Every now and then a book comes along that captures
your attention from first word to last, it is a rear
thing but when it happens it makes the experience
and the book memorable and important. A week ago I
received a book which was beautifully produced and
which was beautifully produced and had some stunning
illustrations which immediately piqued my interest.
When I opened it I was grabbed by it and read it
through in one sitting. I was so impressed that two
days later I sat down and read it again. I have
just finished reading it for a third time, picking
up the many literary references and games played
with language references. I will probably read it
again when I can get it back from my
daughter who has claimed it.
The Bees is a fascinating account of bees
and an elephant artist in the Scottish Highlands and
is told in rhyme. The rhyme scheme is terza rhima
not an easy form at the best of times but this
poem fills a book. There is a danger that because
of its style and content that it may pass some
readers by or my be seen as a lightweight amusing
fantasy. But it would be a terrible shame if it
were to.
It is a fantasy, but at the same time it is an
exploration of culture and myth. Written in a style
which both controlled and accessible the text may
quite possibly be a milestone of post-modern intertextual
writing, and it is in this vein that I would
recommend it. The internal references are legion
the name checks innumerable, the humour palpable,
the execution amazing and poetic control
outstanding. There are many "rules" broken in the
telling of the tale, for example I often rant on
about authorial intervention but here instead of
being an annoyance it is something I can see many
readers looking forward to. The use of language is
at times extraordinary and Evans uses colloquial,
archaic and modern forms without subconscious
concern for the mix and the mix is in fact
glorious. I must admit that consistent rhyming does
tend to grate for me after a while but here it
is used so well that it sinks into the telling of
the tale. The rhythm is also controlled but not to
the point of a straightjacket and some of the
metrical substitutions are used to great effect.
This book took me on a wonderful journey and I was
going to say that "the only possible comparisons for
me is Heathcoat Williams Whale Nation or
another book destined to be seen as a modern classic,
Michael Horovitz's masterpiece of postmodernism and
political poetry A New Waste Land." but I
am not going to say that because The Bees
is incomparable.
"The Bees" by Sally Evans is published by
diehard ISBN 0946230870