Written by: Endrael
title: The Book of the Dun Cow
author: Walter Wangerin Jr
pages: 256 (varies by edition, though)
genre: fiction (Christian, parable/allegory)
publisher: varies by edition
original publish date: 1978, with reissues coming out once or twice a decade since then (with new cover art for each), and the 25th anniversary edition had an added afterward by the author
summary (stolen from amazon.com): Winner of the American Book Award, Walter Wangerin's allegorical fantasy concerns a time when the sun turned around the earth and animals could speak, when Chauntecleer the Rooster ruled over a more or less peaceful kingdom. What the animals did not know was that they were the Keeper of Wyrm, monster of Evil long imprisoned beneath the earth. And Wyrm, sub terra, was breaking free.
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This is one of my favorite books of all time, and I recommend it to everyone whenever I'm asked for suggestions on what to read next. Though there are a lot of elements borrowed from Christianity (the author was a minister), you don't feel like you're being beaten over the head with them, since the focus is on the characters, their interactions, and their struggles to survive and understand.
It is an extremely well written book, with a very engaging style and every character being believable and unique, and this includes the antagonists (which is more often than not a point where most writer's fail when including story bits from the perspective of the antagonists). There are many poignant moments throughout the story, and the characters' reactions to the events of the story mesh seamlessly into the whole.
There's also a sequel to this called The Book of Sorrows, but it's not nearly as good as this one. If you really like Book of the Dun Cow, it's worth checking out, but it's much darker, more depressing, and the thematic elements are much more overt, which all make it much harder to get into and enjoy.
title: The Book of the Dun Cow
author: Walter Wangerin Jr
pages: 256 (varies by edition, though)
genre: fiction (Christian, parable/allegory)
publisher: varies by edition
original publish date: 1978, with reissues coming out once or twice a decade since then (with new cover art for each), and the 25th anniversary edition had an added afterward by the author
summary (stolen from amazon.com): Winner of the American Book Award, Walter Wangerin's allegorical fantasy concerns a time when the sun turned around the earth and animals could speak, when Chauntecleer the Rooster ruled over a more or less peaceful kingdom. What the animals did not know was that they were the Keeper of Wyrm, monster of Evil long imprisoned beneath the earth. And Wyrm, sub terra, was breaking free.
---
This is one of my favorite books of all time, and I recommend it to everyone whenever I'm asked for suggestions on what to read next. Though there are a lot of elements borrowed from Christianity (the author was a minister), you don't feel like you're being beaten over the head with them, since the focus is on the characters, their interactions, and their struggles to survive and understand.
It is an extremely well written book, with a very engaging style and every character being believable and unique, and this includes the antagonists (which is more often than not a point where most writer's fail when including story bits from the perspective of the antagonists). There are many poignant moments throughout the story, and the characters' reactions to the events of the story mesh seamlessly into the whole.
There's also a sequel to this called The Book of Sorrows, but it's not nearly as good as this one. If you really like Book of the Dun Cow, it's worth checking out, but it's much darker, more depressing, and the thematic elements are much more overt, which all make it much harder to get into and enjoy.
