The Wood at Midwinter

By Susanna Clarke

Book Overview

INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER

From the bestselling and prize-winning author of Piranesi and Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, an enchanting, beautifully illustrated short story set in the world of Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell.

'A church is a sort of wood. A wood is a sort of church. They're the same thing really.'

Nineteen-year-old Merowdis Scot is an unusual girl. She can talk to animals and trees-and she is only ever happy when she is walking in the woods.

One snowy afternoon, out with her dogs and Apple the pig, Merowdis encounters a blackbird and a fox. As darkness falls, a strange figure enters in their midst-and the path of her life is changed forever.

Featuring gorgeous illustrations truly worthy of the magic of this story and an afterword by Susanna Clarke explaining how she came to write it, this is a mesmerizing, must-have addition to any fantasy reader's bookshelf.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1639734481
• ISBN13: 9781639734481
• Release Date: October 2024
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
• Length: 64 Pages
• Weight: 0.84 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.3" x 8.1"

Customer Reviews

"There ought to be more pigs in books."

4.5*stars. Summary: The Wood at Midwinter is a perfect short story for Christmas or wintertime. The illustrations are gorgeous and aid the story wonderfully, truly letting you sink into the quaint world of the winter woods, and the magic it holds. Full review: I agree with Susanna Clarke; pigs are cute and smarter than we give them credit for, as seen in this story, such as Apple. Merowdis, the main character in this story, is unusual. Not many people understand her; she prefers the company of her various animal companions, trees, and nature. At the young age of 19, just wanting a normal life with a child, she was already considered a saint by her family and most others; a note Apple made when her other animal companions didn't understand, her ways seeming odd-even to them. The afterward stated that Merowdis would likely be called neurodivergent, as most saints could be; a perspective I enjoyed. The Wood at Midwinter is a very short story with beautiful illustrations. I loved Merowdis's personality and related to her well, speaking to her animal friends and nature itself. While I was slightly disappointed it had more (brief) monotheistic religious context in it than I had hoped - it was still respectfully non-denominational; again, it was a perspective that was different than I expected in the best of ways.