Module 4 - The White Stag

Summary
The life of Attila the Hun is shared as he leads his people on a hunt for the famed White Stag.  Readers are shown his ancestry, birth, and travels throughout Asia and Europe.  

Bibliographic Citation
Seredy, K. (1979). The white stag. New York, Penguin Group. 

Personal Impressions
I found this book very difficult to follow.  The detail used to describe each character made it difficult to follow along or remain interested in them for a long period of time.  I also found that the historical connections were lost on me as I am unaware of this period of time.  I had to do a great deal of research while reading this book.  

Reviews
From the Home School Book Review 
http://homeschoolblogger.com/homeschoolbookreview/774356/

Seredy, Kate. The White Stag (published in 1937 by The Viking Press, republished in 1979 by Puffin Books of Penguin Books USA Inc., a division of the Penguin Group, 375 Hudson St., New York City, NY 10014). This book, which won the Newbery Award in 1938, might loosely be considered quasi-historical fiction, with emphasis on the fiction. Said to be for those “who want to hear the voice of pagan gods in wind and thunder,” it is the epic story of the migration of the Huns and Magyars from Asia to Europe. The author, who may be of Hungarian descent, wrote that it was inspired by leafing through a very modern book on Hungarian history which said that the early history of the Hungarian or Magyar people is a matter of dispute in that their own traditions declare them to be descendants of the Huns but present knowledge tends to disprove this theory. The book is based on the old Hun-Magyar legends which, she said, “cannot bear the weight of facts and dates.” The story begins with Nimrod, the Mighty Hunter before the Lord, son of Cush the Great Leader (cf. Genesis 10:8-14). However, “the Lord” he is said to have worshipped was not Jehovah but “Hadur, their powerful God.”This supposed leader of the Huns had followed a miraculous white stag and brought his people from their original homeland to the wild mountains of Altain-Ula. After praying to Hadur, sacrificing his horse, and hearing Hadur’s voice in a storm, he learns that his sons, Hunor and Magyar, must follow the stag and lead them from Altain-Ula to the gentle hills by the misty blue lake. Then by the oracles of Damos, their blind prophet, Hunor’s son Bendeguz again follows the stag and leads them from Asu (Asia) to Ereb (Europe) where they dwell on the land between the Taiais (Don) and Rha (Volga) rivers. The descendants of Magyar choose to remain there (the legend is that they apparently join the others later), but the descendants of Hun follow Bendeguz’s son, Attila, in battle against the “Christian” Europeans under the Western and Eastern Roman emperors and finally, still chasing the stag, he leads them to their new homeland between the rivers Pathissus and Danubius (modern Hungary). Of course, Attila the Hun was a real historical character (c. A.D. 480-453). However, the Encyclopedia Britannica does agree with Ms. Seredy’s statement that historically there is no connection between the Huns and the modern Hungarians (Magyars).After reading all this, I checked the description in And the Winner Is…A Guide to Newbery Medal Winners from a Christian Perspective by Barb Brandes and Deb Ekstrand, who said, “An artistic retelling of the story of the migration of the two sons of Nimrod, as they follow the spirit of a white stag to present day Europe. An epic story of their leader, Attila (the Hun), as he settles land known to us today as Hungary. Not recommended. Full of pagan gods and mysticism.” The short book is well written from a literary standpoint and quite exciting to read. If considered solely in the realm of pure legend, as Greek myths, it might not be so bad, and would make an interesting adjunct to the study of ancient European history, but the blending of pagan mysticism with Biblical references and even the mention of European Christianity could be a problem. After all, the Huns had their oracles through which their “God” supposedly spoke as well as their prophets, while “Christians…all over Europe prayed that this dreadful thing approaching from the East might be averted from them” (there is even a reference to Pope Innocentius who “sent his priests into far countries to preach Christianity with renewed zeal, to remind people of the words of the angry Lord”). To be honest, I have read much worse that masquerades as children’s fiction, but if you are considering this book I would still urge caution.

Library Uses

This book would be better fit in a high school.  It might be a great find for those that are interested in mythology.    This mix of historical fiction and mythology makes this an interesting book for some.  English teachers may find this a great resource when studying mythology.