Tangled Mind

Roland looked through the windows out over Elidor. He saw the tall figure on the battlements of Gorias, with the golden cloak about him. He saw the life spring in the land from Mondrum to the mountains of the north. He saw the morning. It was not enough. [loc. 1854]

I've been meaning to reread Elidor for a while, and after reading Thursbitch I became curious about how much Garner's early works foreshadowed his later fiction. Elidor was published the year that I was born. (It's aged rather better than I have). I suspect contemporary children would have little patience with its narrow focus, its innovative language (the Mound is 'supple to evil'), and its defiantly downbeat ending: but it is a compelling read.

Spoilers for the plot from here on.( Read more... )