Layne Maheu, Song of the Crow

Song of the Crow

Layne Maheu

Unbridled Books, Jun 2006, $23.95

ISBN 1932961186

I Am the crow is upset as he observes the Man-Beast named Noah chopping at his home, a Giant tree containing his nest. I Am thinks he has had enough troubles in his life from being an orphan at a young age while his sibling My Other cannot believe that the Man-Beast would destroy their abode. I Am does not trust those who live in the deadly "underworld" where predators and food reside.

To his surprise, I Am realizes that he understands the language of the God Crow directing Noah to build an ark nowhere near the sea, which makes no sense to the crow. Subsequently as other Man-Beasts plead with Noah to take them on board his ship, I Am also knows what they are saying about an upcoming flood that will soon destroy the world. Just before the torrential rains come, I Am stows away on Noah's vessel.

Though the nomenclature and vernacular used by I Am can be difficult to follow at times, SONG OF THE CROW is a terrific allegory that looks closely at Noah's Ark through the personification of a crow. I Am is a fabulous protagonist struggling to survive in a dangerous world about to become eradicated. Mindful (at least of the clips I have seen) of Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth", fans of biblical fables will appreciate Layne Maheu's look at heaven and earth on the eve of destruction.

Harriet Klausner