Episode 19 - Uprooted with Anne Perry

[Dan Jones]

We're back after the summer break, and are joined by Anne Perry, the publishing director at Jo Fletcher Books, to talk about Naomi Novik's 2015 fantasy bestseller, Uprooted. Based upon aspects of rural Polish folklore, Uprooted follows Agnieszka, a plain village girl who is shocked to learn that she is to be taken away to live with The Dragon, a powerful and distant wizard who lives in a tower at the edge of the valley, and protects them from a malevolent and expanding forest.

Anne, @The Big Peat and @Dan Jones discuss the feminine voice and perspectives the book offers, from friendship to romance, and why this was unusual when it was initially sold in 2014. We talk about the malevolent Wood, its echoing of Mythago Wood, and how it spawned an era of new, female oriented fantasy. We also discuss the various aspects of the male characters, and how outward hostility can hide redemptive transformation, when the female enters into their domain in the correct way.

@The Judge offers a brilliant talk on a topic very relevant to writers of all stripes, namely the issue of copyright of characters, showing cases as diverse as Sherlock Holmes, Only Fools And Horses, Discworld, and Spawn.

Lastly, @AnRoinnUltra shows Captain Halfmilkcarton insisting that Lt Bungalow clean up his mess from across the Corridors Of Time, without much success.

Join us next time when we'll continue our talk with Anne Perry, talking about the state of publishing in 2023, how this affects authors, booksellers, bookshops, and the pros and cons and indie and self-publishing.

Index
Anne Perry Interview [0:00:00 - 55:37]
Skit (55:45 - 58:37]
The Judge's Corner [58:38 - 1:14:36]
Credits and close [1:14:37 - 1:15:12]

 

[HareBrain]

Really good episode, and I found it interesting even though I knew nothing about the book. I think the different presenter styles work well together. I like the way Peat lurks in the background (with his cat), and then launches something that sounds like it might not be very much but then turns out to be very intelligent.

The thought occurred to me that we have this hangover from old fairy tales about the dark malevolent wood dating from a time when the forest was a danger to us rather than the other way round, and I wonder whether the fact that we recycle these old tales in which that is the case still affects how we view nature, to its detriment.

Good talk from TJ too. (Though if I'd had to make a list of phrases I could never imagine her speaking, "thong bikinis" would have been on it.)

 

[The Judge]

And there was me thinking it was "plonker" that would ruin my reputation for serious analysis.

(In case anyone is concerned about failing judicial standards, the "thong bikini" was a direct quote from a US judgement, not my own description which would certainly never have occurred to me even after having examined the apparel.)

 

[Dan Jones]

The thought occurred to me that we have this hangover from old fairy tales about the dark malevolent wood dating from a time when the forest was a danger to us rather than the other way round, and I wonder whether the fact that we recycle these old tales in which that is the case still affects how we view nature, to its detriment.

We've tamed nature because of our technology, but that can only ever be "to some extent" - nature still has the capacity to harm, but mythically nature (like culture) is a dichotomy. It has its malevolent side (the Wood in Uprooted, but there are umpteen examples, especially in fantasy and horror), but it also has the capacity to rejuvenate and bring great value (that's represented by the hoard of gold guarded by the dragon, not literally gold).

I don't think you can ever get away from the idea in fiction that nature is, or at least harbours, the malevolent and dangerous. That's not to its detriment, because it's true. What's required is balance, to show that nature also has the capacity to provide and rejuvenate.

Culture is the same but inverted - it provides protection against the dangers posed by nature, but it can be stifling and oppressive.

Pleased you liked the episode - Uprooted is recommended, very good.

 

[Moonbat]

Another riveting episode, I am now reading Uprooted after listening to this - and thoroughly enjoying it so far. I might just use Cronscast as my unread book pile and see how many great new finds you can suggest.