The Roots of the Mountains
William Morris
Read by Phil Benson
The Roots of the Mountains was the second in a projected series of three historical novels set in a pre-medieval Germanic world (the third was not completed). It follows the themes of House of the Wolfings, which was published in the same year, into a later generation. A loose alliance of Dalesmen, Woodlanders and Shepherds who have lived in peace around the valley of Burgdale for so long that they barely remember war, find their peace disturbed by the Sons of the Wolf and the invading Dusky Men. Morris’s exploration of the social and economic organization of this fictional pre-medieval world reflects his socialism; the figure of the Dusky Men (unable to breed with the Germanic tribes and slaughtered without compassion) reflects the racial politics of his times. Long neglected, Morris’s two Germanic novels were rediscovered when they were published as the sixteenth and nineteenth volumes in the celebrated Newcastle Forgotten Fantasy Library. - Summary by Phil Benson (15 hr 5 min)
Chapters
Chapter I | 26:52 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter II | 14:05 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter III | 15:38 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter IV | 21:24 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter V | 10:07 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter VI | 19:36 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter VII | 15:53 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter VIII | 5:08 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter IX | 7:05 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter X | 12:16 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XI | 11:22 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XII | 8:56 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XIII | 8:49 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XIV | 11:38 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XV | 11:22 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XVI | 9:06 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XVII | 17:51 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XVIII | 10:20 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XIX | 31:27 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XX | 34:58 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XXI | 23:03 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XXII | 22:18 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XXIII | 7:04 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XXIV | 12:01 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XXV | 27:47 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XXVI | 16:11 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XXVII | 23:33 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XXVIII | 31:15 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XXIX | 19:37 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XXX | 11:28 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XXXI | 18:53 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XXXII | 26:19 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XXXIII | 8:00 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XXXIV | 26:25 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XXXV | 15:08 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XXXVI | 14:49 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XXXVII | 11:22 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XXXVIII | 10:28 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XXXIX | 18:59 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XL | 21:04 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XLI | 13:47 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XLII | 10:27 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XLIII | 27:29 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XLIV | 16:10 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XLV | 18:55 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XLVI | 22:04 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XLVII | 10:04 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XLVIII | 6:52 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter XLIX | 13:32 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter L | 8:47 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter LI | 4:20 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter LII | 3:07 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter LIII | 10:43 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter LIV | 7:00 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter LV | 17:40 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter LVI | 3:32 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter LVII | 9:51 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter LVIII | 19:32 | Read by Phil Benson |
Chapter LIX | 12:21 | Read by Phil Benson |
Reviews
PoliCR
A fascinating text about an ancient fantastic time, about a people held in horrible slavery and how they were saved, the tyrants slaughtered, about the brave shield maidens and honorable heroes. The rhymes and songs make the tale even more vivid. I enjoyed the old fashioned English. Thanks a lot for publishing it!