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Julian the Magician
The Insomniac Library is proud to reissue Gwendolyn MacEwen's first novel, more than forty years after its original appearance in 1963. MacEwen described what she set out to achieve as a "sort of powerful poetic mad half-abandoned prose somewhere between [Kenneth] Patchen and Virginia Woolf." Set in a medieval past that has distinctly modern overtones, the novel is about Julian, a young man who believes he is Christ. Wandering the countryside in a horse-drawn wagon, Julian learns "to suspend logic like a whale on a thread." He becomes a master of alchemy, performing "miracles" like curing the mad and changing water into wine. When his rapt audiences begins to lose faith, Julian must pay with his life.
- GenresFiction
170 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2004
About the author
Gwendolyn MacEwen
43 books27 followersGwendolyn MacEwen was one of Canada's most celebrated writers publishing several stories and many works of poetry throughout her career. She was born in Toronto, Ontario on September 1, 1941 to Elsie and Alick MacEwen. As a child she attended public schools in both Toronto and Winnipeg, and when she was seventeen her first poem was published in the Canadian Forum, a journal which published the works of both new and renowned writers. At the age of eighteen she left school to pursue a full time career as a writer and at the same time opened a Toronto coffee house, "The Trojan Horse".
As a child Gwendolyn didn't get the best care from her parents. Her mother was mentally unstable, spending most of her life in institutions and her father was largely an alcoholic. However this may have been what led to her writing being so heavily focused on mythology, dreams, magic, and history. After leaving school Gwendolyn taught herself several different languages including Greek, French, Arabic and Hebrew, which she used to translate many of her poems. Her fluency in several languages is what most likely encouraged her to make references to cultures outside of Canada. Gwendolyn tended to focus on more surreal ideas in her writing and she had her own unique way of expressing them when compared to other poets from her time. A lot of her poetry involved changing the surrealism into reality by using strong imagery and often allegory. The cultures she studied often showed up in her work as part of the overall imagery and allusions to historical events were quite common.
Her volume of poems "The Shadow-Maker" won the Governor General's Award in 1969 and included many poems such as her famous "Dark Pines Under Water". During the mid eighties she was a writer in residence at the University of Western Ontario and then later the University of Toronto. Gwendolyn died in 1987 at the age of 46 from what was believed to have been health problems due to alcohol. Although she was not alive to be present, later that year her collection "Afterworlds" was awarded the Governor General's Award, making it the second time her work had won such a prestigious honour.
As a child Gwendolyn didn't get the best care from her parents. Her mother was mentally unstable, spending most of her life in institutions and her father was largely an alcoholic. However this may have been what led to her writing being so heavily focused on mythology, dreams, magic, and history. After leaving school Gwendolyn taught herself several different languages including Greek, French, Arabic and Hebrew, which she used to translate many of her poems. Her fluency in several languages is what most likely encouraged her to make references to cultures outside of Canada. Gwendolyn tended to focus on more surreal ideas in her writing and she had her own unique way of expressing them when compared to other poets from her time. A lot of her poetry involved changing the surrealism into reality by using strong imagery and often allegory. The cultures she studied often showed up in her work as part of the overall imagery and allusions to historical events were quite common.
Her volume of poems "The Shadow-Maker" won the Governor General's Award in 1969 and included many poems such as her famous "Dark Pines Under Water". During the mid eighties she was a writer in residence at the University of Western Ontario and then later the University of Toronto. Gwendolyn died in 1987 at the age of 46 from what was believed to have been health problems due to alcohol. Although she was not alive to be present, later that year her collection "Afterworlds" was awarded the Governor General's Award, making it the second time her work had won such a prestigious honour.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
December 6, 2022
Overwhelming. Surreal. Syntactically it follows the laws of the English language but the meanings refuse to follow along, or to behave rationally. Each sentence is a poem. There is no other book like this one. This book was written by someone with tremendous confidence and a tremendous deep wisdom about the power of the word--how the word can mean so many things at once. Or: how it can mean nothing. I could quote every sentence, each one of them exuberant and surprising. The sun was lemon ice, virginal overhead. I'm dumbstruck. That this book is out of print is a sin of omission that hurts my heart.
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October 30, 2022Kevin Wilson “by the book” 10/30/2022
May 7, 2024
What I accomplish hinges solely on what is already potent and existing in the minds of those I perform for. My audience creates ME...over and over- I do not tamper with their minds, I merely open them. I do not force belief, I let them believe what they will...your analytical mind may find that difficult to grasp. p60
But enlightened or not, people are still sheep, they still follow what their intelligence denies but which their hearts accept without question. p58
Considering that I had not too long ago fallen in love with the poetry of Gwendolyn MacEwen and had just read her biography, I felt, somewhat ridiculously nervous about reading her fiction.
GMQ had a rather flippant attitude in general and towards this book in particular. I wanted to love it of course; but I wasn't sure that I would.
In fact, it was rather thrilling to be able to identify major characters and incidents and I marvel at her skill of incorporation. Julian, in my estimate, does not represent only her major love Mallory (to whom the book is dedicated) but also pieces of GME herself.
Julian was always beautiful p81
(He) wore his madness well. p87
Genius... can be your downfall... if you let it. p147
Sadly, that was the way it played out for Gwen. Her brilliance, so on display in her poetry, shines eloquently here in this fiction that tackles the mystery of belief and the paradox of the divine and the supernatural.
I awake with the characters I have played slipping me....p155
God is not in print- God is out of print, God is in the fields, choreographing a dance. p149
But enlightened or not, people are still sheep, they still follow what their intelligence denies but which their hearts accept without question. p58
Considering that I had not too long ago fallen in love with the poetry of Gwendolyn MacEwen and had just read her biography, I felt, somewhat ridiculously nervous about reading her fiction.
GMQ had a rather flippant attitude in general and towards this book in particular. I wanted to love it of course; but I wasn't sure that I would.
In fact, it was rather thrilling to be able to identify major characters and incidents and I marvel at her skill of incorporation. Julian, in my estimate, does not represent only her major love Mallory (to whom the book is dedicated) but also pieces of GME herself.
Julian was always beautiful p81
(He) wore his madness well. p87
Genius... can be your downfall... if you let it. p147
Sadly, that was the way it played out for Gwen. Her brilliance, so on display in her poetry, shines eloquently here in this fiction that tackles the mystery of belief and the paradox of the divine and the supernatural.
I awake with the characters I have played slipping me....p155
God is not in print- God is out of print, God is in the fields, choreographing a dance. p149
February 26, 2012
I just finished reading 'Julian the Magician' today, but as I was reading it I had a few observations about it that I thought I'd write down here. Gwendolyn MacEwen is an excellent Torontonian poet that crystallizes the meanings of words into small but encompassing--even resonating--stanzas and sentences. As such, she is also an extreme student and delver into myth and archetype. This the first time I have read or, rather, finished reading one of her novels: one of the two that she actually had published.
But what can I tell you about this book? I would say that in some ways, it is a very deceptive book. My edition is 151 pages long and, upon, first glance would seem more like a short novella than an actual novel. Yet, as I have stated before, it would be deceptive to think so. This book is challenging for a few reasons. One of these reasons is that Gwendolyn MacEwen applies her poetics--her crystallization of multiple images and meanings--into words: into very sparse, but somehow vivid description and dialogue. As such, being a narrative created with poetic sensibilities of this kind, it is also a very intuitive text.
You have to really just immerse yourself within the words: sometimes needing to read closely, and other times letting the words wash over you. Sometimes, it can feel like you are reading every other word: as though there is another story or fragment of story that is the basis of the narrative that you as the reader are not completely privy to, but you still find yourself searching for that "river" that lies underneath them. Perhaps, the words are the fragments of ice that Julian finds in the winter river that the reader has to move past along with him into something cold, clear, and poignant. This textual reference and literary conceit aside, 'Julian the Magician' is a book that is somehow minimalist, dense, and charged in language and mythological resonance that its weight and power bely its page and word-count. Reading this is almost like, to pardon the pun, following a creative stream of consciousness not unlike that of James Joyce.
The narrative itself is filled with Gnostic, alchemical, and mystical references such as Boeheme, Magnus, Paracelsus, the Zohar and the Kabbalah, and the idea of the "mystical Christ" as well as looking at the figure of the magician as the forerunner to all philosophy and science: the intermediary between madness and the rational, and influencing someone to accept what they already believe.
Julian the Magician as a character is very fascinating to this regard because makes someone wonder what the difference is between manipulation and persuasion and their roles in belief. Because what he does, influencing his audience to believe, does not necessarily fall in either of these roles. He does not lie to his audience to get to them to do something they would not necessarily do and be ignorant of it, nor does he use straightforward eloquence to convince his audience that what he says or does is what they want to see. Rather, he is portrayed as a figure that can instinctively tap into that need for belief in something more that resides in all humanity: opening them up to what they unconsciously still want to see and experience and be a part of.
What is very interesting is to see Julian's own personal reluctance to have this role with regards to his audience, towards mass-humanity--a thing that can be both comic and tragic at same time--and to watch him slowly and inevitably have to accept it. In this sleight-of-hand stage magic is no different than esoteric rituals, arcane knowledge, or even miracle-working. It is all about belief and perspective: and both.
The narrative can be very hard to follow at times: especially in the 7-Day Epilogue with Julian's own personal journal that is somehow more stream of consciousness with even clearer gaps in thought and time. There are parts sometimes feel a little heavy-handed: such as the obvious parallels between Julian and a very famous archetypal figure and elements of the Epilogue as well. Nevertheless, I do feel that Gwendolyn MacEwen created something very important here and perhaps--as such--if a classic is judged as something you first need to immerse yourself in, and then enrich yourself with further rereadings over a certain period of time, then 'Julian the Magician' is a seminal work that can be considered as such.
But what can I tell you about this book? I would say that in some ways, it is a very deceptive book. My edition is 151 pages long and, upon, first glance would seem more like a short novella than an actual novel. Yet, as I have stated before, it would be deceptive to think so. This book is challenging for a few reasons. One of these reasons is that Gwendolyn MacEwen applies her poetics--her crystallization of multiple images and meanings--into words: into very sparse, but somehow vivid description and dialogue. As such, being a narrative created with poetic sensibilities of this kind, it is also a very intuitive text.
You have to really just immerse yourself within the words: sometimes needing to read closely, and other times letting the words wash over you. Sometimes, it can feel like you are reading every other word: as though there is another story or fragment of story that is the basis of the narrative that you as the reader are not completely privy to, but you still find yourself searching for that "river" that lies underneath them. Perhaps, the words are the fragments of ice that Julian finds in the winter river that the reader has to move past along with him into something cold, clear, and poignant. This textual reference and literary conceit aside, 'Julian the Magician' is a book that is somehow minimalist, dense, and charged in language and mythological resonance that its weight and power bely its page and word-count. Reading this is almost like, to pardon the pun, following a creative stream of consciousness not unlike that of James Joyce.
The narrative itself is filled with Gnostic, alchemical, and mystical references such as Boeheme, Magnus, Paracelsus, the Zohar and the Kabbalah, and the idea of the "mystical Christ" as well as looking at the figure of the magician as the forerunner to all philosophy and science: the intermediary between madness and the rational, and influencing someone to accept what they already believe.
Julian the Magician as a character is very fascinating to this regard because makes someone wonder what the difference is between manipulation and persuasion and their roles in belief. Because what he does, influencing his audience to believe, does not necessarily fall in either of these roles. He does not lie to his audience to get to them to do something they would not necessarily do and be ignorant of it, nor does he use straightforward eloquence to convince his audience that what he says or does is what they want to see. Rather, he is portrayed as a figure that can instinctively tap into that need for belief in something more that resides in all humanity: opening them up to what they unconsciously still want to see and experience and be a part of.
What is very interesting is to see Julian's own personal reluctance to have this role with regards to his audience, towards mass-humanity--a thing that can be both comic and tragic at same time--and to watch him slowly and inevitably have to accept it. In this sleight-of-hand stage magic is no different than esoteric rituals, arcane knowledge, or even miracle-working. It is all about belief and perspective: and both.
The narrative can be very hard to follow at times: especially in the 7-Day Epilogue with Julian's own personal journal that is somehow more stream of consciousness with even clearer gaps in thought and time. There are parts sometimes feel a little heavy-handed: such as the obvious parallels between Julian and a very famous archetypal figure and elements of the Epilogue as well. Nevertheless, I do feel that Gwendolyn MacEwen created something very important here and perhaps--as such--if a classic is judged as something you first need to immerse yourself in, and then enrich yourself with further rereadings over a certain period of time, then 'Julian the Magician' is a seminal work that can be considered as such.
September 28, 2010
First and foremost, it's necessary to view this book in the context of the times in which it was written.
There was a cold war paranoia gripping the world, and reports of nuclear tests in the news daily (sometimes as many as three a day). The world was about to end, that was a fact of life, and all that common working folk could do for comfort against this madness was turn to the religious organizations that had been preparing folks for armageddon for centuries.
Into this chaotic and bleak scenario we drop the finely tuned poetic mind of a very young Gwendolyn McEwen (that's the way her last name was spelled when she devised this novel, before she married) and the result is a book which is designed to transcend being a book. A story of a mythological magician, Julian, who believes he's morphing into Jesus. But, allegorically, the underlying premise that Jesus was a mythological magician who believes he's morphing into Prometheus was so inflammatory that she chose to bury that message as deeply as possible so as not to be under personal attack from the powers that be.
Unfortunately, she buried it a little too deep for the concept to instantly catch on and, by the time the book was finally published (and she had married, divorced, and changed the spelling of her last name to MacEwen), the world of cold war fear was shifting to one of immense sadness at the assassination of JFK.
This book had a powerful message for folks who needed to hear it in the late fifties, when she first conceived it. But, by the time it was rolling off presses in late 1963/early 1964, it had become more of a curious study in poetry in novel form.
As a study in alternative forms of novel-writing, though, it still stand up as an innovative and compelling document that did break ground for such rule-bending authors as Hunter S. Thompson, Erica Jong and Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Lorne S. Jones
There was a cold war paranoia gripping the world, and reports of nuclear tests in the news daily (sometimes as many as three a day). The world was about to end, that was a fact of life, and all that common working folk could do for comfort against this madness was turn to the religious organizations that had been preparing folks for armageddon for centuries.
Into this chaotic and bleak scenario we drop the finely tuned poetic mind of a very young Gwendolyn McEwen (that's the way her last name was spelled when she devised this novel, before she married) and the result is a book which is designed to transcend being a book. A story of a mythological magician, Julian, who believes he's morphing into Jesus. But, allegorically, the underlying premise that Jesus was a mythological magician who believes he's morphing into Prometheus was so inflammatory that she chose to bury that message as deeply as possible so as not to be under personal attack from the powers that be.
Unfortunately, she buried it a little too deep for the concept to instantly catch on and, by the time the book was finally published (and she had married, divorced, and changed the spelling of her last name to MacEwen), the world of cold war fear was shifting to one of immense sadness at the assassination of JFK.
This book had a powerful message for folks who needed to hear it in the late fifties, when she first conceived it. But, by the time it was rolling off presses in late 1963/early 1964, it had become more of a curious study in poetry in novel form.
As a study in alternative forms of novel-writing, though, it still stand up as an innovative and compelling document that did break ground for such rule-bending authors as Hunter S. Thompson, Erica Jong and Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Lorne S. Jones
February 18, 2023
I’m a sucker for religious allegory.
October 10, 2023
A singular, entertaining and thought-provoking book, by a Canadian writer known mostly for her poetry.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews