Book of the Dun Cow
I read this book at the beginning of the year. It is a traditional beast fable book, similar to the ones Tolkien talks about in his essay on Fairy Tales. The main character is a rooster named Chanticleer who is king of the coop. The story is about leadership, worthiness, and the meek inheriting the earth. When it begins Chanticleer is anything but meek and this makes him unworthy of the task he has been given.
One of the common themes that runs through the book is that it is up to the meek to save the world. The good in this book are meek farm animals, the bad are world destroying creatures that the animals do battle with. The author is saying not so subtly that many times in life the bad looks like it outweighs the good, but this is not reason to despair. Another main theme is the idea of worthiness and leadership. From the get go Chanticleer is sure it is his duty to lead, save, protect and he is prideful of it. Ultimately only after being humbled, beat down, and ruined is he aware of the grace that is needed to truly lead. This book by Walter Wangerin Jr. is a great example of a powerfully written beast fable that is gently teaching as well as entertaining.
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