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GRANDMOTHERS OF THE LIGHT

Name: GRANDMOTHERS OF THE LIGHT
Author: Paula Gunn Allen
ISBN: 0-8070-8102-7

A MEDICINE WOMAN'S SOURCEBOOK

by Paula Gunn Allen ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 23, 1991

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A scholarly yet charming compilation of distinctly feminine Native American legends—a continuation of the explorations that Allen (English/UCLA) began in The Sacred Hoop (1986) and Spider Woman's Granddaughters (a 1990 American Book Award). Concentrating on creation myths and their reflections in ancient and contemporary ritual, Allen, a Laguna Pueblo/Sioux Indian, blends a wealth of North American tribal tales into 21 elegantly phrased explications of what she terms the ``cosmogyny'' (the ``ordered universe arranged in harmony with gynocratic principles''), a concept all but lost, she says, with the incursion of European patriarchal thought. Far from a one-sided feminist view, the emphasis is on balance, with opposing forces (mortal/supernatural, masculine/feminine, individual/community) seeking ``completion rather than adversariness and opposition.'' As Changing Woman, one of the manifestations of the ``Great Goddess'' common to Native American lore, explains to her suitor, the Sun, ``You and I are of the same spirit stuff and so we are of equal worth...if there can be no harmony between us, then there can never be harmony any place in the universe.'' The best of the stories are respectful retellings of essentially timeless myths, suffused with a gently playful humor. Less successful are several slightly strained attempts to transport the narrative to present-day settings. Not that there isn't a purpose here, for Allen takes seriously Mayan prophecies of renewed attention to the supernatural within the next century, characterizing her work as a guide for ``...the process of return, enabling women to recover our ancient medicine ways...'' An unusual prescription, perhaps, but within the confines of this enchanting work, an effortlessly easy one to swallow. A winsome and valuable addition to the growing catalogues of Native American, spiritual, and feminist studies. (Seven b&w illustrations—not seen.)*justify no*

Pub Date: Sept. 23, 1991

ISBN: 0-8070-8102-7

Page Count: 256

Publisher: Beacon Press

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1991

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
AS LONG AS THE RIVERS FLOW
by Paula Gunn Allen & illustrated by Patricia Clark Smith

- BOOK REVIEW
SONG OF THE TURTLE
edited by Paula Gunn Allen

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.