The Worm Ouroboros
Original Cover
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| Author | Eric Rücker Eddison |
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| Illustrator | Keith Henderson |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Series | The Zimiamvian Series |
| Genre | Fantasy novel |
| Publisher | Jonathan Cape |
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Publication date
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1922 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback) |
| Pages | xiv, 448 pp |
The Worm Ouroboros is a heroic high fantasy novel by Eric Rücker Eddison, first published in 1922. The book describes the protracted war between the domineering King Gorice of Witchland and the Lords of Demonland in an imaginary world that appears mainly medieval and partly reminiscent of Norse sagas. The work is slightly related to Eddison's later Zimiamvian Trilogy, and collectively they are sometimes referred to as the Zimiamvian series.
The book was illustrated by Keith Henderson (1883–1982), who also illustrated books by Geoffrey Chaucer and W. H. Hudson.
A framing story in the first two chapters describes the world of the novel as Mercury, though it is clearly a fantasy version of Earth, a "secondary world"; no effort was made to conform to the scientific knowledge of Mercury as it existed at the time of writing. At a number of points the characters refer to their land as Middle earth, used here in its original sense of "the known world", and the gods worshiped have the names of deities from Greek mythology.
Oddly, the introductory framing story has a beginning, but is not referred to once the actual fantasy adventure begins. (Framing, as a technique, usually opens and closes a separate story contained inside the frame-narrative.)
The framing story having introduced the chief lords of Demonland — the brothers Juss, Spitfire, and Goldry Bluszco, and their cousin Brandoch Daha — the story begins in earnest with a dwarf ambassador from Witchland arriving in Demonland to demand that the Demons recognize King Gorice XI of Witchland as their overlord. Juss and his brothers reply that they and all of Demonland will submit if the king (a famous wrestler) can defeat Goldry Bluszco in a wrestling match.
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