Book Review: The Castle in the Attic

 

Along with Lloyd Alexander's The Book of Three, this story was instrumental in establishing my childhood love of fantasy literature. I remember my mother reading it to me, and later reading it on my own. I loved each and every page, and not just because of the story itself. The main character was someone I identified with on several levels, the most significant being his abiding love of gymnastics (a passion of mine from age 5 until age 17).

Ten-year old William Edward Lawrence has been cared for all his life by Mrs. Eleanor Phillips, an English widow who is preparing to return home at the end of the month. Having no children of her own, as a parting gift she bequeaths to William a scaled-down, fully functional stone model of a medieval castle, complete with a figure of a knight in silver armor, that has been in her family for generations. While dreading the departure of his beloved caretaker, William is given the biggest shock of his young life. At his touch, the figure of the silver knight mysteriously comes alive and reveals an incredible story: Sir Simon (the knight) was cheated of his kingdom by an evil wizard who murdered his father and turned Sir Simon into a lead statue. Eventually, using magic stolen by Sir Simon from the wizard himself, William enters the enchanted kingdom of the Silver Knight and embarks on a quest to defeat the tyrant wizard once and for all.

In addition to my personal gymnastics aspect, William was a character who was very easy to relate to. His feelings of anger, sadness, courage and even social awkwardness are things that all children go through at some time or another. In addition, what little boy doesn't enjoy stories of knights, castles and magic?

Overall, The Castle in the Attic is a touching, poignant and very human story about the joys and sorrows of growing up. You could even say that it was my very first introduction to the classic "hero's journey" archetype so important to my later storytelling interests (Star Wars, Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings ect... ect...). I would highly recommend this story to any child with a love of fantasy, or an adult who wants to recapture some of that sweet, literary magic they enjoyed in their own childhoods.  

Book Review: The Book of Three

Although not as strong as it once was, my love of fantasy literature (a carry-over from my childhood and teenage years) still forms a part of my sense of personal identity. If this love could be traced to a single source, it would undoubtedly be The Book of Three, the first of five volumes in Lloyd Alexander's famous Chronicles of Prydain series, which I first read at the age of eight.

Set in the mystical world of Prydain, the story centers around the character Taran, an orphan being raised on a farm by an old and, shall we say, "eccentric" wise man. Harboring dreams of battle and glory, Taran is unexpectedly thrust into a whirlwind of events that could decide the fate of the entire kingdom.

It was not obvious to me until many years later, but Alexander's work is based almost entirely on traditional Welsh/Celtic mythology and folklore, with some characters sharing the exact same names. Taking this theme one step further, Alexander sets the story against a background of supernatural and historical mystery that could easily pass for a traditional bard's tale.

Each character in the book- from the wise leader Gwydion, to the enchantress princess Eilonwy to the lovable and mischievous scamp Gurgi- is written with such unique a personality that readers of any age (even if they don't fully understand the story) will be enthralled by and endeared to for many years to come.