Project 2

Introduction:

“Thus does the world change, not with a sword. But with a word”

Conor mac Ardan

Why this author? Why this book? Who the heck is this author? All very good questions. Let me introduce you to my favorite author, Stephen R. Lawhead. I was introduced to Lawhead more than twenty-five years ago, when I read one of his first books he had published, he blew me away. The imagery, language and story he told hooked me in the first chapter. In his newest book, In The Region Of The Summer Stars Book 1, Eirlandia, he has done it again. He has used historic accurate time and place and has wound cultural myth into a seamless story. One reason this author stands out for me is he doesn’t rely on the same old way stories have been told. Lawhead brings a fresh look to his characters, time period and understanding of how everything worked together. Even though Lawhead has not been in the news he has won several awards for his writing. (stephenlawhead.com)

Describe:

Lawhead was born in Kearney, Nebraska in 1950. He graduated from Kearney State College with a BA in Art in 1973. In 1972 Lawhead married Alice Slaikeu, they live in Orxford, England and have two sons Ross and Drake. During the last thirty years of writing Lawhead has collaborated with wife Alice (This was news to me.) and son Ross. Not only does Lawhead write books for adults, but he and his son have written children’s books. Over the last thirty years Lawhead has won several awards, for is work titled Taliesin, he won the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association’s Gold Medallion Award, Scarlet won a Christy Award in the category of Visionary Fiction and in 2003 Lawhead received an honorary doctorate from the University of Nebraska at Kearney.

In The Region Of The Summer Stars Book 1, Eirlandia, ravaged by a barbarian force, Conor an outcast embarks on a mission to prove his innocence. What Conor has discovered will change Eirlandia.

Amazon shows In the Region of the Summer Stars Book 1, Eirlandia as having 4.6 starts, with 75% of readers rating the book at 5 stars. Goodreads gives the book 4.09, many who reviewed the book note that a lot of research has gone into the book and given the era new life. I could not find any information on how well the book has sold since its release date of 15May2018.

Analyze:

Eirlandia does remind me of previous works in that it takes place in Ireland, deals with clans and it talks about the ‘Learned Brotherhood’. These themes were also in Patrick, Song of Albion Trilogy and The Dragon King Trilogy. This is where the similarities end, if you’re thinking, if all these books are the same why read them? It’s kinda like saying if J.R.R. Tolkien’s books are all the same why read them? Lawhead has an understanding of the era, history and myth to pull off depth of character and feel of time and space. What pulls all this together is his imagination.

Let’s talk about the differences, Dream Thief and Bright Empires Series are more sci-fi. Dream Thief takes place on a ship and on a totally different world. Bright Empires Series is on this world, however, this series explores time travel and ley lines. Another difference is the books construction, meaning, Lawhead devotes whole sections to one character. He looks at a specific event through individual characters’ perspectives. In Eirlandia this gives depth to not only the story but the characters.

In my opinion Lawhead and C.S. Lewis are a lot alike. Both have Christian themes, write for different levels of understanding and can tell a known story with a new take on the story. For instances, in Albion Trilogy Lawhead talks about the manifest world and otherworld. This has always reminded me of C.S. Lewis’ take on The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. In both books the characters enter different portholes for different realities. In both series you can’t have one reality without the other reality. It’s the same thought but told so differently both authors rendering is interesting and captivating.

Interpretation:

Eirlandia talks about Druids, this subject has many social connotations to it.  As with many subjects that Lawhead tackles in his books he gives the Druids a fresh look. He doesn’t use the same tired often wrong research that has been used for many years. This type of new approach is vitally important today, I think it opens people’s minds up for a different way of looking at a group of people. Even if the reader doesn’t agree with Lawhead, doing the research to figure out why the reader doesn’t agree will broaden their understanding of the subject and may lead down many other roads of discovery. Don’t we all need this fresh approach in our lives today, doing our own research, thinking for ourselves and enjoying the journey? It’s sad but often Druids are stereotyped and are considered offensives. I’m sure you can think of a few stereotypes as your reading this. Now, think of our society today and some of the stereotypes that are being held now. Isn’t it important to learn to think for yourself, do your own research and be able to break away from the pack and think on your own?

The target audience can be anyone who reads at any level. That’s the beauty of Lawhead, like C.S. Lewis or Tolkien; you can be young or old and still enjoy the story and message. I’ve read or listened to Lawheads books on audio and enjoyed them both ways.

Evaluation:

While I think this is a good book and is relatable, I don’t think it’s his best work, while I don’t think its his worst work either. One of Lawhead’s strengths is making a character relatable, taking the character and you the reader on a journey and not sugar coating the hardships or making the good times too good. For example, Conor is accused of theft, found guilty and exiled from his clan. Being falsely accused is something we can relate to but, being exiled is not something in our society we can relate to.

Will this work be forgotten next week? No, not forgotten but not thought of as fondly as The Albion Trilogy. One reason is Lewis in The Albion Trilogy is so human, we walk with him through a safe comfortable life to a life lived to it’s fullest. We can relate to living in a safe comfortable bubble then being thrown into circumstances that through choices can make you more, while Lewis is learning to live out loud, we in turn are taught how to. It’s the journey and the choices we make or don’t make.

I’m very happy that some of the professional critics feel as I do about this book; “Fierce companions, mighty foes, and fae magic all intertwine with multiple points of view in an exciting tale.”——Booklist

“Brilliant storytelling filled with lyrical language.”—RT Book Reviews reviews

 

Engage/Summary:

Many years ago Lawhead partnered up with an artist name Jeff Johnson who has put music to Lawhead’s books ( music). Johnson has done music for King Raven Vols. 1-3 (2008) and Eirlandia (2018), you can also listen to and watch Jeff Johnson on YouTube (ArkMusicMovies). Do I own the music and books? Of course I do! As to who turned me onto Lawhead and Johnson, that was a family member. My husband and I both enjoy the music and books quite a lot. Two of our children have also read Lawhead books, and enjoy the journey Lawhead takes them on.

I looked Lawhead up on Facebook and found he has 8400 likes and 8000 total followers. It appears that he keeps up on his Facebook postings and people post of knowing the area that he talks about in the book and of their own journeys and how their books look after the journeys. That I have to admit was really neat.

What did I learn from the assignment? I few things, I didn’t know that Lawhead had enrolled in Northern Baptist Theological Seminary or that during his research for The Pendragon Cycle had sparked his interest Celtic history, culture or Christianity. It’s interesting to note it wasn’t his enrollment in seminary that brought out his curiosity in Celtic Christianity but research for a book. Something that I’ve taken away from this assignment is why some of his other books don’t hold up next to Albion. It’s the journey, the humanity and we can relate to this journey Lewis goes on. It’s more than relatable, there’s turning points in the story just like in our own life. As with Conor (Eirlandia), Lewis (Albion) and Patrick (Patrick) it’s the choices that we make or don’t make, living out loud and taking those uncomfortable steps that really makes the difference in our journey.