the more famous monsters of literature, and this novel certainly was that. What I didn't see coming was the onion-like layers to this book. The deeper I tried to read into it, t...
I must say, coming right into this book after having read Beowulf was really quite a jump initially, simply because of the change in styles. But it was such an interesting read, and it was really brilliant and tragic getting to see things from Grendel's point of view. What was even more fascinating ...
I recently read Beowulf which I deemed an impressive relic. I admit I read it mainly to prepare myself for Grendel. John Gardner's retelling of Beowulf from the monster's viewpoint was a delight from beginning to end. But I think it tells a lot about modern man. Perfect heroes no longer interest us....
I'm always wary of books that offer a different take on a well known, traditional story but this was done quite well, proving to be not just presenting Grendel's point of view but also his meditation on the meaning of life.Why is it that the stories that offer the best insights into the human condit...
Okay I will admit to not being an erudite individual and I usually steer clear of literary writings as I just don't have the energy to figure out WTH the author is trying to say with his flowery prose. I knew Grendel was the monster in Beowolf which I read eons ago in high school or college (I don...
So you tell the story of the monster, but then shouldn't we know the story of that random guard he brutally killed to prove an adolescent point? And maybe his girlfriend. And her mother. And Grendel's mother, and so on until we go the world around and come back to Beowulf. Can I make all the Sandor ...
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