Grendel

As I was planning to do soon after I bought this book, I read Beowulf. And I have a terrible confession to make: I was not overly enthusiastic about it. Not nearly as much as I was reading the saga of the Volsungs, which I really, really loved and could not get enough of. I don't know why, it did not click with Beowulf. This is not to say that I did not enjoy the read, just that I did not love it as much as I thought I would. Shame on me.

That said, I loved, loved, loved the Grendel character. You can see him here, as drawn by illustrator Alan Lee. He looks very much like Gollum in this picture. It gives a certain vulnerability in spite of his malevolence. Grendel's physique is only very vaguely described in the epic poem. We have verses like these:

"Rage-inflamed, wreckage-bent, he ripped open
the jaws of the hall. Hastening on,
The foe then stepped onto the unstained floor,
Angrily advanced: out of his eyes stood
An unlovely light like that of fire"

Grendel is described through his actions (here its display of strength) and emotions, this ever present anger. It is evocative rather than descriptive. Grendel is one kind of monster: descendant of Cain, he thus has a human parentage. He is not quite a giant, although larger than a man, he has the appetites of an ogre, but his motivations are at the core vindictive: it is the songs and laughter coming from Heorot that drive him to take vengeful actions. In its simplicity, it is a powerful plot. An inspiring one too. I mentioned in my previous post on Beowulf that I intended to read it partially to calm my longing for Dungeons & Dragons. Now I kind of regret not reading the story a few years ago. A monster inspired by Grendel could have made an excellent foil for a few adventures.

Beowulf

I book this book in the independent bookshop of Wallingford, during my last visit. I know the story of Beowulf, but never read the epic poem itself. I think I have one version back in Chicoutimi, which I bought decades ago, but I wanted to have one here available to read whenever I feel like it. Which might be soon. Beside, I love the new covers of the Penguin books for such legendary/epic stories. It is the same cover for the translation of the saga of the Volsungs. Looking modern, yet so much as it makes you forget this is an old story you are going to read. And Grendel looks great in it, all brutish and menacing.

As I often mentioned, my reading list follows the seasons. I usually read old legends, mythology books and even medieval fantasy books in the months and weeks leading to Christmas, from November onwards. This is what I did with The Saga of the Volsungs. That said, I might make an exception for Beowulf. Because since I saw this cover I am impatient to read the original story and because it has long been overdue. Also, I need something to calm my longing for a good Dungeons & Dragons game since we ended the campaign last December. It is time to read what inspired the stories which inspired us, my brothers and I, when we started our D&Dr game. And here is one last anecdote about Beowulf: my wife studied it at school, in year seven. One version for children, not the original thing. She found it very boring and really hated it. So when I was all wide eyed in the Wallingford seeing this book, she could not believe I'd buy it so eagerly. Might be a boy thing, I don't know.