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The Roots of the Mountains was the second in a projected series of three 
historical novels set in a pre-medieval Germanic world (the third was not 

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completed). It follows the themes of House of the Wolfings, which was 

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published in the same year, into a later generation. A loose alliance of 


Dalesmen, Woodlanders and Shepherds who have lived in peace around the 

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valley of Burgdale for so long that they barely remember war, find their 

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peace disturbed by the Sons of the Wolf and the invading Dusky Men. 

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Morris’s exploration of the social and economic organization of this fictional 

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pre-medieval world reflects his socialism; the figure of the Dusky Men 



(unable to breed with the Germanic tribes and slaughtered without 



compassion) reflects the racial politics of his times. Long neglected, 

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Morris’s two Germanic novels were rediscovered when they were published 


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as the sixteenth and nineteenth volumes in the celebrated Newcastle 

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Forgotten Fantasy Library. - Summary by Phil Benson 

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Read by Phil Benson. Total running time: 15:05:50 


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This recording is in the public domain and may be reproduced, distributed, 

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or modified without permission. For more information or to volunteer, visit 

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librivox.org. 


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Cover picture by William Morris. Copyright expired in U.S., Canada, EU. and 

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all countries with author’s life +70 yrs laws. Cover design by Anne. This 

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design is in the public domain.