The Ravenmaster af Christopher Skaife

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The ravens at the Tower of London are of mighty importance: rumor has it that if a raven from the Tower should ever leave, the city will fall.

The title of Ravenmaster, therefore, is a serious title indeed, and after decades of serving the Queen, Yeoman Warder Christopher Skaife took on the added responsibility of caring for the infamous ravens. In The Ravenmaster, he lets us in on his life as he feeds his birds raw meat and biscuits soaked in blood, buys their food at Smithfield Market, and ensures that these unusual, misunderstood, and utterly brilliant corvids are healthy, happy, and ready to captivate the four million tourists who flock to the Tower every year.

A rewarding, intimate, and inspiring partnership has developed between the ravens and their charismatic and charming human, the Ravenmaster, who shares the folklore, history, and superstitions surrounding the ravens and the Tower. Shining a light on the behavior of the birds, their pecking order and social structure, and the tricks they play on us, Skaife shows who the Tower’s true guardians really are

Det var en no brainer for mig at læse bogen her, da jeg jo er kæmpe fan af den engelske middelalder og dets konger og dronninger og centralt for de fleste af disse er The White Tower of London.

Skaife er den nuværende Ravenmaster - det vil sige, det er ham, der har ansvaret for den flok af ravne, der holdes på Tower-grunden af hensyn til den gamle legende, der siger at London/England styrter, hvis ravnene forsvinder.

Bogen er lidt Skaifes egen biografi (hvem han var/er, hans militærkarriere før the Tower, hans fascination med fuglene, etc) og lidt generel historie og legender fra the Tower samt hvordan man så ellers passer på sådanne kloge og selvstændige fugle.

Størstedelen af bogen er underholdende og interessant, omend lidt rodet blandet sammen, men en gang i mellem er der et par sider, der føles langt tungere (blandt andet noget der omhandler ravnens biologi), og det føles lidt malplaceret og virker til at være plukket fra en fuglebog.

Jeg skal til London i marts og skal helt sikkert have bogen med i bagagen og forhåbentlig får jeg tid at smutte omkring the Tower og finde ravnemesteren selv og få hans autograf :)

The RAVENMASTER Life with the Ravens at the Tower of London af Christopher Skaife ISBN13: 9780008307929 300 sider / Udgivet den 2. oktober 2018

Review by Iben Jakobsen, Borough of Books, 2019