The Owl Service fits neatly into Garner's literary evolution. According to the author himself, each of his books displays a greater simplicity of plot and language, even as they develop a greater complexity of meaning. By the time Garner wrote The Owl Service the crowded action of his early fantasies was replaced by a story stripped to its essence and resonant with meaning.

The meaning is developed through the characters, especially Gwyn, who may be Garner's own unflattering selfportrait. Like Garner, Gwyn is a working class boy struggling to rise above his origins. Although Gwyn wants to adapt to the dominant English culture, he remains profoundly attached to his own Welsh heritage. Even though he pretends to despise Wales, Gwyn remembers everything Nancy has told him about the valley and its traditions. In the end he refuses to leave until the drama is played...