Cover: Manuel Sumberac
So far . . .
Having recently read (and enjoyed) some quite intense and reflective children’s books, it was a refreshing change to come again to an action-packed, imagination-fest of a story. However, in the end, this one turned out to be something rather more too.
I was very excited by the first book in this series, The Nowhere Emporium, when it was published a few years ago. (See my review from May ‘15). It was one of my children’s fantasy highlights of that year and deservedly won popular awards. Ross MacKenzie followed it up by an excellent stand-alone fantasy horror novel, Shadowsmith, before returning with a second enjoyable Emporium title. Then, again, he penned a stand-alone, spine-tingler, Evernight, before returning to his Emporium sequence.
. . . so good
However, I am delighted that he has now added a further title to complete the trilogy. Although the two intervening stand-alone books are hugely enjoyable, it is his creation of this world of the Emporium, that, for me, marks him as one of today’s most enchanting writers of compelling fantasy for children.
Those who have not yet discovered the ‘Nowhere Emporium’, need to envisage a creation that stands somewhere towards the middle of a (highly speculative) spectrum stretching from Enid Blyton’s Magic Faraway Tree to Erin Morgenstern’s Night Circus. That is to say it provides a portal to a transient and sometimes rather elusive world of diverse wonders. However, in this case, the world conjured is far more thrillingly imaginative than the lands at the top of Blyton’s tree, whilst not as adultly sophisticated as Morgenstern’s circus. Against this background, Ross MacKenzie tells what is essentially the classic tale of MG fantasy, that of an orphan child discovering that they have magical powers and filling a special destiny, often saving the world on the way.
The early books in the sequence therefore press many of the most crucial buttons for a hugely successful children’s fantasy, and, inevitably, leave the question as to how effectively the author can develop and ultimately resolve his narrative in a ‘series finale’. However Ross MacKenzie achieves exactly this with successful skill in The Otherwhere Emporium.
Before
This third book is built around an interesting structure that interleaves a narrative from the relatively recent past with one happening in the present.
Over a period of years a girl called Susie makes periodic visits to the Emporium where she encounters Daniel, the protagonist from the earlier books, who is now its ‘owner’. Susie too is developing magical powers, perhaps even stronger that Daniel’s. In fact there is a pivotal chapter in this final novel (Chapter 10) that seems, in many ways, to represent the apotheosis of children’s fantasy. In it Susie begins to come to terms with her beloved grandfather’s death when, revisiting the Emporium, she is able to create a very special new ‘wonder’ in his memory. It is a relatively straightforward, but beautifully sensitive piece of writing, where, by beginning to discover her own magic, Susie essentially takes over from Daniel as the archetypal protagonist for all children’s fantasy.
However Susie’s relationship with Daniel and the Emporium is far from straightforward, and becomes increasingly dark and disturbing as the influence of an evil magician, Sharpe, begins to intrude upon Daniel’s control of the ‘wonders’.
Now
In the present, Mirren, who copes wonderfully with life despite having lost most of one arm in an accident, is joined by two companions, sympathetic Luke and difficult, edgy Robyn, in a quest to rescue Mirren’s mother, who seems to have become trapped in the Emporium. The three adventure through the now rather corrupted world of wonders, somewhat like a cross between the Pevensey children and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. It is all very exciting and engaging stuff, and as the connections between the two strands of the story begin to emerge, Ross MacKenzie pulls everything together with both imagination and masterly storytelling, a riveting climax and satisfactory resolution to the whole are indeed achieved.
More
However, The Otherwhere Emporium is not simply about children’s discovery of their magic, but about the fragility, the transience of that particular period in their growth; of how the wonders of imagination can potentially be lost, as well as found. This elevates it from being another fine example of conventional children’s fantasy to something more, something somewhat deeper and more resonant.
It is particularly pleasing to see a mainstream children’s book promoting a positive image of a ‘disabled’ child, who is, in fact, not disabled by their ‘disability’ at all. This, together with the book’s many other qualities, should make it, and indeed the whole completed trilogy, a very welcome addition to the reading diet currently offered to children of around 9-12 years.
