‘You can thank Piglet,’ said Tom. ‘He showed me things, made me understand how people are afraid of each other without having any reason to be.’ (page 268)
I missed writing up this book when it came out in hardback last year. It has now made a timely appearance in paperback, and I must rectify my serious omission, for it is indeed a marvellous thing.
Monster door
The Monsters of Rookhaven is essentially a ‘portal’ fantasy where children from the real world find a way into a completely different (fantasy) reality through some sort of doorway or tear in the separating fabric. This is the imaginative conceit of C.S.Lewis in The Lion. the Witch and the Wardrobe, and has been used by countless fantasy authors since. Having said that, however, Padraig Kenny’s is very far from ‘just another portal fantasy’; He does more than add a new twist to the concept, he takes it into another sphere and to another level altogether. His creative originality is quite remarkable.
Monstrously different
The human world of this fiction has an immediately post-war setting, where the protagonist children, and other human families in the story, are suffering very real bereavement over loved ones lost in the recent conflict. This gives a genuine feeling of poignancy and tenderness to the ‘actual’ world scenario. In contrast the ‘fantasy’ world, accessed through a tear in the magical barrier, is inhabited by monsters that could comfortably fit into any horror film or comic. These include a man whose true form is that of a a huge bear, another who transforms into a bat, a woman whose body is composed entirely of spiders, a garden of meat-eating flowers, with vicious teeth to match, and an enigmatic creature, strangely called Piglet, so dangerous that it has to be locked away in a dark cellar, to protect even the monsters themselves. Together these beings constitute the Rookhaven ‘family’ whose ancient agreement of strict segregation from the nearby village is jeopardised by the rift in their magical barrier.
Truly monstrous
To construct a narrative embracing both these world whilst establishing the total credibility of each - and both together - is quite a trick. But that is exactly what Padraig Kenny pulls off. And he does it magnificently. However, it is virtually impossible to say much more about his complex story without spoiling for the reader its many shocks and revelations. It is clear, though, that the author’s underlying purpose is to provoke his readers into questioning exactly who are and who aren’t the monsters. This he does potently and powerfully. It is a very sad reflection of our own history and current society that what he ultimately reveals as truly monstrous is all too recognisable in our own reality.
Monstrously good
Although there are moments of horror, and indeed terror, in the story, it is often more disturbing than frightening. Monsters notwithstanding, Padraig Kenny’s narrative is also rich, thoughtful, sometimes funny, and ultimately compassionate. And he tells his story brilliantly. He never burdens the reader with heavy exposition. Rather, he is one of those skilled writers who builds his scenario gradually, and grows his characters through reactions to events and developing relationships. By frequently changing his viewpoint between protagonists, he brings different perspectives to a really quite complex and always engrossing storyline. His focus characters are two girls, Jen from the ‘real’ world and Mirabell from the monster ‘family’, but there are also strong and significant boys involved and, with its intimate mixture of sensitivity and horror, thoughtfulness and dramatic, not to say gruesome, action, I would expect this book to have very strong appeal for a wide range of children.
Monster talent
Edward Bettison’s mesmerising illustrations are both beautiful and grotesque, sometimes both at the same time; they are a perfect complement to the text. The arresting design and layout of the whole book adds even further to the overall impact.
Monster winner
I did not read The Monsters of Rookhaven in time to include it in my 2020 Books of the Year. But if I had, it would most certainly have been in that list. Hopefully its publication in paperback, together with all the promotion it has recently received, will bring a massive new readership to this marvellously monstrous book.