Good recommendation, thanks
To be honest, children's comic fiction is not really my thing. I have nothing against it. In fact I know it has an important place in many children's reading. It's just that it's not my bag. Despite the passing years, I have appear to have retained a good deal that is childlike (and probably much that is childish too). But I do seem to have rather outgrown a child's sense of humour. However, I read this little book on the Twitter recommendation of two favourite authors, Philip Reeve and Gareth P Jones, and I am mightily glad I did. It amused me no end and entertained me royally. It is childish, in a playful way - but it is very cleverly funny too.
This delightful humour in Chris Priestley's book struck me as particularly 'English' and rather old-fashioned. I do not mean either of these as a negative. More than anything it put me in mind of Spike Milligan and The Goon Show. That is to say it used an almost manic silliness as the canvas for humour which is really brilliantly clever, well educated, highly literate and even, at times quite literary. For example, the opening map is a wonderful spoof of those found in high fantasy fiction. There is also a brilliant passage contrasting a 'herring' with a 'red herring', the humour of which is dependent on the reader knowing the meaning and usual context of the latter (as well, preferably, as having suffered the traumas of learning algebra).
I know my bookish son would have enjoyed this enormously in his younger days - and probably would even now. He did actually listen repeatedly, at one stage, to old recordings of The Goon Show - and quoted them incessantly. (Milligan voice: 'He's fallen it the wa-ter!')
Going public
One thing occurred to me. The setting, and indeed the whole ethos, of this tale belong very much to the minor English Public School*. Will the less privileged kids out there be able to relate to it? Than said, exactly the same applied to Harry Potter and I suppose that managed to attract a few readers. Perhaps there are so many books around about boarding school life (magical or otherwise) that most children will understand its ways even if they have not experienced them directly.
Sparkling writing
Curse of the Werewolf Boy is a sparklingly brilliant piece of comic writing from Chris Priestly, who also sustains the hilarious entertainment amazingly well. It is all too easy for an initial amusement to wear thin - but not here. Even if the actual gags become less frequent as the story progresses, they are quickly overtaken by a gloriously amusing and entertaining tale of mind-boggling time travel. It is here that the Werewolf Boy is to be encountered, as well as a possibly ghostly (or even ghastly) Viking , not to mention a stolen School Spoon of indescribable importance. (Sorry, was I not supposed to mention the spoon.) Together with a delicious madcap, and hilariously named, cast of teachers and pupils, they are wonderful creations all.
The author manages delightfully to spoof a number of literary genres (not least the detective story), but it is the confusions and complexities of time travel that are at the heart of the story's delight. And, indicative of the tale's underlying intelligence, there is actually logic to them. The time-travel paradox is more skilfully negotiated here than in many more serious attempts to fictionalise the concept. Then, Chris Priestly keeps one of his cleverest suprsises until late in the story when our intrepid heroes speed off into the future. But no spoilers.
Classic comedy
This book does not have any pretentious to great profundity, but it is a quick, easy read - and a hugely enjoyable one. It will, I am sure, provide a delightful diversion for many children and it's cod 'spooky' elements will be an added bonus.
The author's own copious, wacky illustrations add to the liveliness of the text in much the same way that Ronald Searle's did to the classic Molesworth books, back in the day. It is good that a new generation now has a similar comic talent of their own to revel and delight in.
Mildew and Sponge are the stuff of comedy classic and Maudlin Towers could well prove to be the Fawlty Towers of children's literature. Readers will both want to return to these characters and to have more - much more - of their exploits. It looks as though this title is to be the start of a new series. I, for one, am delighted. Countless children will be too.
Note: Any readers of this blog from outside the UK need to remember that we here, very logically, call some older, selective, fee-paying boarding schools 'Public Schools'. Schools which are funded by the state and free to all children (almost always day schools) are 'state schools' - what else?