It's time for a thread of (my) editions of Alan Garner's "The Owl Service" & related books. I'd love to hear what you think, and all about your own copies. And do, please, share if you enjoy it.

Anyway, off to the magical Shelf of Garner...

#OwlService 1/22

"The Owl Service", Alan Garner, Collins, 1967

Starting at the beginning, here's the first edition of "The Owl Service", with a jacket design by Kenneth Farnhill.

#OwlService 2/22
"The Owl Service", Alan Garner, Collins, 1967

Here's the plate design, created by Griselda Greaves from the original plates belonging to her mother, Betty, and now in print for the first time on the paste-down and free endpapers of the hardback.

#OwlService 3/22
"The Owl Service", Alan Garner, Collins, 1967

Alan & Griselda signed this copy for me. (I've pixelated Griselda's signature as it's not already on the internet.) A note from Griselda which might be of interest. I like the red binding, even if it's a mistake.

#OwlService 4/22
"The Owl Service", Alan Garner, Peacock Books, 1969

The television adapatation of "The Owl Service" was broadcast in late 1969. This is the edition which accompanied the series. I'm fairly sure that this is the first paperback edition.

#OwlService 5/22
"The Owl Service", Alan Garner, Peacock Books, 1969

The cover shows Gwyn, Roger and Alison (Michael Holden, Francis Wallis and Gillian Hills). This copy is also signed, and here's (half of) the paperback's version of the famous plate design.

#OwlService 6/22
"The Owl Service", Alan Garner, Peacock Books, 1969, reprinted 1969, 1970, 1971

This copy arrived yesterday. That incredible cover—my favourite of them all—is by Charles Keeping (uncredited in my 1971 reprint, but credited in @folk_horror's 1972 reprint).

#OwlService 7/22
"The Owl Service", Alan Garner, Peacock Books, 1969, reprinted 1969, 1970, 1971

This is harder to find than most. I thought it predated the television tie-in, but seemingly not. My current theory is that '69/'70 were photo-covers, and '71/'72 had this cover.

#OwlService 8/22
"The Owl Service", Alan Garner, Collins Modern Classics, 1998

The fern on James Marsh's cover reminds me of the Welsh hillsides of childhood holidays. This edition gains a 1998 postscript by Alan. It also has illustrations for each chapter, by Bob Harvey.

#OwlService 9/22
"The Owl Service," Alan Garner, Folio Society, 2013

This is everything one would expect from a @foliosociety edition: beautifully made and printed, with outstanding illustrations by @DarrenHopes, and a preface by Susan Cooper.

#OwlService 10/22

More from Culture

Best books I read in 2020

1. Atomic Habits by @JamesClear

“If you show up at the gym 5 days in a row—even for 2 minutes—you're casting votes for your new identity. You’re not worried about getting in shape. Youre focused on becoming the type of person who doesn’t miss workouts”


Good Reasons for Bad Feelings

https://t.co/KZDqte19nG

2. “social anxiety is overwhelmingly common. Natural selection shaped us to care enormously what other people think..We constantly monitor how much others value us..Low self-esteem is a signal to try harder to please others”


The True Believer by Eric Hoffer

https://t.co/uZT4kdhzvZ

“Hatred is the most accessible and comprehensive of all unifying agents...Mass movements can rise and spread without belief in a God, but never without a believe in a devil.”


Grandstanding

https://t.co/4Of58AZUj8

"if politics becomes a morality pageant, then the contestants have an incentive to keep problems intact...politics becomes a forum to show off moral qualities...people will be dedicated to activism for its own sake, as a vehicle to preen"


Warriors and Worriers by Joyce Benenson

https://t.co/yLC4eGHEd4

“Across diverse cultures, a man who lives in the house with another man’s children is about 60 times more likely than the biological father to kill those children.”
I woke up this morning to hundreds of notifications from this tweet, which is literally just a quote from a book I am giving away tonight.

The level of vitriol in the replies is a new experience for me on here. I love Twitter, but this is the dark side of it.

Thread...


First, this quote is from a book which examines castes and slavery throughout history. Obviously Wilkerson isn’t claiming slavery was invented by America.

She says, “Slavery IN THIS LAND...” wasn’t happenstance. American chattel slavery was purposefully crafted and carried out.

That’s not a “hot take” or a fringe opinion. It’s a fact with which any reputable historian or scholar agrees.

Second, this is a perfect example of how nefarious folks operate here on Twitter...

J*mes Linds*y, P*ter Bogh*ssian and others like them purposefully misrepresent something (or just outright ignore what it actually says as they do in this case) and then feed it to their large, angry following so they will attack.


The attacks are rarely about ideas or beliefs, because purposefully misrepresenting someone’s argument prevents that from happening. Instead, the attacks are directed at the person.

You May Also Like