The Weirdstone of Brisingamen

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Appreciating literature can be a lot like appreciating cinema: through your favourite actors or writers, you discover a genre that really excites you and then, before you know it, you’re out looking for genre works to add to your collection. Of course, it works through hearsay as well: by heeding the recommendations of people you think are cool, you can discover entire realms of familiar and yet completely new environments. This is certainly how I came to read Alan Garner’s The Weirdstone of Brisingamen.

A fantasy rather reminiscent of Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia, The Weirdstone of Brisingamen tells the story of Colin and Susan who arrive in Alderley to live with their aunt Bess and uncle Gowther Mossock. Whilst out exploring the countryside one day, the children get lost and stumble upon a world of high magic and fantasy they never knew existed… and it’s in danger. Since the defeat of the wicked Nastrond, steps have been taken to prepare for his eventual return; an army has been assembled and put into an enchanted sleep until they are needed, with the great wizard Cadellin Silverbrow and the Weirdstone of Brisingamen to guard and protect them. But centuries ago, the Weirdstone was lost and has only now resurfaced on the wrist of young Susan. As dark forces hunt for the stone, the children find themselves constantly in grave peril and time is against them as they embark on a quest to return the stone to Cadellin and save the world.

Loosely based on the local Cheshire folk legend of ‘the Wizard of the Edge’, Garner’s story is a classic fantasy fable that is both enchanting and different. Like Ursula Le Guin’s Earthsea trilogy, Weirdstone takes a number of recognisable fairytale tropes and twists them in such a way as to have the story recognisable as a fantasy, but unlike all the others that have come before it.

For example, modern readers who have Rowling’s Harry Potter series to benchmark against, would probably find the story uninspiring as (from an action point of view) not a whole lot actually happens. Contextually, the novel works a little bit more like a travel log with the brunt of the drama taking place during literal travels through unexplored mines, caves, and woodlands.

For young readers excited by the idea that fantasy realms are just for children (no grown ups allowed) a la Narnia, the book does begin that way, but the exclusivity is soon abandoned.

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However, despite its quest trajectory, bridging of the gender divide, and characters that can’t help but remind you of Lord of the Rings, Weirdstone stands apart from other fantasy stories with its engaging setting and its fascinating creatures e.g. the svart-alfar (goblin-like creatures) and the Mara (trolls), and other such creatures recognisable from similar fantasy tales and Norse mythology. With its lore and stories within the story, it’s a dated but still rather interesting read and despite Garner himself ultimately concluding that it’s a “fairly bad book”, it’s a tale that still inspires continued circulation and (no doubt) some kind of following.

The Weirdstone of Brisingamen was the literary debit of Alan Garner who began writing it in 1957. It was published by William Collins, Sons in 1960, in the wake of Tolkien’s success with Lord of the Rings, and was a critical and commercial success.