Beyond the Wall: Exploring George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire, From A Game of Thrones to A Dance with Dragons

This anthology looks at the variety of characters and social concepts in the first five books of A Song of Ice and Fire, including the TV series, graphic novels and role playing games. My favorite chapter was the discussion on PTSD and how various characters experienced it throughout the series. Knowledge of the series is beneficial to a reader relating to the concepts discussed.

I’ve read a lot of reviews about this anthology, and most people say that you can find better material online in the discussion groups for free.While there is a plethora of material online, a lot of it isn’t structured or supported by research which was what I was looking for….something a little more organized.This novel had a broad selection of essays about A Song of Ice and Fire and Westeros. Some were interesting and thought provoking while others left me wanting.Some of the essays I could have done without were Adapting A Game of Thrones as a Graphic Novel and Collecting Ice and Fire in the Age of Nook and Kindle.What was unclear to me was if this collections of essays was meant to be more academic driven or more personal opinion and speculation. Some of the essays had supporting evidence from outside sources while others were more conjecture or the only support evidence were from the text alone.At the end of the day I tried not to be too hard on the essayists and took what I was reading at face value.Some of my favorite essays were Of Direwolves and Gods, A Sword Without a Hilt, and Power and Feminism in Westeros. I was hoping for more essays on these topics…..magic and feminism.I had hoped the essays would be longer with more support evidence from the texts however, I think that could easily gotten out of hand and exceptionally long. So all in all I though the length of the essays were appropriate–long enough to present and support thesis statements but not so long as to put the reader to sleep.If you haven’t read the books I would highly recommend that you avoid this until you do as it contains spoilers and lots of material that could ruin the series if you haven’t read it before.I think my biggest issue with this book, was I wanted more essays! I wanted to read more about what academics or professionals in the genre thought about the series and theories they might have.See my full review here: [...]

The first part of the book is poorly organized. I had difficulty in keeping it ordered in my mind. Questions were asked about possible meanings of events and characters in a roiling, rapid fire style, and answers (more properly,opinions) were absent. I had expected to read of symbolic and possibly allegorical interpretations to Martin's many characters and events; what I got were questions. Granted, there were many I had not thought of myself, but that merely served to increase the number of questions in my mind. I seriously considered abandoning the read.However, my own personal style pretty well forbids me the abandonment option, so I persevered. I'm glad I did. The second half of the book was much better; it made the disorganization of the first half forgivable. It provided me what I had expected at the outset - a discussion of the symbolism and the historical roots and parallels of Martin's characters and events. It validated some of my own thoughts about the medieval European origins of Westeros, and even her noble families.If you've seen the TV movies AND read at least three of the Martin books, this one will be a good addition to your library. I personally had to slog a bit through the first part (a third of the book or so), but the later part was much more informative and provocative. I may have been able to give it four stars, but my near abandonment kept me to three.

I bought this thinking it was "everything you ever wanted to know how north of the wall and how the wall came to be". Instead it was an in depth look at what the underlying story is and why the characters act like they do. As it explains in great detail where the novels 1-5 had led us, it is certainly worth reading to understand the characters. If you are looking for a prehistory before Game of thrones this is not the main endeaver of the book. As I read each person's take on the series, aspects that I had missed or glossed over became clear. It is probably better to read this after you read at least some of the books or little will make sense. When there is no new book on the near horizon and maybe two to go, this at least keeps you up on events without reading the series again (I have read it twice)...shu

A fun read. It's really a collection of op-ed journal pieces that touch on some major themes and challenges the saga faces. Great because you can pick any essay and not be lost in the flow of the book. I was expecting it to provide some solid, unbiased reasoning to backup some of the more mysterious things. And there are a.. couple essays where the option of the author is grand standing. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys more than just the story and/or tries putting ideas about what's next. It's thought provoking and well written about tangible things real life offers (It's just easier to face in a fantasy world)

I love the concept of this book, and I'm so glad it exists! One or two of these essays are a little bit uninspired, but almost all of them were interesting, and some (especially the one about the graphic novel) were really excellent. Would warmly recommend.

Easy to read and well written collection of essays. There is something for everyone in this book because it talks about theories behind the books as well making the games and graphic novels too. Read it.

Son is enjoying the story

Great for game of thrones fan

excellent