Fire Bringer
Encyclopedia
Fire Bringer is a young adult fantasy
novel
by David Clement-Davies
published in 1999 in the United Kingdom
and 2000 in the United States
.
born in ancient Scotland
. The story begins on the night his father
, Brechin, was murdered, and his mother
, Eloin, taken by theservant of the Lord of the Herd, Sgorr. But Rannoch is no ordinary deer
; he is special, for he bears a white mark on his forehead resembling an oak
leaf.
To the Herla, as the deer are called among the world of the animals, this white mark holds great meaning and power. It was stated in a prophecy
that the deer who was born with the mark would bring freedom to all Herla in the future, and that the bearer of the oak mark would be a healer and have the ability to communicate with all animals.
The Lord of the Herds, Drail, wants Rannoch killed out of fear of The Prophecy. Drail is tricked and murdered by Sgorr, who has militarized
the herd by making the stags sharpen their antlers, training and drilling the young bucks, having them bore each other in the forehead to make permanent scabs, and will take no resistance. He realizes the threat Rannoch poses to his leadership. Rannoch escapes from the herd, accompanied by Bracken, not his real mother, and his companions Thistle, Tain, twins Peppa and Willow, Quiach, Bankfoot and their mothers, and Bhreac, an old doe who promised the herd storyteller to protect Rannoch.
Growing up outside of the herd, he struggles to choose between the life of freedom he now has and the future laid out for him by the prophecy. He knows that he must return, in order to unite the deer, and end Sgorr's reign of terror. He also struggles a lot throughout the book in order to fight the prophecy;he is scared of the sacrifice.
Shattered like a blasted tree,
Then shall Herne be justly woken,
Born to set the Herla free.
On his brow a leaf of oaken,
Changeling child shall be his fate.
Understanding words strange spoken,
Chased by anger, fear and hate.
he shall flee o'er hill and heather,
And shall go where no deer can,
Knowing secrets dark to Lera,
Till his need shall summon man.
Air and water, earth and fire,
All shall ease his bitter pain,
Till the elements conspire
To restore the Island Chain.
First the High land grass shall flower,
As he quests through wind and snow,
Then he breaks an ancient power,
And returns to face his woe.
When the lord of lies upbraids him,
Then his wrath shall cloak the sun,
And the Herla's foe shall aid him
To confront the evil one.
Sacrifice shall be his meaning,
He the darkest secrets learn,
Truth of beast and man revealing,
Touching on the heart of Herne
Fawn of moonlight ever after,
So shall all the Herla sing.
For his days shall herald laughter,
Born a healer and a king.
by Richard Adams
, who is also a British
author.
(2) http://umanitoba.ca/cm/vol6/no2/firebringer.html
(3) http://www.rambles.net/clement_firebr02.html
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by David Clement-Davies
David Clement-Davies
David Clement-Davies is a British writer of fantasy fiction. He is best known as the author of the animal fantasy books The Sight, Fire Bringer and Fell .- Biography :...
published in 1999 in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and 2000 in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Plot
This is the story of Rannoch, a red deerRed Deer
The red deer is one of the largest deer species. Depending on taxonomy, the red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Asia Minor, parts of western Asia, and central Asia. It also inhabits the Atlas Mountains region between Morocco and Tunisia in northwestern Africa, being...
born in ancient Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. The story begins on the night his father
Father
A father, Pop, Dad, or Papa, is defined as a male parent of any type of offspring. The adjective "paternal" refers to father, parallel to "maternal" for mother...
, Brechin, was murdered, and his mother
Mother
A mother, mum, mom, momma, or mama is a woman who has raised a child, given birth to a child, and/or supplied the ovum that grew into a child. Because of the complexity and differences of a mother's social, cultural, and religious definitions and roles, it is challenging to specify a universally...
, Eloin, taken by theservant of the Lord of the Herd, Sgorr. But Rannoch is no ordinary deer
Deer
Deer are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. Species in the Cervidae family include white-tailed deer, elk, moose, red deer, reindeer, fallow deer, roe deer and chital. Male deer of all species and female reindeer grow and shed new antlers each year...
; he is special, for he bears a white mark on his forehead resembling an oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
leaf.
To the Herla, as the deer are called among the world of the animals, this white mark holds great meaning and power. It was stated in a prophecy
Prophecy
Prophecy is a process in which one or more messages that have been communicated to a prophet are then communicated to others. Such messages typically involve divine inspiration, interpretation, or revelation of conditioned events to come as well as testimonies or repeated revelations that the...
that the deer who was born with the mark would bring freedom to all Herla in the future, and that the bearer of the oak mark would be a healer and have the ability to communicate with all animals.
The Lord of the Herds, Drail, wants Rannoch killed out of fear of The Prophecy. Drail is tricked and murdered by Sgorr, who has militarized
Military
A military is an organization authorized by its greater society to use lethal force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. The military may have additional functions of use to its greater society, such as advancing a political agenda e.g...
the herd by making the stags sharpen their antlers, training and drilling the young bucks, having them bore each other in the forehead to make permanent scabs, and will take no resistance. He realizes the threat Rannoch poses to his leadership. Rannoch escapes from the herd, accompanied by Bracken, not his real mother, and his companions Thistle, Tain, twins Peppa and Willow, Quiach, Bankfoot and their mothers, and Bhreac, an old doe who promised the herd storyteller to protect Rannoch.
Growing up outside of the herd, he struggles to choose between the life of freedom he now has and the future laid out for him by the prophecy. He knows that he must return, in order to unite the deer, and end Sgorr's reign of terror. He also struggles a lot throughout the book in order to fight the prophecy;he is scared of the sacrifice.
Major
- Brechin
- Eloin
- Rannoch
- Sgorr
- Bhreac
- Blindweed
- Bracken
- Drail
- Tain
- Thistle
- Bankfoot
- Peppa
- Willow
- Birrmagnur
Minor
- Bandach
- Narl
- Haarg
- Liath
- Crak
- Wolf
- Rurl
- Teek
- The mole
- Shira
- Canisp
- Alyth
- Braan
- The boy(Liam)
- Quaich
The Prophecy
When the Lore is bruised and broken,Shattered like a blasted tree,
Then shall Herne be justly woken,
Born to set the Herla free.
On his brow a leaf of oaken,
Changeling child shall be his fate.
Understanding words strange spoken,
Chased by anger, fear and hate.
he shall flee o'er hill and heather,
And shall go where no deer can,
Knowing secrets dark to Lera,
Till his need shall summon man.
Air and water, earth and fire,
All shall ease his bitter pain,
Till the elements conspire
To restore the Island Chain.
First the High land grass shall flower,
As he quests through wind and snow,
Then he breaks an ancient power,
And returns to face his woe.
When the lord of lies upbraids him,
Then his wrath shall cloak the sun,
And the Herla's foe shall aid him
To confront the evil one.
Sacrifice shall be his meaning,
He the darkest secrets learn,
Truth of beast and man revealing,
Touching on the heart of Herne
Herne
Herne may refer to:Places in England* Herne, Kent, near the town of Herne Bay* Herne Bay, Kent, seaside town located in southeastern Kent* Herne Common, Kent* Herne Hill in LondonPlaces in Australia* Herne Hill, Victoria...
Fawn of moonlight ever after,
So shall all the Herla sing.
For his days shall herald laughter,
Born a healer and a king.
Comparisons
This book has been compared to the novel Watership DownWatership Down
Watership Down is a classic heroic fantasy novel, written by English author Richard Adams, about a small group of rabbits. Although the animals in the story live in their natural environment, they are anthropomorphised, possessing their own culture, language , proverbs, poetry, and mythology...
by Richard Adams
Richard Adams
Richard Adams was a non-conforming English Presbyterian divine, known as author of sermons and other theological writings.-Life:...
, who is also a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
author.
Sources
(1) http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0PBX/is_3_36/ai_107124408/(2) http://umanitoba.ca/cm/vol6/no2/firebringer.html
(3) http://www.rambles.net/clement_firebr02.html