The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden
- Elvira Dimitrova
- Mar 11, 2019
- 3 min read
“All my life,” she said, “I have been told ‘go’ and ‘come.’ I am told how I will live, and I am told how I must die. I must be a man’s servant and a mare for his pleasure, or I must hide myself behind walls and surrender my flesh to a cold, silent god. I would walk into the jaws of hell itself, if it were a path of my own choosing. I would rather die tomorrow in the forest than live a hundred years of the life appointed me.”
I keep finding myself drawn to the kind of stories that depict magic as part of our world. It is precisely the reason why I was so drawn to The Bear and the Nightingale. Katherine Arden takes us back to the ways of Russia as it has been in the past, by bringing to the front all of those fairytales about magic and magical creatures and breathing life into them. The story enchants you with its narration and it also takes you on a journey of exploration through the old ways against the newer ones.
The novel begins with before the birth of the main character Vasya and it reveals a few short moments between her parents. It is right from the very first few chapters that it becomes evident how crucial Vasya's role is going to be. However, the question remains, exactly what is she going to do and how is her story going to untangle. So years later, when Vasya is about 6 years old and her mother has passed away after giving birth to her, her father goes to Moscow to find himself a new wife. It is on his journey back with Vasya's stepmother that he ecounters somebody unexpected and powerful who assigns him with an important task. In addition, Vasya and her stepmother's bond is damaged early on, mainly due to the reason that they both share a very similar trait: they can both see more than what the others can. And when the priest comes with his declaration of demons and that we should fear our God, something long asleep awakes, preparing for a strike of an immense magnitude. You want to find out what happens next? Then you definitely need to read the book.
“It is a cruel task, to frighten people in God’s name.”
The story is so well narrated that it makes you feel like you yourself are part of a fairytale. All the mystic creatures are presented and with the progression of the book, you begin to sympathize with them as well as realize how powerful the words of someone preaching the new religion can be. There's drama to it, there's intrigue, there's family bond, there're moral obligations, there's betrayal, there's an unexpected friendship, and there's also bravery right at the core of it. It's really a matter of how all these things intertwine with each other.
Perhaps what I enjoyed most about the novel is the sense of reality to it. It presents a picture way too real. Even though it covers a period in the past, some of the things are still true until this very day which makes it all the more powerful as it plays easily on our conscience and mindset. I strongly recommend it to all of the readers out there who are passionate about fantasy, mythology and solving societal issues. It will allow you to be part of the fairytale but will also give you a new insight into why bravery is such a significant trait of our lives.
Rate: 4/5
Comments