2022/116: Treacle Walker — Alan Garner

2022/116: Treacle Walker — Alan Garner

'Why live in a bog?’
‘And if I didn’t,’ said Thin Amren, ‘should I not rot?’
‘And all that dreaming stuff.’
‘What else should a body do when he sleeps?’
‘How long have you been there?’ said Joe. ‘In the bog.’
‘A honeycomb of ages.’
‘How long’s that?’
‘From then till now.' [loc. 461]

This is very short, 131 pages in the print edition, and very dense: I'm not sure that I understand it yet. It's the story of Joe, who likes comics and marbles (so may be a child) but seems to live alone (so may be an adult) and at one point wonders if he is dead (so ..."I will not say that you are dead.") ( Read more... )