Brunhilda and the Ring

by Jorge Lujan, Linda Wolfsgruber (Illustrator), Hugh Hazelton (Translator)

Overview

In this brilliant retelling of Wagner's Ring Cycle, noted poet Jorge Luján reveals the true hero of these ancient and powerful myths — Brunhilda, who through her love, passion, and unwavering loyalty redeems Siegfried. The gods and her whole world come crashing down around her, but by her sacrifice she manages to remain a stirring and admirable figure amongst the vain, the greedy, the venal, and even the evil forces all around her. Lavishly and exquisitely illustrated by master artist Linda Wolfsgruber, and told in free verse, this book gives readers a new approach to an ancient story.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780888999245
Publisher:	Groundwood Books
Publication date:	02/23/2010
Pages:	96
Product dimensions:	6.60(w) x 9.50(h) x 0.60(d)
Age Range:	14 Years

Editorial Reviews

Something is lost in translation from Norse mythology to German opera to free verse novel in this epic tale of Brunhilda and her Valkyrie sisters. Based on the Ring Cycle operas of Robert Wagner, this text relies on readers having some knowledge of the myths and characters. The book opens with the creation and curse of the ring, but its significance is never completely spelled out. From there the reader encounters various gods, heroes, and dwarves without ever knowing or understanding their role while being roughly thrown into another haphazard chapter. The text reads like a play, with unnecessary words spelling out what could be said through staging and body language. A list of characters appears after the text, after the reader has become thoroughly confused and lost by characters with annoyingly similar names. The accompanying illustrations are rustic at best, but do fit the confused nature of the text. Finding an audience for this text is going to be very difficult and readers will likely only come to this work through the original opera. Reviewer: Tiffany Erickson

Children's Literature - Tiffany Erickson

Brunhilda, the hero of this Norse saga, defies her father's wishes by attempting to save the life of her brother. Her father's greed has forced him to make unsavory choices that will cause the death of his own children, but Brunhilda refuses to be anything but honorable in the face of her father's treachery. Her stubbornness to remain true to herself will be her curse. She is fated to lie asleep surrounded by a ring of fire where only a true noble warrior can win her love. By accepting this warrior's love Brunhilda agrees to lose her immortality forever, but unfortunately for Brunhilda, a long sleep cannot obliterate the evil in her world and her happiness about falling in love is to be short-lived. The mythical tale of Brunhilda, written in free verse, is a confusing mix of ancient characters, betrayals and curses. Though Lujan makes an ambitious attempt to bring life to this tale of folklore, at times it falls flat. Brunhilda does not appear in this work until midway through the book—after adventures of incest, magic and foretold prophecies abound. To keep all the action and double crossing straight readers may need to read and reread parts of this lyrical poetry to find the true meaning of the story. Wolfsgruber's illustrations are amateurish at best and do not add nor detract from the text. Targeted to readers with an interest in Norse mythology, this would be a tough sell to high school student unless required for a specific assignment. Reviewer: Laura Panter

VOYA - Laura Panter

Gr 9 Up—For Luján, as for Wagner, the Valkyrie Brunhilda symbolizes "rebellion, love, and compassion." But dozens of characters compete with the heroine for stage center in this free-verse synopsis of the entire opera cycle. Compression mutes the Ring's drama and Brunhilda's significance. Confusingly, Alberich "grabs up" the Rhine gold, but then enslaves his fellow-dwarves to "extract" it from tunnels. The ring and helmet simply appear, without forging; the deal to switch the Rhine treasure for Freya is easy to miss. Incest is downplayed. The language is both prosaic (Wotan was "cheating on Fricka"; Alberich "got even") and stilted ("You would submit her to the caprices of a man?"). The illustrations use scratchy line and splotchy color (especially toward the end). Wolfsgruber's naive style can be evocative, but does little to clarify action muddied by the text. This tone-deaf Brunhilda does Wagner no service.—Patricia D. Lothrop, St. George's School, Newport, RI

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