I thought I might revisit The Sanctuary Of The White Friars as we are on the cusp of the release of the second book in the series. Not that it takes much effort to reread a book that has such strong associations with myself. Something resonated powerfully with me as the time between reading it and remembering it grew and grew. Part memoir, part exciting historical adventure yarn.A detailed account of the early years of Moorcock's publishing career and an equally detailed reimagining of Middle english history. Exciting, engaging and even romantically rewarding. If love of history and heroic fellowship is your thing. (And it is everones thing on some level.) then this is a great gateway book for you to join in the good works of this remarkable writer. you will be in good company; Claude Duvall the handsome, brave and witty highwayman and the four Musketeers for starters. When the author crosses the threshold of imagination he enters a merry old England that will exist forever on the pages of so many beloved adventure books.
I was reminded of some of the sentiment and insights proposed by Iain Sinclair in his book The Last London. As he was referring to a London which existed before and not a final itteration of that city. We are in a liminal phase of a new evolving history with many of its inhabitants and participants already scrambling up the barricades of social media. Standards are raised, flags ripple and crack in the wind of history, blowing one way then the other. The flags have become crazy quilts and their meaning changes with every swish of the raiseed poles. The new Arcadia is coming into being but its final form is obscured drenched in the fog of events that multiply , crash and collide, giving birth to such startling new directions the lexicon cannot keep up.
michael Moorcock has attempted to do as much with his vision of a world within worlds, the cultural kalidescope of The Sanctuary Of The White Friars.Its been an enjoyable voyage thus far. I look forward very much to continue this journey.Traveling in style in the company of a writer whos star never dims.
