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Book Review: The Poe Estate (The Grimm Legacy, Book 3) by Polly Shulman

The Poe Estate (The Grimm Legacy, Book 3) by Polly Shulman

Nancy Paulsen Books, 2015

ISBN-13: 978-0399166143

Available: Hardcover, Kindle edition, audiobook, audio CD

 

This, sadly, is the last book in a trilogy where the real star is not any particular character, but the New-York Circulating Material Repository, a combination library/museum/pocket dimension of fictional objects. The first book, The Grimm Legacy, introduced high school students Elizabeth Rew and Andre Merritt, who were hired to work as pages in the Repository, as they discovered magical objects from fairytales and fantasy. The second book, The Wells Bequest, introduces science geek Leo Novikov and explores fictional objects found in science fiction tales. This third book, The Poe Estate, ventures into the world of Gothic and early horror fiction. It takes place years later, after Elizabeth has become a librarian. She and Andre travel New England looking for haunted objects and houses to store in the repository’s Poe Annex (a detail I loved was that in order to reach the Poe Annex, visitors must first travel through the Lovecraft Corpus, which is just as creepy and atmospherically terrifying as you would expect). However, unlike the first two books, we get a first-person narrator, sixth grader Sukie, whose protective older sister Kitty died from an inherited blood disease from her mother’s side of the family, the Thornes.  Kitty haunts Sukie, still compelled to protect her even after death. Sukie and her parents, suffering financially, move into Thorne Mansion, which is in a sad state of disrepair, with their mother’s very elderly cousin, Hepzibah Thorne, and Sukie soon discovers another ghost haunting the house.  After meeting Elizabeth and Andre at a flea market, Sukie discovers that the house, and members of her family from generations past, appeared in an unfinished Gothic novel. Sukie, Andre, and Elizabeth go on a treasure hunt, passing through the Lovecraft Corpus, visiting the Spectral Library (a fictional library with a ghostly librarian, containing fictional books that exists inside a story: examples of fictional books include the Necronomicon and The King in Yellow, both of which are better handled by a ghost than a human being), and traveling through the Poe Annex, which contains not just haunted houses, but haunted ships, haunted trains, and haunted islands. There are enough Easter eggs in this book to give any fan of Gothic and early horror fiction plenty to delight in, and the metanarrative is kind of fascinating, although it’s also somewhat confusing.

I personally am absolutely delighted to see the names of some of these lesser-known stories (such as “Afterward” by Edith Wharton and “The Wind in the Rose-Bush” by Mary E. Wilkins Freeman) and authors appear in a middle grade novel, and I love the Repository and its collections. However, Sukie’s story as a girl dealing with grief over the death of her sister, financial difficulties at home, and bullying at school, whose elderly cousin is being pursued by unscrupulous developers, gets shafted by the author’s need to incorporate the Repository into the narrative. Jonathan Rigby, the villain from previous books, doesn’t get much space in the story, and the conflicts and relationships don’t get the attention they deserve. Sukie’s story is definitely a middle-grade story, but its intersection with the Repository storyline mostly derails it in favor of dropping names that might not be familiar even to many adults. Shulman could get away with this in The Grimm Legacy, because most kids have a basic familiarity with fairytales, but I don’t think it works here.

If you are an adult who loves the idea of  fantastic libraries or getting to step into favorite stories (visiting the House of Usher, flying on a broom from Young Goodman Brown, tracking down Captain Kidd’s treasure) then this is a really fun book.  Unfortunately, I think a lot of it will go over the target audience’s head. Polly Shulman does provide a list of authors and titles mentioned in the text, and she got me interested enough in Hawthorne to look some of his stories up (The Scarlet Letter successfully turned me off to Hawthorne in high school), but I have trouble seeing kids in elementary or early middle school  actively seeking these stories out on their own. This isn’t great writing, but it’s a lovely tribute with an enjoyable concept,  one of those books that is best shared between an adult who loves the genre and the kids in their lives.

 

Posted on January 14, 2020 by , Reply

Book Review: Cryptozoology for Beginners (Codex Arcanum, Book 2) by Euphemia Whitmore with Matt Harry, illustrated by Juliane Crumb

Cryptozoology for Beginners by Euphemia Whitmore with Matt Harry, illustrated by Juliane Crumb

Inkshares, 2019

ISBN-13: 978-1947848825

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition

 

The first thing you should know is that I have a cryptid-loving kid whose interest goes way back to when he was very little, so I am always on the lookout for books about cryptids. Usually those end up being some kind of nonfiction guide (such as Tales of the Cryptids by Kelly Milner Halls), maybe paired with a little background or local legend, or an adventure novel with kids either hunting for (or being hunted by) a particular creature (such as Roland Smith’s Chupacabra). In Cryptozoology for Beginners, we get a little of both, with the added element of a dash of magic.

That’s right, magic. Cryptozoology for Beginners is the second book in the Codex Arcanum series. The first book, Sorcery for Beginners,  which I have not had the opportunity to read, follows  Owen Macready and his friends Perry and Trish through adventures in magic that begin with bookseller and sorceress Euphemia Whitmore giving Owen the book Sorcery for Beginners when he ducks into her shop to escape from a bully, Brian Ferreti whose millionaire father turns out to be the book’s evil nemesis. This book is told in third person from Owen’s point of view and includes illustrated pages from his new grimoire, so that the reader is going through the learning process with Owen.

Cryptozoology for Beginners picks up in time for the teens’ summer vacation.  Owen and Perry have become a couple, and the book is told in third person from Trish’s point of view. An organization called the Euclideans, who seek to destroy magic, which is in direct conflict with the sorcerers, has started kidnapping cryptids for scientific experimentation. Euphemia Whitmore returns to ask for their help in collecting (or capturing) the remaining cryptids for a “zoo” that will be a safe haven for them, away from the Euclideans. They are in a race to preserve these rare, frequently legendary creatures before the Euclideans can capture them for their own nefarious purposes.

Perry, Owen, and Trish are joined by Brian, the bully from the previous book, who wants to redeem himself, under the supervision of slightly older Jacinda Greyeyes (who is very clear that she is a member of the Flying Dust First Nation), for an adventure in an RV that leads them all over the country tracking down and capturing such creatures as jackalopes, the altamaha-ha, and the chupacabra, with the help of an illustrated, informative guide to cryptids provided by Euphemia Whitmore, Cryptozoology for Beginners. As in the first book, fully illustrated pages from the guide are included at strategic points in the book, so the reader learns about the appearance and habits of the jackalope as the group is chasing after one. As the Euclideans gain ground on the sorcerers, Trish, Perry, Owen, Brian, and Jacinda find themselves also traveling across the Atlantic to help save the Loch Ness Monster, the sphinx, and many others. They finally find themselves in the heart of the Euclideans’ headquarters, where they see some of the results of the experimentation firsthand, and it’s heartbreaking. The plot moves fairly quickly, and we see a fair amount of character development in the prickly Trish and the obnoxious Brian.

Trish, feeling somewhat like a third wheel at the beginning of the book, starts falling for Jacinda and discovers her feelings are returned. She gains confidence and becomes more of a leader. Brian, who’s pretty rough around the edges, strained my ability to believe he could be redeemed, as he made a number of racist and dismissive comments about Jacinda’s indigenous identity, but he did commit some selfless acts, and become slightly more bearable. There was definitely growth to his character, but I hope there’s a third book that gives him opportunities to continue to change. Owen and Perry don’t have a lot of character development going on, although Owen makes a discovery about his mother that requires him to make some uncomfortable decisions.

But what I love most about this book is the cryptids and the seriousness they’re taken with in the story, even though it’s fiction. The pages devoted to the various creatures are well designed and illustrated, and readers who haven’t encountered cryptids before will be pulled into the story as the learn something about them at the same time as the kids.

While the romance might not appeal to all middle-grade readers, many will enjoy the adventure. For cryptid-loving kids, it can stand alone, but it’s better if read after Sorcery for Beginners.  Recommended for middle-grade readers who enjoy creature guides and adventure with some fantasy in the mix.

Posted on December 22, 2019 by , Reply

Book Review: The Old One and The Sea by Lex H. Jones, illustrated by Liam ‘Pais’ Hill

The Old One and The Sea by Lex H. Jones, illustrated by Liam ‘Pais’ Hill

Sinister Horror Company, 2019

ISBN-13: 978-1912578160

Available: Hardcover, paperback, Kindle edition

The Old One and The Sea introduces children to a now-famous author and one of his most famous creations, reimagining the childhood of Howard “Howie”  Phillips Lovecraft and his first encounter with the extraordinary. Taking place just after World War I, in the coastal town of Innsmouth, Howie’s father is missing in action, and he and his mother have a close relationship, although he is curious about the world around him and prone to take risks. With no other children and few other adults around he has preserved a fearless sense of wonder in the world that most older children and adults grow out of,. His only companion, Mr. Derleth, is a brusque former soldier who has seen terrible battles, and studies the sea and the stars, and the mysteries he sees in them. One night, when Mr. Derleth has noted that the stars are in an unusual alignment, a black stone pillar rises out of the sea, and Howie decides to explore it. Once he’s reached the top, he accidentally summons a great creature from the sea: surprised, he falls off the pillar and into the water. The creature saves him, and when Howie really looks at the creature, instead of seeing a monster, he sees the tendrils that saved him flowing from the round head of the creature, and black, endless eyes that reflect the stars. Howie names the creature Oolu, and a strange friendship begins between the lonely boy and the equally lonely creature that has risen from the sea. Both are grieving: Howie for his father, and Oolu for his friends in the city of Rlyeh, lost to the bottom of the sea. Jones’ depiction of grief here, especially the grief of a child, rings very true. It’s there, but without making the story entirely about grief.

Then sailors discover that Oolu has risen, and recognize him as Cthulhu, the Great Old One, a monster who destroyed their ship, and decided to attack him. Howie runs to Oolu, chased by his mother and Mr. Derleth, to face the sailors. Mr. Derleth, who still has his military skills, runs the sailors off, terrified. Mr. Derleth notes to Howie, “Fear can be a powerful motivator”. Howie makes a plan to use his imagination to write stories about Oolu, using the name Mr. Derleth used, Cthhulu, but to make the stories scary to keep people like the sailors from ever attacking his friend again.

This is not a frightenting book. It is a tale of friendship, loyalty, grief, love, and family that honors wonder and imagination.Lex H. Jones has given us a gift in this idyllic fictional portrait of Lovecraft, reminding us that he, too, was once a child with curiosity and imagination. There couldn’t be a gentler introduction to the Cthulhu mythos than this book. In fact, it is entirely possible for a child who has no knowledge of Lovecraft of Cthulhu or even any interest in horror to enjoy this delightful, fantastical story.  The illustrations by Liam ‘Pais’ Hill, in pastel colors with simple, cartoony line drawings, add to this impression. In all honesty, The Old One and The Sea is the most refreshing children’s book (and I read a lot of children’s books) I’ve read this year.

Jim McLeod of Ginger Nuts of Horror wrote a nice introduction to this book on when horror lovers can best introduce the genre to their children, and how, and on how much availabilty of children’s horror fiction (and fiction that uses horror concepts and tropes) has changed, It has changed quite a bit over the last 15-20 years, and that’s been exciting to see. Lex Jones has added a lovely title to that genre that I hope both librarians and parents will share with the children they encounter. Recommended.

 

 

Posted on October 22, 2019 by , 1 comment
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