This one is a treasure to keep and re-read, which is likewise true of the first book in the set, In the Night Garden. Valente's reworking of tales takThis one is a treasure to keep and re-read, which is likewise true of the first book in the set, In the Night Garden. Valente's reworking of tales taken from just about everywhere―She is deeply knowledgeable about myths, fairy tales, and folklore!―is fresh, lively, vivid, and completely her own. It is typical of my reading of Valente (and I've read a lot, but not yet all, of her work) that I never think, "Oh, I've seen this before," because I haven't. She began as a poet and the poet shines through in all of her prose, too, yet she also knows how to move a narrative forward so that the reader follows her thread as devotedly as Theseus followed Ariadne's. Valente is masterful at creating lush settings and characters that make you love and fear them, with abiding reverence. They have staying power, too, rather than fading a week after reading.
I do think of Angela Carter when I read Valente, but not because of derivation, more because of a similar spark of genius, dark wildness, and sensuality that shimmers. Like Carter, Valente takes tales we know from myth and legend and folk lore, and upgrades them to their 2.0 version. They both rewrite so that girls and women come forth as the bold and powerful beings we know they can be, rather than simply as manipulated victims or background support to males. This is significant for one reason: My usual response to such writing is that I loathe it because it smacks of superficial wish-fulfillment.
Many of the writers who create modern re-tellings of archetypal stories seem not to understand what an archetype is, or what function it serves in the human psyche. If you do not understand this, you are very unlikely to reproduce a better version for modern readers. Instead, what you will get are pretend females who are no more than a superficial wish-fulfillment fantasy, lacking depth and meaning. These types of books are everywhere and they run roughshod over our actual natures, in favour of producing some sort of superheroines who triumph over every possible challenge, and who have no basis at all in reality. If fiction is a lie that reveals truth, then these books are lies that reveal nothing but more lies. They are emotionally dishonest. Girls and women may take the starring role in such books, but they are not really females at all; they are like males, but with breasts. Sometimes, they are not even that, but seem to lack any real connection with humanity at all.
Valente, like Carter, is too smart for that cheap trick. Their heroines are fantastic, sometimes magic, and not necessarily human; nevertheless, they resonate at the level of our deepest selves, stirring the murky pools of our psyches. These heroines are courageous and loyal. They are often kind and compassionate, yet can also be cruel and callous when something stands between themselves and what they need to do. They make great sacrifices to achieve particular ends, which are not always fulfilled. They love fiercely and deeply and some live short and brutal lives. They all suffer enormously. Valente shows us that even women made of starlight and grass yearn for their mothers; even fire gods get lonely; even girls who walk amongst the dead long for friendship. These are rich and wonderful characters and, because they are the true to life―emotionally and psychologically, if not actually―they do not always triumph, in love or in their lives. Yet their lives are not lived in vain but with resolve and reverence. They have purpose and meaning.
As it turns out, I have come to prefer Valente's version of The Arabian Nights tales, on which this set of stories is modeled, to the original. I do love the original stories but found I was able to predict their outcome easily, the more I read them. Also, frankly, the rending of garments and pulling of hair gets tedious after the first dozen stories! I cannot guess Carter's mind, nor can I predict Valente, and that keeps me reading....more
Marvelous, in the truest sense of the word. I am a Valente fan, my favourite of hers being Palimpsest, but also loving The Melancholy of Mechagirl, DeMarvelous, in the truest sense of the word. I am a Valente fan, my favourite of hers being Palimpsest, but also loving The Melancholy of Mechagirl, Deathless, and The Fairyland Series. I am loyal even to Radiance because, although I could not engage with all of it, much of it I did, and its sense of place, mood, and imagery have stayed with me.
Like all of Valente's writing, In the Night Garden is metaphorically and visually evocative and potent. If you enjoyed The Arabian Nights: Tales of 1001 Nights, Volume 1, then you will probably enjoy this book. It's similarly styled (the domineering sister in Night Garden is even named Dinarzhad) but with all of Valente's motifs and playfulness....more
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