in a thriving wood, sits a barren patch of understory. oh what tales locals tell about the patch that can't grow!
Understory Lore [Tanka]
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Category Archives: Folklore
Mermaid [Lyric Poem]
So many miles of coastline,
of rocky coves and outcrops.
Where none can see a straight line,
and water sloshes and slops.
Oh, might one miss a mermaid
hidden among the inlets,
so snug in stone palisade -
a lair of shells and torn nets?
If you say that you've seen one,
I'll not call you a faker.
I rather think it's great fun
to flirt with claims, wiseacre.
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BOOK REVIEW: Ahiahia the Orphan by Levi Illuitok
Ahiahia the Orphan by Levi IlluitokMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
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Release Date: April 11, 2023
This is a brief and action-packed graphic novelization of a traditional story of the Inuit people of Kugaaruk. That said, it’s probably too brief and action-packed for its own good. The story revolves around a man, Ahiahia, who is orphaned when members of the tribe kill his parents, and then when he comes of age the same contingent have it out for him. While one can imagine any number of internecine conflicts that could lead to the murder of his parents, the fact that we have no clue of the attackers’ motivation makes the whole thing feel gratuitous.
Ahiahia’s grandmother takes the boy in and goes to great lengths to see that he will be safe in the face of whatever familial rivalry led to his parent’s murder. Her actions blend the magical with the practical (e.g. chanting incantations over the bow and arrows she makes for him.) For me, the moral of the story can be seen in this blending. We don’t know how much of Ahiahia’s successes are due to the practical versus the magical, but one feels they worked together and that one without the other would probably not have fared as well.
At the end, there’s a scene that may be disturbing for those who have strong feelings about patriarchal subjugation of women, but it’s hard to argue that it’s not authentic.
This is a very quick read and has sufficient action to keep it engaging. However, it can also feel a bit purposeless.
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Dragon-slayer or Drunkard? [Common Meter]
I see so many statues of dragon-slayers mid-kill. The winged serpents pierced by a lance conjures up such a thrill. But there're no dragons, never were. So, what were they slaying. Dinos went extinct before our time is all that I'm saying. So, were they killing geckos, or maybe a rock lizard? Maybe chickens, given the wings? Struck right through the gizzard! Could it be St. George liked to drink or was tripping ergot? To earn so many statues, he'd a publicist, I bet. "The dragons were metaphorical!" OK, that's really swell, but shouldn't George's heroism be figurative as well?
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BOOK REVIEW: The Golem of Venice Beach Vol. 1 by Chanan Beizer
The Golem of Venice Beach by Chanan BeizerMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
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Release Date: November 15, 2022
The title is the premise. The Golem of Prague is now living in Venice Beach, CA. However, the protagonist is a human hipster with a sunglass kiosk near the beach named Jake. Jake is a secular Jew with a penchant for all manner of drugs who falls in love with a neighbor who is some sort of chosen one for a Santa Muerte cult that’s protected by some drug-dealing gangbangers. The connection to the Golem is that Jake’s bloodline is protected by the Golem.
This is one of those titles that’s hard to rate. The art is well done. The character development is great. And it’s a compelling premise. (Though I think we may be experiencing a Golem zeitgeist as this is the second or third Golem story I’ve read recently. But, it could also be an anecdotal coincidence.) That all sound pretty good, but I have no idea whether the story is any good because it’s one of those one-story-arc-split-over-two volumes, and so the resolution-to-cliffhanger ratio is not good. [i.e. It ends all cliffhanger and with nothing having been resolved.] To be fair, the last line does promise to conclude the story in the second (next) volume. (i.e. As opposed to: “We’ll see if it’s popular and then string it out until there’s no hope of tying up all the loose ends.”) So, I guess it comes down to whether you’re a trusting soul. I don’t think I’ve read this author previously, and thus have no basis for drawing a conclusion.
So, my recommendation is…
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BOOK REVIEW: He Who Fights With Monsters by Francesco Artibani
He Who Fights With Monsters by Francesco ArtibaniMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
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Release date: August, 30, 2022
This graphic novel tells a story featuring the Prague Golem, a mighty protector figure from Judaic folklore – formed of clay and breathed to life by magic words. The setting is Nazi-occupied Prague, and the golem is brought to life after a great period of dormancy, having been stored in the rafters of a synagogue, in order to once more act as protector to the Jewish people.
It’s a gripping tale of wartime resistance, but with a flat ending. However, I’m not sure it could have concluded in a satisfying way. That’s the challenge of writing a story of a superhero versus Nazis. The Holocaust is such a colossal tragedy that to rewrite the it resets the book into some alternate reality fantasyland, striking a raw nerve and killing any poignancy in the process.
The artwork is skillfully rendered and captures the grim nature of a city under fascist occupation quite well.
I enjoyed the story, despite not really knowing how to process the ending. Maybe that’s the point, that one can’t turn such mindless brutality into a storybook satisfying ending [by satisfying I don’t mean happy, but rather concluded in the definitive and intrinsically reasonable – if horrifying – way of tragedies.] Still, one is left wondering about apparent changes in character motivation and whether they make any sense — because they don’t feel like they do.
If you’re intrigued by a historical fiction / fantasy mashup set in Prague during the Second World War, check this book out, but expect to be left in an uneasy space at the end.
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Sun Wukong [Common Meter]
The Monkey King with magic staff outmatched monsters and gods, defying the Jade Emperor's edicts against all odds. He erased himself from out of The Book of Life and Death, and lived through the Crucible -- nearly holding his breath. Finally, the gods called Buddha, though some had their qualms, but the one thing Monkey couldn't do was leap from Buddha's palm.
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BOOK REVIEW: Supernatural Shakespeare by J. Snodgrass
Supernatural Shakespeare: Magic and Ritual in Merry Old England by J. SnodgrassMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
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Like – I suspect – most of humanity, I’m a big fan of Shakespeare’s work, but I’m also not alone in feeling that I’ve missed a some of the depth and texture of his plays. Both language and the body of common / popular knowledge have evolved and migrated tremendously since the Elizabethan era. This makes a market for books that offer insight into the age and the role that the beliefs, norms, and daily life played in Shakespeare’s theatrical works. This book is one such work. It focuses on the role supernatural beings and various festivals play in the Shakespearean canon and why they do so.
Conceptions of the supernatural may be one of the areas in which human beliefs have changed most severely since Shakespeare’s day. The book has chapters on witches, ghosts, fairies, and enchanted forests that are interspersed among chapters that deal with various seasonal festivals of Pagan origin. I did find this leapfrogging around a bit odd, but I would speculate two possible reasons for it. First, the author may have wanted to build cyclicality into the overall organization, and thus put beings and creatures that seemed thematically related to a season near its festivals. Second, it may have seemed like a good idea to break up the festivals because that discussion could have felt tedious to a general reader if it’d been clumped together (as opposed to the “sexier” topics of witches and ghosts and the like.) This organization didn’t bother me; it just seemed a bit strange, but I could imagine it being for the best.
I learned a great deal from this book, and my newly gained knowledge wasn’t all about the supernatural elements of Shakespeare. The author dropped some fascinating facts regarding other domains as well – such as Elizabethan sexuality and lifestyles as well as biographical facts about Shakespeare. If you’re looking to expand your understanding of background information relevant to Shakespeare’s plays, this book is worth looking into.
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BOOK REVIEW: Jagannatha of Puri by Gayatri M. Dutt
Jagannatha of puri by Gayatri Madan DuttMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
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I recently visited Puri, and – seeing the little, big-eyed Jagannath idols and images all across Odisha – I was curious to learn about the mythology behind the Puri temple and its tripartite deity. This 30+ page comic may not be the most scholarly or detailed account, but it may be the quickest way to get the gist of the story. And the comic does present an intriguing morality tale that includes lessons of patience and unselfishness.
The story begins with a king who is obsessed with finding a fabled cave-shrine that he was directed to in a dream. The king sends his best men out in search of the cave as its whereabouts are unknown. In time, one of the men stumbles upon a village whose chieftain is said to regularly make secretive visits to the cave and its idol. And from there, the race is on to get the king to the cave. But the deity is elusive, and insists that its followers work together harmoniously.
It’s a clear and well-developed story. It blends intriguing trippy elements like time-travel and messages in dreams with traditional religious mythology.
If you’re looking for a brief explanation of the Puri temple and the Jagannaths, it’s worth giving this short comic a look.
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DAILY PHOTO: Dow Hill Church
Among those who believe in such things, the Dow Hill forest is considered haunted — including this old church and the nearby Victoria School for Boys. We caught it in a peaceful moment.
Tiger Riding for Beginners 