Lion's Honey by David Grossman

Samson the hero; a brave warrior, leader of men and Nazarite of God? Or a misfit given to whoring and lust, who failed to fulfil his destiny? In Lion's Honey, award-winning writer David Grossman takes on one of the most vivid and controversial characters in the Bible. Revisiting Samson's famous battle with the lion, his many women and his betrayal by them all - including the only one he ever loved - Grossman gives us a provocative new take on the story and its climax, Samson's final act of death, bringing down a temple on himself and 3000 Philistines. In exhilarating and lucid prose, Grossman reveals the journey of a single, lonely, tortured soul who never found a true home in the world, who was uncomfortable in his very body and who, some might say, was the precursor of today's suicide bombers.

I originally added this book to my TBR list because it is part of the Myths series published by Canongate. Other books that I have read from this series are Dream Angus by Alexander McCall Smith (about the Celtic god of dreams and love) and Weight by Jeanette Winterson which is a retelling of the story of Atlas and Hercules. Given that those were both retellings, albeit with a bit of modern day storytelling added in Dream Angus, I was expecting another retelling when I read this book. That is not what I got. If I was to be the person cataloguing this book I am not sure that I would have even called it fiction. The first few pages of the book are the story of Samson, taken directly from the King James Version of the Bible. I guess I was a little surprised to see that, but then again, it isn't terribly long so I though 'okay that's probably as good a place as any to start'. What followed was more of a long essay dissecting the Bible story trying to ascertain motive for some of Samson's actions including but not limited to dissecting his relationship with his parents, why he lived amongst the Philistines, and the women that he was associated with. A couple of examples - Why did he feel the need to use 300 pairs of foxes to burn the Philistines fields and why did he not tell his parents that he had killed a lion with his bare hands, and most importantly, why was it that he told Delilah the secret of his strength. In saying that it was not what I expected, I am not saying that I didn't enjoy it because for the most part I did. It was very interesting to read through the text and then refer to the footnotes at the back which may have been referencing the Torah, or some other studies of Samson done by a variety of scholars over the years. Would I have picked it up if it had not been part of this series - probably not. Do I feel compelled to pick up any other work from this author - not really. It was a quick read, and different from most other things I read. And besides...it was the first completed read in the Once Upon a Time II challenge...so that has to be a good thing! Other Blogger's Thoughts: Rhinoa's Ramblings Things Mean A Lot

Dream Angus: The Celtic God of Dreams by Alexander McCall Smith

Dreams to see, find dreams to sell...

Dream Angus comes to you at night and bestows dreams - you may spot him skipping across the hills, his bag of dreams by his side. Just the sight of him may be enough to make you lose your heart , for he is also the god of love, youth and beauty. Divine Angus is adored by all, but fated to love only the beautiful Caer, swan maiden of his own dreams.

Five exquisite fables of modern dreamers unfold alongside Angus's search for Caer. Mesmerically weaving together the fairy tales of the Celtic Eros and his contemporary alter egos, Alexander McCall Smith unites dreams and reality, leaving us to wonder: what is life but the pursuit of our dreams.

This book is part of the Canongate myths series, which is focusing on the retelling of some myths and fables, and features some pretty big names. Some of the books that are part of this series include The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood (the story of the Odyssey from Penelope's point of view), Weight by Jeanette Winterson (about Atlas and Hercules), The Helmet of Horror by Victor Pelevin (Theseus and the Minotaur), Lion's Honey by David Grossman (the story of Samson), with more books coming from authors like Donna Tartt and Chinua Achebe. More details can be found here.

Enough about this series, and more on the book! Angus is apparently a big deal in Celtic myths - the god of dreams and love. This story tells the story of Angus' birth to a water nymph who is tricked into making love with a god, and then from his childhood through to his own romantic chase the lovely girl Caer, who is cursed into turning into a swan. Interspersed amongst the stories about Angus, are 5 short stories which feature people whose lives have been touched by Angus in their dreams. Sometimes his influence is subtle, but other times not. The stories themselves are almost fable like - a young lady who falls in love with a man who works in a test laboratory and he refuses to let one of the pigs be killed, a tale of love gone wrong, another of two brothers separated through circumstances.

As I was thinking about what to write about this, I thought that an Alexander McCall Smith, no matter what it is about, is like a glass (or bottle!) of good red wine. It is a smooth read, and it goes down easy, and this book is no exception. It is very short but very well written. I am hoping that I might read more in this series in due course!

Rating: 4/5


Other Blogger's Thoughts:

Valentina's Room
Things Mean a Lot
Rhinoa's Ramblings