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The Owl Service Alan Garner 9780345290441 Books

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The Owl Service Alan Garner 9780345290441 Books

Inspired by Welsh mythology, this story is classic Garner: ordinary people pulled from their ordinary lives into a magical and dangerous world. It's intended for children but adults who enjoy fantasy will find it worth their time. It does have the patented Garner sudden ending - no winding down of the story, no hint of what happens to the characters after the climax.

This ranks below "The Weirdstone of Brisinghamen" but well above "Elidor," by the same author.


Tags : The Owl Service [Alan Garner] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Gwen discovers, in the attic, a plate with an abstract design on it that can be traced into an owl, an owl that disappears when no one is looking.,Alan Garner,The Owl Service,Del Rey,0345290445,Children: Young Adult (Gr. 7-9),Fiction,Juvenile Fiction,Juvenile Grades 7-9 Ages 12-14,MASS MARKET,Mystery and detective stories,Non-Classifiable,Wales,Wales;Fiction,Wales;Fiction.

The Owl Service Alan Garner 9780345290441 Books Reviews

I first read this as a young teenager in the early 70s. And recently reread it about 40 years later! It still has the sort of slight creepy dark vibe which does not seem dated. the teenage characters still ring true. the writer lets you draw your own conclusions in this story that involves mythology. A good story!!!
I decided to read this book after seeing it in a college syllabus and reading the reviews here. Since most people here either loved or hated it, I thought I'd add a more balanced review. First, I get it, mostly, and I'm not familiar with that parituclar Welsh myth. You do have to read it carefully to catch the subtext, and I agree that the Alison character, who should be the strongest, is the weakest. Blame it on the time when the book was written, when female characters were traditionally not well worked out.
On the plus side, the story is well-told, pulling the reader along in order to figure out what will happen. The language is also quite evocative, creating a mood much better than relating a narrative. The character of Gwyn is the best worked out, having more substance than either Alison or Roger, who are more superficial. Both Nancy and Huw show why Gwyn is pulled in two directions, the first rejecting what the valley stands for and the second binding him to it. In many ways his story was more interesting than the ancient legend brought to life.
However, there are a number of shortcomings of the book that I'm not willing to attribute to the obvious desire of the author to be ambiguous. First, there are a number of plot devices that are not resolved. What was the scratching in the attic? Why was Alison pulled in the beginning to owls instead of flowers (there was no struggle here at all, until the end)? Why was it the woman in the myth that was punished, when she was a minor player in the struggle? How did these three teenagers, who were not caught in a love triangle but rather a class struggle, come to embody the ancient themes? And why did the villagers seem to think that these events were a rarity, when the most recent enactment of them happened only a few decades ago?
Second, the ending was, I agree, deeply unsatisfying. After a whole portentious book, the whole thing was resolved in a paragraph, with seemingly no effort of will. How did Roger come to the conclusion that he did? Somehow it should have been harder, after detroying presumably countless lives since the original events, to end the cycle.
Still, it is a hauntingly written book, and memorable in that regard. I suppose it's a plus in the end that I wanted to know more!
I am a grownup who enjoys reading fantasy and magical reality stories. This one reads believably and is a well-told tale. If you like Harry Potter, Philip Pullman's Dark Matter Trilogy, and A Wrinkle in Time, you'll enjoy this one.
I saw this story as a TV miniseries on the BBC when I was in my teens. I always thought I'd like to read the book, but I had difficulty in finding it. I was on my bucket list. Then I was so psyched to see it for sale on . It is a nice book. Some interesting turns and twists. And the mythology also combined into this mysterious plot, together with the romance and down to earth portrayal of the people in the story is so compelling. I recommend it. You might have to read up on the mythology to see what they are talking about though regarding the stone etc. (won't spoil it). I already knew of it, so it all came together completely for me in this glorious book, and I so glad to finally read the story..
I loved this book. It reminded me a lot of Fire and Hemlock by Diana Wynne Jones, at least in style, because they are both written in a purposefully confusing way. I don't know why that appeals so much to me, but it does. I love it when the writer leaves you almost doubting your own sanity... The writing of this is so superb. I'd recommend it for that alone.
I don't understand why this website doesn't let people know that this book was published more than 40 years ago in 1967 - it makes a difference. I would give this book 10 stars.
I read this book at age 13 and many many times after. In fact when I'm feeling a bit down this book envigorates me. (Perhaps due to my ancestors coming from the British Isles.) The book has some "supernatural" events. But I think they are actually quite natural especially compared to our modern artifical world. Some themes that there are certain puzzles refaced by every generation and that ancestry - dna - has a powerful affect on our lives even when we don't know who our ancestors were, and that we actually need the "supernatural" to propel our lives. I recommend for age 12 and over because the book is about two teenage boys and one teenage girl doing teenage things. I hope you enjoy it.
If I recall my Mabinogion correctly, Blodeuwedd was the girl made by a wizard from flowers. She was created in order to be the bride of a prince who had been cursed never to marry mortal woman. She conspired with her lover to murder the prince, and as punishment was turned into an owl.

It is not by accident that the flower pattern on the dinner service can be rearranged to form owls.

This is the root story behind "The Owl Service", and I think it's helpful to know the tale before reading the book, since it adds a bit of clarification that is otherwise lacking. That said, the book is wonderfully atmospheric, and a faithful adaptation of a classic Welsh tale to a modern setting. This has been done well in some children's books, (Nimmo's Magician trilogy and Cooper's Dark is Rising set), but is often less successful in more adult treatments.

If you would like a good, challenging, moody and engrossing tale, this book is well worth trying.
Inspired by Welsh mythology, this story is classic Garner ordinary people pulled from their ordinary lives into a magical and dangerous world. It's intended for children but adults who enjoy fantasy will find it worth their time. It does have the patented Garner sudden ending - no winding down of the story, no hint of what happens to the characters after the climax.

This ranks below "The Weirdstone of Brisinghamen" but well above "Elidor," by the same author.