Book Review

Legend of the Deer Woman
& Other Tales to Warm the Hearth

by Jack Finn

Self-published

279 Pages

Release Date: July 12, 2023

 

 

 

 

Author Jack Finn’s collection of folktales and retellings is titled The Legend of the Deer Woman & Other Tales to Warm the Hearth. The intriguing title initially drew me in, and I just knew I had to read it!

The book contains sixteen tales that center on legendary characters like gods, goddesses, animals, and other fantastical beings. I highly suggest this book to everyone who shares my enthusiasm for mythology and folklore. Some of the chapters are fascinating and enjoyable throughout. This novel made excellent use of the literary device of imagery. Some stories made me feel like I’d gone back in time to a place that only existed in books. The author deliberately chose a style that is guaranteed to pique the interest of the reader.

In Finn’s version of The Legend of the Deer Woman, the young Cherokee woman who can assume the form of a deer teaches the reader a valuable lesson. Catori fights her way through an attack and throughout this important chapter. The foreshadowing of what’s to come is beautifully strung throughout the pages. Mentions of deerskin tunic, deer bone knife, and pouch are part of the artillery Catori is equipped with.

The journey of this young girl takes us through unfamiliar territory, but also through experiences that we’ve all learned about or witnessed before, creating a sense of wicked familiarity. With an extreme sense of connectedness to Mother Earth, ancestors, and the natural world, there is a large presence of animism in this specific tale and throughout the entire book. I appreciate this book on so many levels, but also because of the animistic aspects of the different stories that take place in lands all across the world. Animism is the theory that everything in the physical world, including inanimate things, plants, and animals, possesses a soul. Animals, plants, rocks, rivers, weather systems, human-made objects, and even words can all be seen as active and living in an animist worldview. I really felt after reading through this book, that somehow in each story there was a significant connection between humans, spirits, and the animal worlds. It was a large underlying, but super obvious theme that I just absolutely adored.

Here is one lovely quote from the chapter which the book is named after, The Legend of the Deer Woman: “She opened herself up to Mother Earth, channeling her despair and fear into the beat of the dance, calling out to the Great Mother for protection” (The Legend of the Deer Woman).

Besides the Legend of the Deer Woman, there were a couple of other stories in this book that stuck out to me, vividly. The Woodsman of Kasmatsky and By the Dark of the New Moon are my two personal favorites from this excellent compilation of stories. The Woodsman of Kasmatsky has strong themes of sacrifice, perseverance, death, and trickery. One thing that drew me to this story was the appearance of Koschei the Deathless. Koschei the Deathless (also known as Koschei the Immortal), a character from Slavic folklore, was distinguished by his invincibility. The most intriguing thing about this character, though, is that his immortality was not completely secured. This is part of his legend, and Finn made sure to include this element in his book.

By the Dark of the Moon is a wonderful and beautifully written story featuring legends of the Sámi. The Sámi people, who reside in Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Russia, are the original inhabitants and indigenous people of the northern half of the Scandinavian Peninsula and substantial portions of the Kola Peninsula. These lands are steeped in legend and the author did a great job at telling the story of a Sámi family affected by a piru. In Finnish mythology, a piru is a type of demon. In legend, a piru is typically portrayed as a terrible forest apparition who proposes a battle of wits against an unknowing human. If you lose – the Piru will find you and take you. It is common to use the term “pirus” to refer to poltergeist activity and other forms of haunting. Piru, or Pääpiru, is a common Finnish name for the Devil. The family in this story goes through their trials, and pains, and experiences deep love. But the question is – how far can one family go to save the ones they love? In this story, love has no boundaries between the realms of life and death. One of my favorite things about this book is that the author has shown true dedication to preserving and renewing stories, but the stories here also include history. Jack Finn even went as far as including the proper spelling of names and words in foreign languages as well. You’ll go on an adventure with this book, and also learn something new at the same time, which is always a treat.

Jack Finn set out to pen this novel for everyone interested in reading fresh takes on time-honored traditions. For all of us who have had our Pagan beliefs dismissed as myth, folk story, fable, fiction, or superstition, he has created this book for us, and you! The Old Ways evokes a period when marvelous beings, some brutally dark and others gorgeously magical, wandered the world freely alongside humans, and that description alone is what the author sought to portray in this lovely novel. The essential message of this book is that we must always search for the truth within legends.

About the Author

Jack Finn is a folk horror and fantasy author living in the wild of the Pacific Northwest. He can be found on Instagram, Threads, and Twitter @therealjackfinn.

Other books by this author include The Seven Deaths of Prince Vlad and Hell Shall Make You Fear Again.

 

Legend of the Deer Woman on Amazon

 

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About the Author:

Kimberly Anne is a USA freelance writer and Administrative Secretary of Art and Music at a college near her hometown. Originally from Chicago, Illinois, she holds a bachelor’s degree with honors in Creative Writing and English Literature and is also a member of Sigma Tau Delta. She is currently working on her Masters in Library and Information Science degree. 

After devoting a decade to the personal study of global mythology and folklore, she began writing about them. She focuses primarily on Nordic, Germanic, and Slavic pre-Christian beliefs. Kimberly has worked with various clients on freelance work including Patricia Robin Woodruff, PhD. MDiv and the YouTube channel Mythology Unleashed. She is a polytheist with animist beliefs who loves to talk about it all! You can find her in the book stacks of the library, in a forest with Landvættir or at www.kimberlyanneinc.com