Burgess, Melvin. Bloodtide.BURGESS, Melvin. Bloodtide. Read by Colin Moody. 10 cds. 11 hrs. Bolinda Audio. 1999. 17409-3718-X. $80.00. Vinyl; plot, reader notes. SA Signy is only 14 when her father arranges her marriage to Conor to effect a truce between two warring and powerful London families seeking world domination. Strong, resourceful, and independent before her betrothal, Signy laments that a woman has so little control of her fate. But in fact, all of the humans in this bleak and haunting fantasy must do what they must do as pre-ordained by the god Odin. Inspired by the Icelandic Saga of Ragnarok--the apocalyptic Battle at the End of the World--Burgess sets his novel so far ahead in the future that man has once again become primitive, a victim of his own technology. London is terrorized by roving gangs of hybrid human/animal/robot "half-men," while even the pureblooded pure·blood also pure·blood·ed adj. Of unmixed ancestry; purebred. pure  blood master race is obsessed ob·sess v. ob·sessed, ob·sess·ing, ob·sess·es v.tr. To preoccupy the mind of excessively. v.intr. with conquest. The poor prey upon each other for basic needs; the rich plunder TO PLUNDER. The capture of personal property on land by a public enemy, with a view of making it his own. The property so captured is called plunder. See Booty; Prize. for sport. Doom is inescapable and even the protagonists know it, but the abundant action and Burgess's horrifying and psychologically complex characters make this a thriller. Moody uses a flat working-class accent that underscores the barbarism bar·ba·rism n. 1. An act, trait, or custom characterized by ignorance or crudity. 2. a. The use of words, forms, or expressions considered incorrect or unacceptable. b. , while his individualization individualization, n the process of tailoring remedies or treatments to cure a set of symptoms in an indiv-idual instead of basing treatment on the common features of the disease. of the "half-men" is animated and memorable. Francine Levitov, Attorney, New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of , NY S--Recommended for senior high school students. A--Recommended for advanced students and adults. This code will help librarians and teachers working in high schools where there are honors and advanced placement students. This also will extend KLIATT's usefulness in public libraries. |
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