Brunhilda and the Ring. Jorge Luján. Illustrated by Linda Wolfsgruber. Translated by Hugh Hazelton. Toronto, ON: Groundwood Books, 2010. 96 pp., hardcover, $24.95. ISBN 978-0-88899-924-5. Grades 10 and up / Ages 15 and up. Review by Alison Mews. **/4

excerpt:

Tell me what you expect from me," Brunhilda replies.

Annoyed, Wotan’s sorrow turns to rage.

"Fulfill Fricka’s desire, which is also my own.

Carry Siegmund off to die!"

The Valkyrie shudders.

"You who taught me to admire this young Volsung

are now asking me to snatch away his life?

Are rules more important to you

than all the wisdom of nature?" Brunhilda asks defiantly.

"You didn’t make me a warrior

to defend the wrong combatant."

"Obey me, or I’’ll wipe all the smiles

from the face I have loved so much!"

Based on Richard Wagner’s four operas that form The Ring of the Nibelung, this free-verse retelling focuses on Brunhilda, whose integrity and compassion for humanity result in the loss of her immortality and the eventual downfall of the Gods of Valhalla. Wagner’s original epic story was drawn from many sources, including German and Norse mythology, and it was intended for adults. Consequently, it is filled with the whole range of human emotions - love, compassion, courage, betrayal, greed, lust - and while it contains heroic acts, it also has incest and rape. An unusual choice for a young adult book, it will have limited appeal.

     Stripped of the music that helps define the operas, the illustrated narrative must stand on its own. However, anyone unfamiliar with the story will struggle to comprehend it as the myriad plot twists are couched in poetic language and the characters names are often similar (for instance, twins Sieglinde and Siegmund and their love-child Siegfried). This is compounded by the way that dialogue is represented; changes of speaker are separated by quotation marks but not by spacing, and, because there is sparing use speech tags, it’s often difficult to determine who said what. Occasionally, too, the text is placed on a dark background and is difficult to decipher. Altogether, this is not an easy book to read, and it will require concerted concentration and much rereading.


     The illustrations do alleviate the difficulties with the story comprehension, but they are stylized and artistic rather than a straightforward interpretation. Linda Wolfsgruber reflects an innocence in the naked bodies of the Rhinemaidens and the lovers that makes their actions seem more a part of the natural world and the stuff of mythology. Her sparsely detailed images provide an elegance to the retelling that is not present in the translated text.


     Those who enjoy Wagner’s Ring will likely be charmed by this book, but others will find it heavy-going.

Recommended with reservations.

Allison Mews is the Coordinator of the Centre for Instructional Services in the Faculty of Education, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John’s, NL.

To comment on this title or this review, send mail to cm@umanitoba.ca.

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Published by The Manitoba Library Association ISSN 1201-9364

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