The White Wolf's Son: The Albino Underground (Mass Market Paperback)

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. In British author Moorcock's latest installment in an epic fantasy saga that began in 1965, Prince Gaynor the Damned and his sidekick, Klosterheim, plot the end of the created universe and try to capture a 12-year-old English girl, Oonagh von Bek, to attain their ends. The Dreamthief's daughter, Oona (who's Oonagh's grandmother); Elric of Melniboné; and others who constantly fight to restore, maintain and sometimes destroy the Cosmic Balance seek to protect the girl and, eventually, another youngster kin to Elric and Oona. Told from the viewpoint of young Oonagh and filtered through her later adult perspective, the adventure starts in Yorkshire then spans the multiverse and several versions of Mirenburg to reach its climax in the Dark Empire of Granbretan. Informative philosophizing by various characters adds to, rather than impedes, the complex and entertaining plot. In lesser hands such intrusions as Una Persson's spiel on Elric's Dream of a Thousand Years probably wouldn't work, but from the ever original, vastly influential Moorcock (The Dreamthief's Daughter), they only enhance a triumph of mature talent and imagination.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From School Library Journal

Adult/High School–In the 1960s, Moorcock created Elric of Melniboné, an albino elf who is as much a blood-lusting villain as a hero. Over the years, he has created other eternal champions, each of whom fights to maintain the delicate balance between good and evil. This story belongs primarily to Oonaugh, a distant relative of Elric's who lives in modern-day England. The 12-year-old's normal lifestyle shatters when Prince Gaynor the Damned and his assistant, Klosterheim, attempt to kidnap her. She avoids their plots but falls into a Lewis Carroll-inspired alternate reality populated by sentient houses and foxes that quote Robespierre. As she travels through different realities, readers learn that Gaynor and Klosterheim believe she is an essential piece of their plot to destroy the multiverse and re-create it in their own horrible image. Elric, his daughter, and a host of others who protect the Cosmic Balance seek to defend her. Numerous eternal champions, references to Moorcock's works, and no small bit of philosophy make this a detailed and deeply involved book. While these aspects will appeal to fans, they create a barrier for newcomers. The author does an admirable job trying to clue those readers in to the backstory, but it gets a little overbearing if one is reading for pure action. Not to fear. Moorcock develops political plots aplenty, and the climactic scene spins more thrills than almost anything else the author has penned. This fresh, fabulous book shows what an artist dedicated to his vision can create in the often worn-out epic fantasy genre.–Matthew L. Moffett, Northern Virginia Community College, Annandale
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Grand Central Publishing; 1st THUS edition (September 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446617458
• ISBN-13: 978-0446617451
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #696,347 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The end? Or the beginning..you never know! , July 1, 2005

By	M. Broekman (The Hague, Zuid-Holland Netherlands) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The White Wolf's Son: The Albino Underground (Elric Saga) (Hardcover)

The last two Elric novels were pretty "deep and heavy" with the style and thoughts of Count Von Bek. A lot of pondering and musing and such. I was quite surprised to see this one was written from the perspective of a bright 12 year old. It made the book easy to read through. The events that take place are confusing, interesting, shocking as always.
The story explains a lot about Elric and his 1000 year dream. That is, if you are familiar with other work of Moorcock such as the Multiverse graphic novel. Turns out he has been in "our realm" for nearly thousand years, trying to get to his blade and partake in the world's history. Yes, Elric (our Monsieur Zodiac) isn't on every page, but it is obvious that Elric is the main character. He is the one. No other champion has his burden and his power.
Many familiar characters show up, Bastable, Hawkmoon, Erekose, Gaynor and Klosterheim are to name a few. And Oona ofcourse.
Though the white wolf's son (Onric) plays a relative small part it all makes sense in the end. Until now Onric never played a part in the stories, yet he is the key to the whole cycle it seems.
Heralded as the 'end of the saga' it leaves me as always with both answers and questions. Elric restores the balance in this book and apparently thus saving the multiverse from destruction. So now he can go back to his own world and destroy then remake his and other worlds. While doing this he finally rids the multiverse of Gaynor..for now..I get that. Good. Great closure.
Now the questions (and they are of the type that make me jump up and down and want to read more stories!)
DON'T READ IF YOU DON'T WANT SPOILERS (in that case go buy the book and read for your self!)
Onric, Elric's son, lives on in "our realm" as John Daker..The character that is said to know (or maybe even be the cause) for the curse of the Eternal Champion. OooOOOooOO..what did he do? what is the secret? That one is still not completely answered as far as I know!

In short: Great book, surprising twists. Mr. Moorcock does it again. Kudos.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Solid, yet flawed, November 22, 2005

By	Merrill Grinch (Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The White Wolf's Son: The Albino Underground (Elric Saga) (Hardcover)

The final book of the newest Elric trilogy, The White Wolf's Son, simultaneously shows Moorcock's increasing complexity of his vision and waning interest in his signature character. While the other characters of the novel are drawn vividly and distinctively, Elric himself seems consigned to have become a caricature rather than an icon. Fortunately, Moorcock easily overcomes the threadbare nature of his favorite subject, keeping the book a satisfying read throughout.

Heavy references to other books and characters in the long-running Eternal Champion series makes this book both fun for long-time readers and inscrutable to those new to Moorcock's body of work.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A new ending, August 24, 2006

By	Magnus Maximus "Max" (Ukraine) - See all my reviews

This book is a kind of a third ending of the Champion saga (the first two ones were The Quest for Tanelorn and Dragon in the Sword), with Erekose appearing again (although playing a very small part in the story, but without it, the novel wouldn't correspond to the whole Saga). Also this book lets us know something about the pre-history of John Daker, and the pre-history of his wife. I think it may be recommended to the readers who don't like the 3rd John Daker novel (i.e., Dragon in the Sword), because it differs from that one very much, portraying quite another Mr. Daker to us.
The book is written not in the usual Moorcock manner, it has a much simpler language, so if you have been sometimes embarrassed by Moorcock's style (those long words of Latin origin which are not easy to understand), this book may seem easier to read for you. As for me, I'm longing for the good old manner in which the classical Elric stories have been written.