The Summer Tree

Carolyn Bett was President, CEBET Bibliographies.

While Convocation Hall on the University of Toronto campus seems an unlikely place to begin a tale of fantasy, Kay takes us swiftly and convincingly into another world where the deeper characters and potentialities of the five chosen students are revealed.

The fly leaf is not overstating Kay’s talents in saying that “The Summer Tree is... written in the rich tradition of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings.” Many myths are explored and illuminated (such as the dying King mirrored by the dying land). Kay certainly has Tolkien’s power for conjuring up terrifyingly evil images. However, this writing is of its own place and time.

Among the various societies encountered on “the other side,” the Dalrei closely resemble North American prairie Indians in their tribal structure. Insight is given into and respect developed for people who live close to the land and cherish its gifts. For instance, the hunt is depicted as a sacred act in this context.

The jibes at the feminist movement are wonderfully funny and quite acceptable because it is obvious that Kay, like the most far-reaching feminists, is concerned with fulfillment of all individuals and has a profound understanding of and respect for women. The most horribly evil act encountered is rape.

However, as the title of this volume hints, the central theme is the Crucifixion and Resurrection. To the nominal Christian who has become entangled in ritual and rhetoric, Paul’s experience comes as a sublimely comprehensible baptism into the mysteries of the Cross.

The book works because the concepts are utterly simple and true, the details vivid, the story line (for all its complexity) clearly thought out and well paced. Although the line-up of characters is reminiscent of a Russian novel, each character springs larger than life with such fullness and individuality that confusion is never a problem.

The two succeeding volumes in the trilogy will be eagerly awaited by lovers of fantasy, folklore, myth, and outstanding literature.