The Charwoman's Shadow by Lord DunsanyMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
I am willing to give Lord Dunsany the benefit of four stars, despite the rude connotation that Lord Vishnu is someone a follower of Dark Arts would pray to. Dunsany was a learned man and another book by him makes light of religion as such, so I was somewhat taken aback at this bigotry. Anyway, like I said, I'll not let that stand in my review of a book that I really enjoyed.
The story follows the travails of a young man, Ramon Alonzo who has to learn the art of making gold from a sorcerer so he can accumulate enough dowry for his only sister, Mirandola. The poor man soon finds out the terrible price of learning anything from this evil man, but must keep going because of his love for his sister and out of chivalry towards an old charwoman who is desperate for her shadow that was taken by the sorcerer.
Lord Dunsany writes about a simpler time, when the marriage of a daughter, with a big fat dowry for her future husband was top-most priority, a scenario, that sadly still unfolds in many a place. However, Lord Dunsany gives Mirandola a strong character and lets her take her destiny in her own hands, something perhaps not very common in those times. As usual, the story is made entertaining by the many intelligent quotes and the importance of losing something one takes for granted (like one's shadow) is exemplified by the terrified and hostile attitude of society towards an anomaly like that. The overall tone of the book remains hopeful and at times even funny, especially with Dunsany's trademark humor which in this book concerns the psychology of a dog!
I still am not sure why the knowledge of boar hunting (taught by Alonzo's ancestor to the sorcerer) was such a big deal that the sorcerer felt so obliged to teach Ramon Alonzo something in return. I guess hunting is an integral part of Dunsany's works no matter what they are about, so I won't dwell on it longer, but Dunsany's style is surely growing on me.
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