Taking a Running Start at the World of Shannara
Shanara 1- Running with The Demon by Terry Brooks
Although I’ve slowed on the Shannara books since starting I did read quickly through “The Word and The Void” Trilogy. My understanding that originally Brooks planned this as separate from the Shannara books so nothing in this trilogy shouts Shannara. It’s with the next trilogy, chronologically, that he makes the links between the books with the Word and Void by referencing Nest Freemark and having her descendent in the books.
Running With the Demon
Terry Brooks
Del Rey 1997
Cover- Brom
Taking a Running Start at the World of Shannara
A reflection by M. J. Moran
As I’ve stated before in these writings, I had a retirement plan to read books in targeted series and by targeted authors. Edgar Rice Burroughs, Stephen King, Philip Jose Farmer and Michael Moorcock being the targeted authors, with Doc Savage, The Shadow, Wild Cards, Midkemia and Shannara being the targeted series. There are others I’ll be reading but these were the ones after a year's deliberation that I’m focusing on. I’ll admit I’m an ADD reader. If I read a series or the same author in a continuum, I often lose interest. Mixing it up has always been a reading strategy for me. I’ve gone as far as to state that I’m “slowly” reading through these books, acknowledging that they are in a rotation. Will I actually finish any one series or the complete works of one of these authors? Who knows but I’m going to try.
In 1977 I read The Sword of Shannara by Terry Brooks shortly after it was released. Mine was a trade paperback sporting a nifty cover by the Brothers Hildebrandt. Admittedly it came across as derivative of Tolkien’s work but did stand on its own. Considering there was a dearth of new fantasy being published, I jumped on the Terry Brooks bandwagon as successive titles came out.
20 years after the debut of the Shannara Universe, Brooks released Running with the Demon, the first of the Word and the Void trilogy. Seemingly it was separate from the Shannara books. At some point it came to my attention that the trilogy was actually a precursor to the world of Shannara. I decided to read the Shannara books in chronological order as opposed to publishing order with Running With the Demons being the kickoff.
I toyed with the idea of skipping the book since I had read it in the late ‘90s, glad I didn’t since I misremembered a lot. The first book of the trilogy introduces us to the concept of the Word and the Void. Warring factions of existence that correspond with good vs. evil. Although a seemingly Christian concept especially with “The Word” corresponding with good, Brooks blurs the lines in one of the passages discussing the conflict. He allows the main character Nest to talk with a pagan creature about the conflict, moving the concept away from any one religion or spiritual path.
Other characters are introduced including a Knight of the Word, John Ross. Ross travels the U.S. fighting against demons as directed. His travels this time bring him to Hopewell, Illinois, a sleepy steel mill town going through some hard times. In his dreams, Ross lives a possible future which he hopes to abort by his actions in Hopewell.
Although Ross is important, it is Nest Freemark who is the focal point of the story. Nest is a 14 yr. old girl tapped as the protector of the Sinnissippi Park in Hopewell. Like her mother and grandmother before her, Nest has magic and can see the otherworldly denizens of Sinnissippi Park. A little side note there is an actual Sinnissippi Park in Rockford, Illinois along the Rock River. Since Brooks grew up in Sterling, Illinois, you draw your own conclusions.
The story is a coming of age story for Nest while she unravels the secrets of her family including her parentage and the death of her mother. A fantasy set in the present day, the story takes place over a Fourth of July weekend. There are elements that remind me a bit of Stephen King in the depiction of the small town and the people populating it. Some good, some bad, some oblivious. Nest has her small circle of friends who help her although she can’t expose or explain her ties of magic to them. Ross, although arriving to help Nest, muddies the waters by telling some lies to be close to her..
As stated before it isn’t a Shannara story per se but lays the foundation for the conflicts that occur within the World of Shannara. I found it tightly written and engaging. Brooks does a great job of keeping the reader guessing on the major mystery without pulling a rabbit out of the hat ending.
I was apprehensive starting with this book on my Shannara adventure, memory telling me the book was a bit pedestrian. And maybe it was compared to the Heritage of Shannara etc. Instead I found it to be a good start to the full series. Could be reading it years later, standing on its own opening me up to a better appreciation. If you read it as a Shannara book, you might be open to disappointment. If you read it as separate from the Shannara books, although laying the foundation for some of the premises of the Shannara World, it is quite enjoyable.
