Alvin Journeyman
Encyclopedia
Alvin Journeyman is an alternate history/fantasy
novel by Orson Scott Card
. It is the fourth book in Card's The Tales of Alvin Maker
series and is about Alvin Miller, the Seventh son of a seventh son
. Alvin Journeyman won the Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel
in 1996.
, whose cruel whispers and deadly plots have threatened Alvin's life at every turn.
Now a grown man and a journeyman smith, Alvin has returned to his family and friends in the town of Vigor Church, to share in their isolation, to work as a blacksmith, and to try to teach anyone who will learn the knack of being a Maker. For Alvin has had a vision of the city he will build, and he knows that he cannot build it alone.
But the Unmaker is not through with Alvin. If that spirit of destruction cannot stop him by magic, or war and devastation, then it will try to crush the young Maker by simpler means - more human means. By lies and innuendo, and by false accusations, Alvin is driven from his home back to Hatrack River, only to find that the Unmaker has been there before him, and that he must now stand trial for his life. Against him in this trial stands Daniel Webster
.
Meanwhile his brother Calvin has started to grow into his own knacks, which he views to be equal to Alvin's. When Alvin returned to Vigor Church he found that Calvin had been doing all the jobs that Alvin had done prior to his apprenticeship. When Alvin started to teach how to be a maker, Calvin resented the way he felt he was being treated and decided to learn how to be a Maker on his own, but by any means he deems necessary. He finds passage to England, and then to the courtship of Emperor Napoleon
himself in Paris
, to treat him for his gout
. By healing the pain each day, he spends a few hours a day learning from Napoleon on how to Rule. Calvin makes a friend
in Paris, who he then leaves Napoleon (healed from ever feeling pain again) and heads to America with.
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
novel by Orson Scott Card
Orson Scott Card
Orson Scott Card is an American author, critic, public speaker, essayist, columnist, and political activist. He writes in several genres, but is primarily known for his science fiction. His novel Ender's Game and its sequel Speaker for the Dead both won Hugo and Nebula Awards, making Card the...
. It is the fourth book in Card's The Tales of Alvin Maker
The Tales of Alvin Maker
The Tales of Alvin Maker is a series of novels by Orson Scott Card that revolve around the experiences of a young man, Alvin Miller, who discovers he has incredible powers for creating and shaping things around him...
series and is about Alvin Miller, the Seventh son of a seventh son
Seventh son of a seventh son
The seventh son of a seventh son is a concept from folklore regarding special powers given to, or held by, such a son. The seventh son must come from an unbroken line with no female children born between, and be, in turn, born to such a seventh son...
. Alvin Journeyman won the Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel
Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel
Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel is one of the awards given by Locus Magazine.-External links:* * *...
in 1996.
Synopsis
Alvin is a Maker, and what he can make is a new future for America. But to do that he must defeat his ancient enemy, the UnmakerThe Unmaker
The Unmaker is the main antagonist in Orson Scott Card's alternate history/fantasy series The Tales of Alvin Maker. Never directly confronted, it is a supernatural force that breaks apart matter and aims to destroy and consume everything and everyone...
, whose cruel whispers and deadly plots have threatened Alvin's life at every turn.
Now a grown man and a journeyman smith, Alvin has returned to his family and friends in the town of Vigor Church, to share in their isolation, to work as a blacksmith, and to try to teach anyone who will learn the knack of being a Maker. For Alvin has had a vision of the city he will build, and he knows that he cannot build it alone.
But the Unmaker is not through with Alvin. If that spirit of destruction cannot stop him by magic, or war and devastation, then it will try to crush the young Maker by simpler means - more human means. By lies and innuendo, and by false accusations, Alvin is driven from his home back to Hatrack River, only to find that the Unmaker has been there before him, and that he must now stand trial for his life. Against him in this trial stands Daniel Webster
Daniel Webster
Daniel Webster was a leading American statesman and senator from Massachusetts during the period leading up to the Civil War. He first rose to regional prominence through his defense of New England shipping interests...
.
Meanwhile his brother Calvin has started to grow into his own knacks, which he views to be equal to Alvin's. When Alvin returned to Vigor Church he found that Calvin had been doing all the jobs that Alvin had done prior to his apprenticeship. When Alvin started to teach how to be a maker, Calvin resented the way he felt he was being treated and decided to learn how to be a Maker on his own, but by any means he deems necessary. He finds passage to England, and then to the courtship of Emperor Napoleon
Napoleon I of France
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
himself in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, to treat him for his gout
Gout
Gout is a medical condition usually characterized by recurrent attacks of acute inflammatory arthritis—a red, tender, hot, swollen joint. The metatarsal-phalangeal joint at the base of the big toe is the most commonly affected . However, it may also present as tophi, kidney stones, or urate...
. By healing the pain each day, he spends a few hours a day learning from Napoleon on how to Rule. Calvin makes a friend
Honoré de Balzac
Honoré de Balzac was a French novelist and playwright. His magnum opus was a sequence of short stories and novels collectively entitled La Comédie humaine, which presents a panorama of French life in the years after the 1815 fall of Napoleon....
in Paris, who he then leaves Napoleon (healed from ever feeling pain again) and heads to America with.
External links
- About the novel Alvin Journeyman from Card's website
- Alvin Journeyman at Worlds Without End