‘You saved my life.’ Valentine’s voice came out squeakier then usual.
‘Huh!’ said Death. ‘So I did. First time for everything , eh?’ (p 179)
A Darker Shade of Tale
Jenni Spangler has carved herself out a clever niche in the contemporary children’s fiction market. Perhaps I should rather call it a dark corner (with cobwebs) for she has so far specialised in the most deliciously entertaining gothic stories. You might call them children’s ‘Tales of the Unexpected’ - and what an original delight they are. The motto that surrounds the magpie emblem on some of her sought after merchandise is, ‘Work hard. Be kind. Think weird.’ Whilst I am sure she is fully behind the first two of these admirable exhortations, it is the third that best captures her own approach as an author. She digs amongst the shadows of imagination and comes up with some captivatingly spooky subject matter. Then she writes it brilliantly.
In many ways, her latest, third novel goes even further than the first two; it is positively macabre, in a (mostly) very jolly sort of way, at least in so far as death can be jolly. Imagine, if you are able, a sort of junior version of Terry Pratchett’s Mort, mixed with a touch of Sophie Anderson’s The House With Chicken Legs and just a sprinkling of Neil Gaiman’s The Graveyard Book. Splash through it a good few pages of the sort of graphic exuberance you find in Cressida Cowell’s books. Then you might just get some feel of the tone and content of Valentine Crow and Mr. Death, although all this does not allow for the very considerable creativity and invention that is completely Jenni Spangler’s own.
Another Twist in the Tale
The somewhat familiar opening, with an orphan boy being farmed out to a grim work placement, could be a pepped up version of Oliver Twist were not Oliver’s allocation to undertaker Sowerberry (already dark and dismal in itself) replaced here by protagonist Valentine’s indenture to the personage of the Grim Reaper himself. From there on in, Jenni Spangler launches into a story of her kid-pleasing best. Once Valentine gets going with helping Mr. Death to collect souls and take them to the ‘next place’ there are laughs, thrills, surprises and mysteries aplenty. One of the first of those clever and entertaining surprises concerns Valentine’s new master. Whilst some of the deaths encountered are rather dismal, some moving, the skeletal Death himself turns out to be a not altogether unpleasant fellow at all. Despite little experience of dealing with living humans, he is actually very solicitous of the boy’s welfare and does his best to provide the necessities of life in the bleak, virtually empty mausoleum that is their very un-homely home. A further surprise comes when Death reveals that he has a boss of whom he seems terrified. It turns out her name is Linda! This is one of Jenni Spangler’s many comic coups, whilst, incidentally, avoiding any potential association of the character with a religious God.
A Harvest Fails
Early on, the author introduces two key animals to her story, a singularly supercilious crow and a smelly but affectionate mutt of a dog. Such additions always go down well with young readers and here they help wonderfully to engender warm involvement. (Well at least the dog does.)
After only a very brief period of accompanying Death to harvest souls, Valentine finds himself trusted to make some ‘calls’ alone. It is when one of his first solo visits has to be to Philomena, his dearest friend from the Foundling Hospital, that he tries to change the destiny assigned to her. This really upsets the charnel cart, so to speak, and launches a truly boneshaking ride of original storytelling that makes this new book a true, if grisly, treasure.
Punny Pics
As if this were not enough, Jenni Spangler is not only a wonderful writer but a talented artist too. Her pages are shot through with her own strong drawings, which enhance the story perfectly. Moreover, occasional pages are devoted to graphic insertions of apparently handwritten text and labelled pictures that purport to add objective information to things mentioned in the story. These are frequently hilarious, and if their creator often ‘sinks’ to the kind of jokes and puns that make adults groan, they will nevertheless have huge kid-appeal - and that is who the work is for, after all. This combination of illustrative elements gives the book a most enticing approachability and will, I am sure, win it many, many fans.
Light Prevails
Whilst this tale is both amusing and compelling, it is not altogether silly or superficial. There are times when its consideration of difficult issues, such as good, evil and forgiveness, verges on the philosophical. It also provides speculative ideas about the ‘last things’, metaphysical suggestions as to the nature of death and afterlife which, whether true or not, are both thought-provoking and potentially comforting. Happily, it does this without getting involved in the specifics of any particular religion.
Its macabre subject not withstanding, this is ultimately a sensitive, warm and caring book. It probes and pushes at some of life’s (and death’s) biggest questions in a way that will be accessible to many thoughtful children. If, for others, it simply provides the distracting entertainment of a cracking story, well that is fine too. For Jenni Spangler it should prove a triumph whatever way.
Death’s final message to Valentine (and the reader) says it all:
‘I stopped taking much interest in human lives. They’re just gaps between deaths to me. But having you around reminded me of how special and interesting you are.’ (p 299)
