Shardik by Richard Adams
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Book Reviews of Shardik
Book Review: very good reading...
Summary: 5 Stars
Being in Iraq for so long now I picked up one of Richard Adams books. This was the second one that I read. I have quickly become one of his biggest fans. This book, deals with faith, power and evils that fall upon man. The hero, what you may can one, rises to become a great man but his heart begins to stray. He loses what made his such a pure being. There are many acts of faith that Mr. Adams brings to live with makes it all the more beliveible. A very wonderful book.Book Review: An unappreciated masterpiece
Summary: 4 Stars
Richard Adams's _Shardik_ is set in an imaginary world, though Adams, like Tolkien, hints that in fact it is simply the remote past of our own world. The central action of the story concerns a giant bear worshipped by a tribe living on the southern limits of the great Beklan empire. This tribe, the Ortelgans, believe that Shardik's purpose is to lead them to greatness, and so when he appears they follow him in a glorious campaign to conquer the Empire. But is Shardik really a god, or just a very big bear whose thoroughly animal-like actions are given meaning by his followers? Adams wisely never really answers this question, and this is the great fascination of the book. Adams faces head-on the charge that religion is simply a tool for oppression and exploitation. He avoids a simplistic answer largely through his complex portrayal of the central human character, Shardik's prophet Kelderek. Kelderek is a simple tribesman who sincerely believes himself to have been chosen by Shardik for great purposes. While many of his actions are evil, we are never allowed to lose sympathy with him or to suspect him of hypocrisy, while at the same time we come to sympathize more and more with the characters who oppose his fanatical regime. At the end, Kelderek sees the evil he has done in the name of God, and begins to understand what Shardik's true purpose is--or does he simply misunderstand yet again? The greatness of this novel is in the fact that while it has a strong moral message, it always conveys this message through the actions and words of its characters. Adams lets the world he has created speak for itself. In the end we can choose to believe or not to believe.For readers like myself who themselves practice a religion, the novel is a powerful portrayal of the way the divine can be distorted and misunderstood by even the sincerest believer, even while God always remains transcendent, able to pierce through our comfortable blindness with the shocking light of his grace.
Book Review: A moving, strange, fantasy unlike anything you've read
Summary: 4 Stars
Richard Adams followed up the success of his animal fable, "Watership Down," with this epic fantasy novel. However, you couldn't have imagined a more different novel from "Watership Down." This is a very stark, mature, and philosophical fantasy work that explores the nature of religion, human interpretations of god, and the sacrifices and compromises of a war fought for supposedly idealistic causes. With the exception of a disappointingly tepid finale, this is an astonishing, absorbing novel that deserves rediscovery. I promise, you haven't read fantasy like it before. Without magic, fantastic monsters, or any overt supernatural occurrences, Adams sweeps the reader into a world of brilliant imagination -- the mark of a great fantasy."Shardik" occurs in a hidden world with a hint of the ancient Middle East. A great bear appears to the hunter Kelderek of the simple Ortelgan people. Kelderek declares that the bear is Shardik, a messenger of God, and soon the Ortelgan people rise to "follow" Shardik (who must often be coerced or drugged into fulfilling prophecies) to wage war against the mighty city of Bekla. Kelderek finds himself as the high priest of the great bear, but also learns the heavy responsibilities, and eventually, the doubts and fears.
The novel is filled with war, a strange romance, bizarre and frightening new lands, and violent shifts in the story that rise from the heights of spiritual victory to the depths of slavery. Adams's prose is beautiful and inspiring. Unfortunately, after many excitement moments throughout the book, the lengthy last chapter sputters to a conclusion and probably should have been left out. Regardless, "Shardik" is a fantasy of great scope that leaves the reader with much to ponder.
This new edition comes with a thoughtful introduction by author Robert Silverberg.
Book Review: Brace yourself.
Summary: 4 Stars
In the tradition of "Watership Down," Adams has created a gripping story that, while seemingly detached from our usual sphere of experience, manages to address a number of important social issues. His excellent storytelling ability paints a (mostly) barreling saga of religion perverted for human use and a king's morally questionable policies gone awry. I loved the beginning and end of the book (it was in these sections that the action was most intense) but the middle was so dense I literally slogged through it. Adams' heavy philosophical tangents, intensely long and convoluted metaphors, and pages-on-end introspections by the principal character often bring the storyline to a complete halt. Still, if you have the necessary willpower to finish the book (I had to start it four times before I actually finished it), you won't be disappointed.
Book Review: The courage to create a society from threads to whole cloth
Summary: 4 Stars
I don't usually read books dealing with imaginary societies, but this one so engrossed me I couldn't put it down. Whether you respect religious cults and ancient societal mores or not, the characters of this novel will indubitably pull you in. I loved the humanity and erudition of this masterpiece. It isn't quite on the level of creative genius of Adams' Watership Down, but humans are a poor comparison to the lives of rabbits. A thoroughly enjoyable read.