Legends

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The Wrath of the Woolington Wyrm by Karen Foxlee and Freda Chiu

I began reading this book whilst drinking coffee at Paddington Station, nothing strange so far, but then as I got to the line about the strange screeching noise, it happened!

“It let out a screech that was wild and full of rage!  …….It was a noise that had not been heard for many years.”

Yes, there was a terrible noise reverberating through the station, it sounded like an angle grinder cutting through metal bars; given that there is building work in that area of the station I can only assume this was part of the building works.

The story is set in the small village of Woolington Well, where archaeologist  Professor Martin has been asked to excavate, prior to a shopping centre development.  Her daughter Mary-Kate has to accompany her, as it is the school holiday and her grandmother will be away on holiday.  this should have been a very simple job, but on arrival at the village, they are met by a series of strange events.  Why are saucers of milk outside most front doors and why are so many houses shut up?  Meeting the village librarian and Lord Woolington (Lord of the Manor) they are met with tales of a legendary beast called the Wyrm, although Lord W insists that it is all make believe.  Whilst her mother begins her work on the dig site, Mary-Kate and her new friend Arabella (daughter of Lord W) start investigating the history of the Wyrm and particularly the claim that it “likes children”.  What happens next really adds to the action and makes several people change their mind about the legend and whether there can be any truth in the tale.

Although this brilliant story is set in a very small village and has a very limited number of characters, it really does not lack in excitement, intrigue or action.  I love the map of the village and its surroundings, so that you can follow the action as it takes place.  But can someone tell me where the church is?  There is a cemetery, but no church building, so is there a story behind this omission?  We have a beautiful rural idyll and the idea of a huge shopping centre in the middle of the village is unthinkable.  In real life I think there would be outrage and the planners would hopefully stop it.  One of the things that the two girls did discover is that the legend of the Wyrm and the odd happenings only occur when work is being done to the Village Square and the Well, after which the village is named, so is there a link?

Mary-Kate Martin is someone that you can feel great empathy with.  She suffers from a great deal of anxiety and needs the comfort of her special treasures, including her globe stress ball and I have my own version of this, as you can see from the picture at the side.  She also needs the reassurance of things being balanced, even down to glittery shoes to go with the glittery bag.  Mary-Kate seems to display many feelings that we might understand as being neuro-diverse, yet she manages to overcome many of her anxieties when she really wants to find things out.  Her new friend Arabella is also a great support and although an outgoing, bouncy extrovert, she is willing to  listen to Mary-Kate and even follow her when needed.

A really interesting element of this story is that we don’t have a completely evil villain.  Both the Wyrm and Lord Woolington have reasons for their behaviour and it is just a matter of finding a way around these differences.  We also have  the relationships between both of the girls and their respective parents and it is good to see that they have  strong and positive connections; which enables them to feel they can get support when needed.  This is an absolute delight to read and I love Mary-Kate and how she copes with her worries; it really is a five star book.  Thank you Pushkin Press for inviting me  to be part of this celebration for such a great book and congratulations to Karen Foxlee for a fabulous new heroine.

I am delighted to say that when looking at the author’s web that there is a second title due out on 28th March 2024.  I have got my fingers crossed that it will be available for review.

 

 

The Author

Karen Foxlee is an Australian author who writes for both kids and grown-ups. She grew up in the outback mining town Mount Isa and still frequently dreams she is walking barefoot along the dry Leichhardt River there.

One of four children she started telling stories when she was young. She filled countless small exercise books with sweeping sagas of orphaned girls illustrated with pictures cut from the back of Reader’s Digest magazines.   

She has worked as an underground cable mapper, pool kiosk attendant, library assistant and hotel laundry hand and eventually became a registered nurse. All the while she never gave up her secret dream of becoming a writer. ….

Karen lives in South East Queensland with her daughter and several animals, including two wicked parrots, who frequently eat parts of her laptop when she isn’t looking. Her passions are her daughter, writing, day-dreaming, baking, running and swimming in the sea.

https://karenfoxlee.com/

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Son of the Sea by Richard Pickard

It is always exciting to read a second book by an author, especially if you have really enjoyed their first book.  I was lucky enough to be part of the blog tour for Richard’s first book in August 2021 and he wrote a short entry for me, all about his influences and where he writes.  He spoke about the outline that he was writing for his second book, so it is fantastic to see all of his hard work come to fruition.  You can see this first blog entry  by searching”Peculiar tale of the Tentacle Boy”

The hero in this story is called Caspar and he has a dream that he can swim the channel before his 12th birthday.  The only problem is that he is now more than 11 years old and his parents ban him from going anywhere near the water.  Despite this he finds ways of swimming, whether it is in the local ponds or even the water feature at the shopping centre.  However things are about to change dramatically; following a freak accident at the local supermarket both of Caspar’s parents end up in hospital (they were run over by a giant wheel of cheese!) and Caspar is sent to the seaside town of Corallium, where his unknown grandmother lives.  This is not the last of the surprises that he comes across in the next few days.  Corallium is the home of his absolute hero, Beryl the Bazooka and he not only meets her, but finds out that she was his grandma’s wife, until they fell out.  Then Caspar discovers that sea swimming is very different from being in a small pond and after he nearly drowns, Beryl volunteers to train him.  The record that Caspar is trying to break has stood for 60 years and every person under the age of 12 who has attempted the crossing, has been struck down by a ‘curse’; so will our hero overcome all the obstacles in his way?  With the help of his new friend Wynn, he is determined to follow his destiny.

Underpinning this whole story is the enormous secret that Caspar has been hiding for all of his life, as his parents are scared he will be treated as a freak; both of his feet are webbed, with skin between each of his toes.  The question is whether this has anything to do with the ancient legend that Corallium was once a city under the sea.  This is a story about keeping secrets and the impact that it can have on relationships and also how we feel about ourselves. This very much applies to the relationship between his grandmother Ida and Beryl, but it also is central to the way Caspar, his parents and grandma also interact.  We have a multilayered story where the events of the past still impact on the lives of people today and it is so sad to see that some characters are trying to hang on to past glories, rather than trying to support a new generation in their attempts.  The author has managed to combine both humour (in the guise of Wynn’s archaeologist father) and pathos, particularly when we see the anguish of those who have failed to achieve their dreams because of the so-called ‘curse’.  However, the ending is particularly uplifting and I gave a quiet cheer as people finally admitted to things they had kept hidden and then discovered that they were not alone, in fact they were part of a community that had been hiding in plain sight.  I have read this book twice and it is one of those enchanting stories that you know you will go back to in the future.  Congratulations to Richard on this lovely book.

 

https://www.richard-pickard.com/bio  to find out more about the author and his work.

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Chicken House; 1st edition (11 May 2023)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 336 pages
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1913696726
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 9 – 12 years
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The story of BABUR, Prince, Emperor, Sage by Anuradha and Jane Ray

Most of us have been brought up listening to history, myths, legends and folk tales from other cultures.  But very often they can be from Greek, Roman, Egyptian, Caribbean or Chinese backgrounds.  So it is fascinating to have a story from a part of the world that we hear about in the news, but which we have little knowledge about their history; hopefully this book will help change that situation.

This is the story of the life of BABUR, who founded the Mughal Empire, at the same time that Henry VII and then Henry VIII were on the throne in England.  If we are aware of this dynasty it is because of the fifth Emperor,  Shah Jahan who was responsible for the building of the Taj Mahal, so it is fascinating to hear about the beginnings of this major dynasty.

The book is based on the autobiographical writings that Babur provided during his life and which he wrote between 1494 and 1530.  Originally the text was in a version of Turkish (Chagatay) but was then turned into Persian by the emperor Akbar.  The current author has had the job of greatly simplifying this work for a young audience; I believe that the original “Baburnama” is more than 400 pages, so this has been a mammoth task.

We start this tale in a part of the world that has changed names over the last centuries, so thankfully a map of the region has been included at the beginning of the story.  Basically we are looking at that area to the north and west of India and Pakistan, as we know them and which includes Uzbekistan and Afghanistan.  During the 16th Century this area was made up of a large number of small states, who were often at war with each other.  Babur was born as heir to the ruler of the state of Ferghana and at the age of 12 years he became king, after his father died in an accident.

The story is told in the first person as Babur reminisces about his life and the major events that took place.  It is noticeable that he spends a lot of his early life winning and losing territory; so that he is either a homeless wanderer, or the ruler of some important cities like Samarkand.  The memoirs see him gradually develop into someone who is more thoughtful and who  learns to understand the importance of wisdom when ruling a kingdom.  It is very evident that family was of great importance to him and he had a close relationship with his father and particularly with his grandmother; however it is with the birth of his eldest son that he discovered the happiest moment of his life.

This book is very highly illustrated by the artist Jane Ray and is full of her signature work, with the use of gold and bright colours.  She has been nominated for many awards including the Kate Greenaway Medal and won the Smarties Award for her picture book “The Story of Creation” in 1992.  I have been a great fan of her work, which in this case is very similar to many Persian illustrations  The colours are jewel-like and there is a real sense of movement and action, particularly in those scenes that depict battles and journeys.  In contrast we have a delicate and quite tender scene as Babur meets his wife and baby son.

Babur is a character who is full of contradictions at times, but he had a profound effect on his part of the world, creating a dynasty that was to rule for nearly 300 years, of which the final 100 years were just a shadow of the earlier period.  In a time where we are even more aware of the need for diversity and understanding of  other traditions, this will make an excellent addition to any school library.