09/30/2026
✨ STAFF PICK ✨
“The Wake” is a story about losing your home and identity. Set in 11th century England during the Norman Conquest, we follow the life of a simple landowner named Buccmaster. Our hero knows the deep roots of the land and its gods, and lives a simple life with his family, but soon he is troubled by omens that tell of a coming disaster. This doom is the invasion of foreigners from across the channel, and soon they threaten to destroy everything about the Anglo-Saxon way of life. Buccmaster makes the choice to fight against the overwhelming tide of invaders. What makes “The Wake” such a wonderful piece of literature is that Kingsnorth employs his own fabricated form of Old English throughout the entire narrative. But never fear! Within a few pages, any reader can learn to decipher this strange language, and then they are drawn into its rhythm and cadence, and the world of the story becomes all the richer because of its unique beauty. “The Wake” is pure art, both literarily and narratively, and is a challenge well worth undertaking!
