#The Wood at Midwinter

[nzbookwyrm]

An illustrated short story by Susannah Clarke is coming on 24 October 2024.

…an enchanting and haunting Christmas short story…

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

Nineteen-year-old Merowdis Scott 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.

**With exquisite illustrations by Victoria Sawdon**

[a-ramblinrose]

JOMP BPC || January 8 || Chilly Night: The Wood At Midwinter by Susanna Clarke

[yeti-zeus]

Why have I not seen a single soul talking about how all of Susanna Clarke’s work is apparently deeply influenced by Kate Bush I am absolutely losing it over this

[quasi-normalcy]

I hope that all of you people know that Susanna Clarke has a new book out

[gcantread]

SCREAMING CRYING THROWING UP (got a notification that Wood at Midwinter was ready and went to the library only to find that Absolution was ready also. ABSOLUTION BY JEFF VANDERMEER. THAT ABSOLUTION. IT'S READY)

[books-coffee-and-the-woods]

This book is so beautiful 😍

[uskglass-mirror-house]

ok so I finally got The Wood at Midwinter and read it in one sitting.

I gotta be honest, I got none of the things I was expecting/ wanted but it was still an excellent read. Also, the illustrations were gorgeous and made buying the book worth the money (I am torn between wanting them in colour to resemble a medieval tapestry and appreciating the atmosphere created by them being in greyscale).

I might read it again later and break down my thoughts on the matter, but for now I'm still thinking about it.

Also, no Uskglass, but he and William get namedropped by Clarke in the Afterword in a magistral example of trolling (I can't even be mad) (at least we know she is still thinking about them lol).

[mynamebringstyranny]

How very exciting! Susanna Clarke is a literary genius.

[pristina-nomine]

Paused Persuasion for Susanna Clarke’s latest. The novella is short as it is beautiful, but I’d say the afterword is the real treat. Reading Clarke’s insight on her writing is always such a gift.

[lizziestudieshistory]

I was disappointed by The Wood at Midwinter and I'm so sad about it! It's not because it's a bad story... As usual, Clarke's writing is beautiful and slightly mesmerising to read, the atmosphere was astounding for something crafted in 50 heavily illustrated pages. However, it just felt lacking in substance even compared to Clarke's other short stories (I am STILL in awe of On Lickerish Hill). It didn't feel finished, as polished, or independent of Clarke's broader version of English myth.

In short, it felt like one of the short stories from the footnotes in Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, rather than a story in its own right... It just didn't feel like it needed to be a book of its own and it should have been within a collection of other short stories, whether by Clarke or on a similar theme.

[way-by-moonlight]

[fancylala7]

[a-ramblinrose]

“In winter you hear the wood speaking. . .”

[yeti-zeus]

calling my "local" bookstore (it is not close to me) and seeing if they have the wood at midwinter and if so I will fucking hike there I swear to god

[pardomagus]

Perfect.

[remedialreviews]

The packaging and the illustrations are stunning, the story very short but (with help from the illuminating afterword) evocative. More could have been given to the narrative and characters, I feel, but I think it hit what it aimed for - a brisk, almost contextless wander into a cold, mystical wood.