The Quest for the Wicker Man is a rarity. Not only is it very difficult to locate and very expensive if you do find it, it’s also a collection of essays where each one is worth reading. I’d read some of it before, but since I’m writing a book on the movie I thought I ought to sit down and go through it cover to virtual cover. I had to settle for a Kindle version—please bring this back in print!—and was reminded yet again why a paper book is so much more satisfactory as a reading experience. You see, I’m a flipper (not the dolphin kind). I like to flip back and forth while I’m reading. Clicking and swiping (both of which, coincidentally, dolphins do) isn’t satisfying. And if you underline in a Kindle everybody else can see it. I prefer the privacy of a print book.
In any case, if you’re interested in probing a bit into The Wicker Man you’ll find quite a lot of information here. (Available on Kindle for a reasonable price, if not a comfy reading experience.) Many aspects of the film are covered here. One thing I won’t be discussing in my book is the music. Firstly, I’m not qualified to do so, and secondly, it is done well here. Essays also discuss religion (which I will discuss in my book), paganism (ditto), and many other aspects. This is a book of conference proceedings—a boon for fans, but bust for most publishers. It’s also a boon for those who like marking up used books to the tune of 64 cents per page (the lowest price on Amazon).
Some of us believe a page is an ontological entity. Once narrative writing began those responsible for clay tablets soon settled on a size that is, well, handy. You can hold it easily. That concept translated to the codex, or “book” as we know it. Scrolls were cumbersome, but books offered many advantages. For hundreds of years they were the standard-bearers of accessible knowledge. I miss page numbers when reading an ebook. I don’t want to know the percentage of screens I’ve swiped. I want to know how many pages I’ve read, what page I’m on, and how many pages there are to go. (The best of electronic books preserve that information.) The book was not a form that required improvement. Well, at least that digression kept me from giving up too much information about my book. If you want to read it, when it comes out, I recommend the print form.
