BEOWULF TRANSLATED BY SEAMUS HEANEY

Beowulf: A New Verse Translation by Unknown
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

”One of these things, as far as anyone ever can discern, looks like a woman; the other, warped in the shape of a man, moves beyond the pale bigger than any man, an unnatural birth called Grendel by country people in former days. They are fatherless creatures, and their whole ancestry is hidden in a past of demons and ghosts. They dwell apart among wolves on the hills, on windswept crags and treacherous keshes, where cold streams pour down the mountain and disappear under mist and moorland.”



It rained, but it was colder than what it should be to be raining. A combination of warmer atmosphere and colder temperatures on the ground produced an ice storm. It hit over the weekend so I could sit quite comfortably by my fireplace and watch out the window as the rain formed into sheets of ice on the streets and sidewalks. Power lines thickened as they became cubed in ice. Foot long and longer icicles dangled and swayed from the power lines, from the eaves of houses, from signs, from fence lines. The most affected though were the trees. The bigger the tree with the thicker branches, the more affected they would be. The ice accumulated on their branches bending and twisting them down to the ground. They became monsters, slumbering beneath an armour of ice.

I’d been thinking about rereading Beowulf for some time. This story has been a part of me for almost as long as I can remember. I read a child’s version when I was young, several times before moving on to other more adult translations. The idea of a man taking on a monster, much stronger than most men, and finding a way to defeat him was compelling mythology for my young mind. The terror of it, the monster that comes into your home and kills in the dead of the night and takes heads as trophies, left shivers in the very center of me.

Beowulf hears of a monster who is attacking the Danes. He is one of thirteen men who decide to go to the rescue of Hrothgar, King of the Danes. He goes because he needs to make a name for himself, as Buliwyf in the movie The 13th Warrior says: ” I have only these hands.” Beowulf is poor, renown for his strength, but he has no Hall to call his own and, but for this small band, no men to call him King.

”Their mail-shirts glinted, hard and hand-linked; the high-gloss iron of their armour rang. So they duly arrived in their grim war-graith and gear at the hall, and, weary from the sea, stacked wide shields of the toughest hardwood against the wall, then collapsed on the benches; battle-dress and weapons clashed. They collected their spears in a seafarers’ stook, a stand of greyish tapering ash. And the troops were as good as their weapons.”

I had spent most of the day finishing another book and, thus, had started reading Beowulf late in the evening. The wife and my Scottish Terrier had gone to bed, and I was left in the soft glow of my reading lamp. Most of the city had lost power as lines too heavy with ice had crashed down one by one. I had candles close to hand. It never crossed my mind, power or no power, that I would go to bed. Beowulf was written in Old English between 975-1025. The Seamus Heaney translation that I read had the Old English on one page and Heaney’s translation on the other page. In college, I took a Chaucer class and became a fair hand at deciphering Middle English, but looking and even pronouncing these unfamiliar words did not ring any ancient bells in my English soul. I would have had better luck reading Greek than Old English.


1,000 year old manuscript of Beowulf.

As Beowulf grapples with Grendel and then with Grendel’s mother, I was just as enthralled with the story as I was as a wee tot. The carnage, the darkness, the uncertainty that Beowulf had to feel, despite his boasts to the contrary, all lend a fine, sharp edge to the tale. As I read, I also started to hear the sharp cracks and howls of ice heavy tree limbs separating from their trunk in much the same way as Beowulf pulls Grendel’s arm loose from his shoulder. The crash of these ice shrouded branches against the frozen ground sounded to my mind like the steel swords of the Geats banging against their metal wrapped shields.

Curiosity got the better of me, and I walked out of my back door into an alien landscape. Each individual stem of grass had frozen into a nub of ice. With every step, my boots crunched and slipped across this icy topography. Piles of limbs laid at the bottoms of the bigger trees. A small limb detached from the cottonwood tree as I stood there and made discordant music as it hit the limbs below before finally landing among its fallen, dying brethren on the ground. The younger trees, more limber, were probably fine, I told myself. They are bowed over as if in supplication to Mother Nature. Their top branches were frozen to the ground, making arches of their shapes. It was all very beautiful. I remembered reading about a party that was given for Anastasia, the Russian princess, before her life became tangled in the turmoil of revolution. The servants were outside spraying water on the trees so they would glitter with ice as the aristocracy arrived on their horse pulled, bell laden sleighs.

I went back inside and peeled off my boots and my jacket and returned to Beowulf. Another log was required for the fire, so I spent a few moments poking the remaining logs to make room for more wood. I flinched as I heard more crashes from outside. An assembly of Geats preparing for battle. When I finally settled back into my chair, Beowulf has become King of the Geats and fights battles with the greatest champions of the land. He involves himself in disagreements. ”When Eofor cleft the old Swede’s helmet, halved it open, he fell, death-pale: his feud-calloused hand could not stave off the fatal blow.”

I just loved that…feud-calloused hand. I also really liked..”your blade making a mizzle of his blood.” There are lines like that all through the story. Words unfamiliar and evocative of a different age.

Beowulf does age and does need the help of others in the end when he battles a dragon, but few men are made with the courage that he is, and they fail to help him when he needs it most. He does kill the dragon, but at the cost of his own life.

No sword blade sent him to his death,
My bare hands stilled his heartbeats
And wrecked the bone-house. Now blade and hand,
Sword and sword-stroke, will assay the hoard.”

Stormy weather requires the proper book and a proper, hot, Scottish tea laced with a few drops of Scotch whiskey. For me Beowulf, those 3,182 lines, added enchantment and necromancy to a world transforming before my eyes into something magical and unknown.

If you wish to see more of my most recent book and movie reviews, visit http://www.jeffreykeeten.com
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With Blood upon the Sand By: Bradley P. Beaulieu

With Blood Upon the Sand by Bradley P. Beaulieu
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Song of the Shattered Sands is currently one of my favorite series. I have let it be well known that I am a world building junkie and the city of Sharakhai and surrounding area is a living, breathing thing and I revel in it. Beautiful writing, a deep and exciting story and characters you CARE about.

I can't say enough good things about this series or this book, you guys know I don't review things I don't like and I am FAR from an objective reviewer.

Throw this man your money, do yourself a favor and just start from the beginning and read them all, I am not gonna tell you wrong, that I promise.

9389 out of 5 stars

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A moment or two with Bradley Beaulieu

I decided to try something new,  my very first interview with the awesome Bradley Beaulieu.

First of all, I am a what I would call "world building nerd",  your stories have some amazing, very realized worlds, what is your approach to world building and how does it relate to your overall story telling?

My books all start with a major focus on worldbuilding. I do that because so much of the book (the territory, the resources, the magic, the politics) stems from the world itself.

In the case of Twelve Kings in Sharakhai, I’d long wanted to scratch the itch to write a desert story. I can attribute this partly to liking the tales of the Arabian Nights (or One Thousand and One Nights), particularly the milieu. In fact, as my last series, The Lays of Anuskaya, progresses, you can see more and more of the Persian-influenced Aramahn coming into the picture, culminating in long stretches of desert scenes in the final book, The Flames of Shadam Khoreh.

So the desert was something I really wanted to explore, and I knew I wanted to steep the history of the city in a nomadic, Bedouin-like culture, but I’d probably (letting my geek flag fly here a bit) give the most credit to the Thieves’ World anthologies for the inspiration for the setting. I loved the city of Sanctuary when I first starting reading the anthologies in high school. I loved that it was the “armpit of the empire,” that it was a meeting point of old and new as the Rankan Empire drove into Ilsigi territory, that there were pantheons of gods vying for power, and in fact commingling even as they fought. Above all, I loved the vastness of Sanctuary and the hidden wonders it contained.

The feel of that is what I wanted to explore with Sharakhai. Sharakhai is in some ways a mere city state. But in effect it controls trade throughout a massive desert bordered by four powerful kingdoms, and because it controls trade, it has amassed incredible wealth and power. It hasn’t done so without making enemies along the way, however. The twelve immortal kings of Sharakhai are hated by many. And the roots of the story are buried deeply in that hatred.


The Song on Shattered Sands series so far has turned into a must read for me, what was the inspiration for writing it?

As mentioned above, I spent a lot of time on worldbuilding before I got too specific about characters. I do this with all my books so that when I get to culture and religion and politics, and eventually character, all the work that went into the world itself can advise me on who the characters are. When I started formulating the main character, Çeda, I already knew about the desert world, the twelve kings, the role that Sharakhai played in local politics as a hub of commerce. I knew to a degree that there were wandering desert tribes and that the people of Sharakhai came from and often identified with those various tribes. It’s in that place—where an older way of life clashes with a newer—that Çeda and her mother, Ahya, really began taking shape.

With those building blocks in place, I started to think more about what Çeda’s past would mean to her as a young woman growing up alone in a big metropolitan city. I thought more about how her mother’s mission in Sharakhai would affect Çeda and those around her. And I slowly started to realize that the heart of the story was about loss of heritage and the desire to regain it. It became a lot about family, in the larger sense of the word, what losing parts of it might mean to a young girl, and how we redefine the very notion of family as we grow older. That grew into a larger question: what does cultural identity mean? In the beginning of the story, Çeda knows very little about her past. She soon begins to learn more. To her growing horror, that knowledge ties into the very history of the kings of Sharakhai. It was a great piece of inspiration, and provided a ton of ideas for where I could take the story.


Since we are a book site, what are you currently reading? what would you recommend to your friends?

I’ve been listening to audio version of The Lord of the Rings as a bit of pleasure reading. I’ve read it many times, but find it fun to listen to books while working in the yard, while in the car, etc. I’m also reading the Harry Potter series to my kids at night. We’re currently on Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. And I’m also listening to V. E. Schwab’s A Darkder Shade of Magic, a wonderful book about the four split realities of London—white, grey, red, and black, each of which has particular types of magic and that play upon one another to create a very intriguing plot. It’s been a great read so far.


I am a huge gamer, do you play games? video or physical games?  if so, what are you currently enjoying?

I’ve reduced my video game playing time quite a bit, but I do get in some time on the PS4 and Xbox with my son now and again. We played the hell out of Rayman Legends, a really colorful, inventive adventure game. We also loved Marvel Legos (for any Lego aficionados out there, we made it to 100% in the game and still kept playing). I picked up Witcher III and really like it, but it’s so involved, and I only get little chunks of time to play, its taking me forever to get through it. I also like Need for Speed for a bit of racing fun.

I have a gaming gang I get together with every few weeks. We play a ton of board games and some role playing games. You name the game and we’ve probably played it at least once. 7 Wonders is a recent favorite. We also like The Lords of Waterdeep, X-Wing Miniatures, Star Wars Armada, King of Tokyo, and Starfarers of Catan, and the occasional miniatures game like Warmachine or Warhammer 40k.


What advice would you give to someone who wants to write and believes they have a story to tell?

Hmm. If I could pick just one thing, it would be to know your strengths and weaknesses. We all have weaknesses. Learn what yours are. Workshop your stories. Critique others. Pay close attention to the common threads in the feedback you're getting. And once you have those weaknesses identified. Work on them. Get advice. And make active attempts to root out those problems, because simply writing is not enough. Writing blindly can reinforce your bad habits.

By the same token, we all have strengths. Learn what yours are. It's common to get all sorts of advice on your stories, some of which makes no sense whatsoever to listen to. In fact, they may be very detrimental if taken to heart and internalized. While you're paying attention to those common threads I mentioned above, also pay attention to what you're doing right. I say this not so you can rest on your laurels, but so you can accentuate those strengths and make them better. You can even use that knowledge to hone in on your weaknesses. If you're great with dialogue, write a story with no dialogue whatsoever. If you're good with action, write an introspective story. And then do the reverse. Write a story that focuses on your strengths, i.e. make those muscles stronger. Hopefully something interesting comes out of these experiments along the way.


finally, is there anything you are currently watching? film? television? bingeworthy things?

I can’t recommend the movie Sing Street enough, especially those who grew up in the 80’s. It’s a great movie from John Carney, the creator/director of the surprise smash hit, Once.

I enjoyed the first season of Westworld. The series is not without its flaws, but I dig the tone it’s going for and some of the questions it raises about what it means to be human.

I also recently caught Spotlight, which won the Oscar for Best Picture last year. Not an easy film to watch given the subject matter (it’s the true story of how the Boston Globe uncovered the child abuse scandal within the local Catholic Archdiocese), but it’s powerful and sports a terrific ensemble cast.

And lastly, to end on a light note, Moana was a great, fun, tap-your-toes-to-the-music kind of movie. My whole family loved it, and I’m willing to be a fiver you will too.

Spy Craft in the Middle East

The Triple Agent: The al-Qaeda Mole who Infiltrated the CIA by Joby Warrick
Reviewed by Jason Koivu
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Reading this was pretty much like watching Zero Dark Thirty. It's about the man who blew himself up in 2009 at the CIA base Camp Chapman at Khost in eastern Afghanistan.

Seven American CIA officers and contractors, an officer of Jordan's intelligence service, and an Afghan working for the CIA were killed when al-Balawi detonated a bomb sewn into a vest he was wearing. Six other American CIA officers were wounded. The bombing was the most lethal attack against the CIA in more than 25 years. - Wikipedia

"Al-Balawi" refers to Humam Khalil Abu-Mulal al-Balawi a doctor, who spent much of his free time using an alias to write fanatical diatribes for fundamentalist Islamic sites online. Jordanian agents got ahold of him, thought they'd converted him into a mole and sent him off to supposedly infiltrate al-Qaeda leadership. It appeared he had.

Appearances deceived.

Balawi went to al-Qaeda and they turned him into one of their most successful weapons. A video surfaced of Balawi with the radical Islamist group's number three man, Ayman al-Zawahiri. It appeared Balawi was treating the ailing Zawahiri. Balawi's intimate knowledge of these ailments, which were known in detail by the CIA and Jordanian agents, seemed to lend credibility to his claims of infiltration. Relating such details gave the pro-western forces hope that they had themselves a reliable mole.

Not all were convinced. However, U.S. pressure for results rashly hastened a face-to-face meeting with their relatively new supposed double agent. And then the shit hit the fan.

The title, The Triple Agent, might be technically correct, but its validity is tenuous at best. I believe it's used to titillate and entice. When thinking of a "triple" agent, one imagines an intelligence officer of brilliant cunning and possessing the wherewithal to lie convincing while maintaining the appearance of cooperation. Balawi may have been smart, but it seems he had little need to display cunning. After he was sent off to join al-Qaeda as a double agent, the CIA/Jordanians had very little contact with him. It doesn't take a hardened veteran of spycraft to keep up the sort of cover Balawi had to keep. He just didn't make himself available and said next to nothing until the CIA literally opened their gates and gave him free entry into their base without the usual checks and precautions.

The book mostly stays on topic, veering off only to give background to an event, idea or person in order to infuse the whole with a greater understanding. The Triple Agent is only as long as it ought to be and that's a big plus.

Don't let the 3 stars fool you. This was quite good, imo, and I really enjoyed it. Perhaps I'm unfairly docking it a star for its subject matter. I already knew the basics of the story, a story without much depth. Man hates western ideals, man blows self up and takes western agents with him. It's fascinating, emotional, and horrible and it's over quite quick.

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Gator Bait

Gator Bait by Adam Howe
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Fresh from an altercation with a woman's husband that left him missing a couple fingers, "John Smith" scores a job playing piano at a redneck bar, the Grinning Gator, named after a monstrous alligator in a pond out back. But the alligator isn't as dangerous to "John Smith" as the owner's wife...

Gator Bait is a fun little morsel of redneck noir. You've got the abusive husband, the long-suffering wife that wants to be rid of him, and the new guy who just can't keep his penis in his pants. Throw in an alligator pit and you've got something special on your hands.

I've never read an Adam Howe story before but I think I'll be reading them all now. His writing reminds me of Joe Lansdale with a taste of Gil Brewer. My favorite line in the book was when Smitty described a stripper as "Being built for beef or dairy."

Gator Bait felt like an old pulp story that was rediscovered, not something written recently. I mean that as a compliment. It's raw, bloody, and has some great twists. Now that I know what Adam Howe can do with a short story, I'll have to give one of his novels a shot. Four out of five stars.

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Settling the Score

Eden Winters
Rocky Ridge Books
Reviewed by Nancy
4 out of 5 stars

Summary

Outed and dumped on national television by his rising star boyfriend, Joey Nichols must face the bigotry of the locals in his small Southern town alone. His dreams of a happy ever after lie crushed at his feet.

Novelist Troy Steele has an axe to grind against Hollywood heartbreaker types. Transforming Joey into a gorgeous, unobtainable hunk would be payback worthy of Troy’s poison pen. It's a brilliant way to get back at Joey’s image-obsessed ex-boyfriend and the movie producer who’s mutilating Troy’s novels.

What begins as simple revenge may tangle them together in something far more complicated. Living well may be the best revenge, but Troy and Joey could rewrite that to loving well.

My Review

After a heartbreaking and intense read, I was ready for lighter fare. Settling the Score contained just the right amount of small-town charm and homey comfort with a dollop of righteous revenge and sweet, slow-burning romance.

In spite of the fact that it took some time for me to warm up to Troy, I was instantly enamored with Joey Nichols, a mechanic in rural Georgia mourning the loss of his boyfriend, Riker Sanderson, a vain (“don’t ever fuck with my hair…”), up and coming star anxious to leave his roots behind and make it big in Hollywood.

As if Riker’s rejection wasn’t enough, Joey is subjected to a cruel and very public outing on television before having a chance to break the news to his family. Though his mom, dad and two sisters are loving and supportive, not all the town’s inhabitants are, making life difficult for Joey and his family. They deal with intrusive reporters, hate mail and hostility from the townsfolk.

Enter Troy Steele, a reclusive novelist, burned by a greedy, ambitious screenwriter who is the subject of his novels, and with life experiences very similar to Joey’s, and Erica Davis, his feisty and clever assistant. Together they plan to hire Joey as a research assistant for his latest novel. Falling in love wasn’t part of the plan.

What I enjoyed most about this story was watching Joey’s gradual transformation from a sad and pathetic character who was mistreated by his ex-boyfriend to a man who is self-assured and independent, while retaining his innocence, his kindness and his respect for others. I loved Troy’s assistant, Erica, who was instrumental in helping bring Troy out of his shell, bringing the best out of Joey and Troy, and being a good friend.

“It’s okay to improve yourself, but don’t let me or anyone else take away who you are.”

I enjoyed the brief flashbacks that provided some insight into Joey and Riker’s relationship, and the time Troy and Joey spent working on the novel while learning about each other at the same time. I also loved Troy’s meeting with Joey’s protective father and Cousin Jake’s homebrew that loosens lips.

This was a warm, humorous, and very satisfying story. I can’t wait for the sequel!

El Güero

El Güero by Tim Harron
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

El Güero is the life story of T- told through the present and flashbacks. T- felt he only had three choices of what he could be growing up. A cop, clergy, or a crook. His grandfather who he adored was a cop and when he told him not to be one, he listened. T- seriously considered clergy until he learned the clergymen he knew were crooks. He then decided to be a crook because at least they were honest about their lives. As T- thinks to himself on numerous occasions, "It's almost as if this lifestyle chose me."

I wasn't sure what to expect from El Güero. It's certainly not my normal genre choice when reading books, but I've watched my fair share of mafia style films. The familiarities are undeniable and it's understandable. T- is Irish and in the Italian mob there are limitations to what he can do and where he can go. He's a company man though and follows every order to the letter.

The best part of the book is T- himself. He's a far more complex man than he may seem. From the Saint Jude's medal he wears, his concern for not harming innocents, and his utter lack of a concern of doing vile things helps him come to life. He's not a hero of any sort, but it's easy to know where T- is coming from.

My biggest problem with the book is it doesn't feel like it's heading anywhere for the majority of the book. It feels like a memoir of events with the author going from one to the next with little connection to the prior events outside of T- himself. I personally like a strong plot that helps keep the story moving for me and unfortunately I was missing that here.

All in all El Güero is a solid book, I imagine those who are fans of Mafia style drama will enjoy this one more than I did.

3 out of 5 stars

I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

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What's Up With Kids These Days With The Murder And Whathaveyou?!

Hickory Dickory Dock by Agatha Christie
Reviewed by Jason Koivu
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A bunch of boarders, mostly students and young folk, get into a bit of mischief which turns out to be more than just a bit of mischief.

Hickory Dickory Dock was published in the latter half of Agatha Christie's career. It's also one of the later Poirot books. As such, it does feel a bit more mature in the characterization and such. But what the hell do I know? I'm no Christie scholar. I've only read a few of her many books. This is yet another one that has me wanting to read more of her work.

In this tale of love, death and well, I'll just say "more," our usual hero Poirot, that diminutive man from Belgium, plays but a small role. That was a disappointment, a disappointment made up for with a slightly more interesting police detective and a variant cast of crazy landlords, rather one-dimensional students and a couple multilayered individuals that had me bouncing back and forth between who I thought had "dunnit".

Maybe this isn't Christie's most memorable work, but it would be a credit to any mystery writer's oeuvre.

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On Writing

On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Stephen King shares some stories of his past and some writing tips.

This was either my fourth or fifth time reading this. I got it for Christmas around the turn of the century and I've buzz-sawed through it a few times before. The first time, I was just cutting my writing teeth. Now, with seven or eight first drafts of novels writing around, I came to the book with a completely different perspective.

Most books about writing, as I've said before, are by people I've never heard of, and are akin to a psychic handing out lottery numbers. If he or she can predict that, why aren't they using the lottery numbers for themselves? Since Stephen King is the big kahuna, I figure he could teach me a few things.

The biography chapters were my favorite the first time around and were still the most fun to read. I had vague recollections of these chapters, such as little Stevie needing fluid drained from his ears, and King's substance abuse. As a man who's skated close to the substance abuse abyss a couple times over the years, his cautionary tale seemed very familiar.

The writing advice was helpful but this was in no way my favorite book on writing. It seems Old Stevie makes a lot more up on the fly than I'm comfortable doing. Still, his advice on omitting needless words and the second draft being the first draft less 10% seemed helpful. Sticking with your first word choice also seems like sound advice.

I'd forgotten there was a section of 1408 included, in first and second draft forms. It was an interesting look behind the curtain and made a lot of sense.

Anyway, if you're looking for writing advice, you could do a lot worse than sitting at the feet of the King for a few hours and absorbing what he has to say. I'll try to apply his lessons the next time I write something. Four out of five stars.

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Match

Kate Aaron
Croft House
Reviewed by Nancy
5 out of 5 stars

Summary

Whatever happened to Brian Scagill?

A year after his dramatic exit from England’s Grand Slam tournament, Brian has all but disappeared from the world of professional tennis, and doesn’t intend to return. He’s made a life for himself with fellow athlete Lexi Horvat, far removed from the dual pressures of fame and family.

A surprise wildcard might be his last chance to play on an international stage, and Brian’s life is thrown into tumult once again. This time, however, he’s not alone. Lexi has secured himself a place in the tournament, as has Jared, a young player the two men have been coaching. With his loved ones accompanying him, Brian agrees to play. Lexi promises they’ll take on the tournament together, as a team, but Brian knows better than anyone that on the grass, it’s every man for himself.

My Review

This lovely sequel to Ace was just as romantic and satisfying. As in the first book, tennis features very prominently. I appreciated the attention and thought that went into the sport details which never felt excessive and which helped make the story come alive for me.

Despite earlier events that conspired to keep the two men apart, Brian’s and Lexi’s love is solid. They are now living in Tampa, Florida, where Lexi is coaching Jared, a promising 15-year-old player, and Brian is taking time off from professional tennis to focus on his relationship.

Thanks to Lexi’s gentle encouragement, Brian agrees to compete professionally again after a year’s hiatus.

Breathtaking athleticism, fierce competition, hot sexy times, and familial love abound.

After Brian’s parents finalize their divorce, much work is needed to mend the relationship with his meddling mom.

While tennis is the major focus here, this is a story that explores love in its many forms, family ties, competition, dedication, self-discipline, finding one’s purpose in life, and leaving a legacy.

Jared has a bright future ahead of him.

Love-love.