Reason Read: British Author Challenge
Kiran Millwood Hargrave; 34 y/o bisexual, married to a man

This is a historical novel set in the 1500s. There was plague, called the dancing plague in Strasbourg, Alsace (now France). It lasted from July 1518 to Sept 1518.

Dance tree; Linden trees with sometimes platforms built in the tree where people would dance among the branches, possibly pagan.

The story looks at the subjection of women (Christianity and men subject women)
Class inequality (women don't have same rights, the church and the politicians can take away from the lower class.
Dangers of Religious Fundamentalism (Christianity is bad).

Themes include family secrets, forbidden love, women pushed to the edge.

The author can certainly write. This book has what I would consider feminist themes, antichristian themes, and is definately a work that fits pride subjects. It really is not a book that worked for me. I listened to the audiobook read by Ruta Gedmintas who did an excellent job. I appreciated the historical component of the book and learned something new! ( )

Goodreads' ratings suck because I don't fall in love with a lot of books. Does it merit one star? Two?

The Dance Tree follows Lisbet, a young woman in 16th-century Strasbourg during the Dancing Plague, whose sister-in-law comes home after a mysterious seven years in penance. Her best friend is acting weird, her husband doesn't seem to love her anymore, and her mother-in-law is a witch. Oh, and women are starting to dance randomly in town for days on end.

What ensues is a drama anyone with a pulse could see through immediately, leaving the reader having to pretend they didn't figure out the big lesbian secret for over a hundred pages, and then the ending aftwards. I hate to be a hater, but this just didn't work as well as it could have. It's not terrible—just so meekly passing that it's a bit insulting. The prose is overwrought in a way that is unfortunately very in style right now, too saccharine and not thoughtful enough to lend itself to any overarching theme, instead relying on its imagery and "poetics" to cover the prose's lack of meaning. To add insult to injury, the plot is predictable and consequently annoying. The characters are equally stock-still and caricatures of themselves, and there is an undeniable modernity to the way they all act, think, and carry themselves.

So, I’m raising this to two stars beyond these criticisms because it is not a terrible book. It’s fine. It is just thoroughly whatever.

Who is this for? After such high reviews, I wanted to read the author's book The Mercies, but I just don't know anymore. I need to pick better. ( )

‘The Dance Tree’ by Kiran Millwood Hargrave is a beautiful exploration of “otherness“ in a time when that otherness was feared, or hated or condemned. But more specifically, it is set during an oppressively hot summer in 1518 where a dancing plague has gripped a nearby city. As this plague goes from 1 girl to hundreds, we spend most of our time with a woman who lives in the country, who is very pregnant, tending to beehives and learning who her sister-in-law is after a seven year banishment for an untold sin. Lisbet has lost every child before the one she carries now, long before childbirth. This is caused a great emptiness in her and complicated, her relationship with her husband and her mother-in-law in the world around her. And while she has found a way to live and created a memorial of sorts, for these lives lost, she must keep it secret and hidden. She has lived a life of great pain. But her suffering allows her a connection to and an empathy for other people. It does not glorify her suffering or the suffering of anyone else, instead the novel shows how much torment was caused by the rules and powers of the times. The novel shows how fear was used as a tool to guide those wanting into the service of the people creating want, and the desperation that was felt in every corner.

The author looks at racism, homophobia, and the misunderstanding of women’s bodies in the ways in which persecution based on these things, is both similar and different, and implore you to see the importance of empathy and solidarity against the world that would snuff you out.

While, the story of the “dancers“ receives less page time, then the more intimate aspects of the plot we do get deliberate and tender glimpses into the lives of those women. I really appreciate it that detail, and found that it kept what was happening, feeling real and connected to our characters at all times. Karen Millwood Hargrave is a master at crafting dynamic and intricate characters, no matter how little time we spend with them.

One quick and important note that I want to make is that this book is not about all men being the enemy. It acknowledges the importance of kind and good men, their necessity and their existence. And give us the reminder that evil is often made, and that a little boy is a little boy And must be molded into a devil.

And finally, this is a book about miscarriage and spends great time exploring that aspect of womanhood and motherhood. It is meant to honor those who have experienced this great pain, and is done so with a careful touch. I think it’s important to know, though, going in.

I will read anything Kiran Millwood Hargrave writes. I’m always grateful for her vulnerability, honesty, and palpable effort to see the ways in which we are all connected. ( )

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The Dance Tree by Kiran Millwood Hargrave is a historical fiction novel taking place in 16th Century when a dancing plague affected women. Ms. Hargrave is an award winning writer and poet.

Lisbet and her family are about to lose their farm and her bees to the Catholic church because… well… the church wants it. While her husband goes to try and fight their lot, pregnant Lisbet joins him together with Nethe, the sister who just came back from seven years of penance for something Lisbet is not privy to.

As they go to the big city, a dancing plague affected the city’s women. No one understands it and the church tries to figure out if it’s the work of angels or demons.

I’ve enjoyed The Mercies by the author previously, and I saw her new book I wanted to give it a shot. The Dance Tree by Kiran Millwood Hargrave has a lot going for it, however, I felt that the plot never got going and the ending was anticlimactic.

The protagonist, Lisbet, a pregnant woman who suffered many miscarriages, and tragedies, and basically has a difficult life overall was an interesting character. However, I thought her growth and revelations were misdirected at some point.

The dancing plague was very interesting to read about, and I even read a bit more on it. However, much like the Salem Witch Trials, the lessons are not learned. The importance of impartial judges, the dangers of mixing religion with the state, and most importantly being aware of the work fear and ignorance play.

The story has a lot going for it, faith and the loss of it, a loss of trust in public leaders, prejudice, fanatics who believe everything is allowable and “good” if it’s for their own cause, familial relationships, and hierarchy, religion as the source of violence, and more.

As much as I enjoyed the book, it seemed more like a creative writing exercise than a finished product. At around the halfway mark, I started to lose interest, history and flowery language aside. ( )

Summer 1518 is the hottest anyone can remember and the city of Strasburg wilts. A woman starts to dance in the square, possessed by religious fervour, but she is joined by hundreds more. The authorities try all in their power to drive the demons from the women. Meanwhile Lisbet tends to her bees outside the city. She is heavily pregnant with a longed for child. However her existence is threatened by events involving her sister-in-law who is newly returned from seven years penance.
Mixing religious fervour with old-fashioned revenge and the prejudice against outsiders either by race or by sexual orientation makes this a seemingly busy book. However the pace is gentle for most of the time and it matches the slow, heat-ridden atmosphere of the story. The writing ramps up when there is action and the whole is both fulfilling and exciting. A great read. ( )