The best phrase I can think of to describe this story is somewhat paradoxical: "darkly sublime." It's so rich throughout, I don't think my words can come close to doing it justice here. My sister recommended that I read it after quoting a writing expert who said this book is a "master class" on how to create tone. I wholeheartedly agree.In his appended author's note, David Almond writes "I think that stories are living things--among the most important things in the world." He certainly practices this philosophy throughout the book. The narrative is a living thing, taking place over a few months of a thirteen year-old boy's life. It weaves in and out of his subconscious, of his dreams, of his memories and present lived experiences. It breathes new life into literary descriptions of ghosts; it moves between his life and a narrative that he's creating himself, with some amount of slippage in between. It defies expectations consistently.The book deals with very heady themes: life, death, light, dark, good, evil, dreams, lineage, ghosts, old age, youth, enemies, friendship. There is a dialectical tension at work throughout, pulling at each end relentlessly. The book is immensely heavy and dark. And yet there's an ebullience that skips lightly across it, courtesy of Kit's friend Allie. Thank goodness she's there, reminding the reader that there is light, there is beauty, there is hope.In Aristotle's On Rhetoric, he calls a certain persuasive technique the "enthymeme"--a rhetorical device through which an orator can persuade an audience by allowing it to 'fill in the blanks.' The orator speaks sparingly, making logical arguments but still leaving portions out. Once the audience provides the missing parts to the arguments, they participate in the creation of the speech, feeling immensely satisfied as a result. This is how Almond writes. The way he does it is nothing short of masterful. His tone is so exceedingly complex, and yet totally simple throughout. He writes sparingly so the reader can provide the visuals in his or her own mind, thus making the reading experience richer somehow. Almond is never didactic, he never overstates nor overexplains. Though the book is short, the reader feels like s/he lives in the wilderness with Kit. In some ways it feels like it lasts much longer than it does because it's so easy to adapt to the hypnotic dialogue and seductive tone. The climax of the book is intense and completely enthralling. Somehow Almond is able to present a multitude of threads throughout the story and connects them all together, to the point where not one detail feels like it shouldn't have been there. It feels so timeless that its references to a Megadeth t-shirt and Walkmans (it was written in the late 90s) seem like anachronisms. Thanks to my sister Stephanie for recommending this book to me.
I'm not really sure what to think about this one. I enjoyed the prose and the way it was written, but the plot is kind of a head-scratcher to me. There's a lot going on, and in my mind none of the subplots really connected in a way that made sense.(I guess I should say SPOILERS now)I applaud Almond for writing such a strange and deeply-layered "children's book". Here are my problems with it, though. I never understood the world of Stoneygate. At first, without instruction from the author, I assumed it was either a place from the past or that it took place in a completely fictional world on account of the different speech and the creepy stories about the coal mines. I was surprised later in the book to discover that the story was apparently taking place in the modern day, what with electric light and policemen and school plays. We have several things happening in the plot. We have the back story of the mines and of Kit and Askew's dead ancestors. We have the game of Death. We have Silky, the spirit in the mines. We have the spirits of all the children who died in the mines. We have Kit's fictional story of Lak and Lak's mother, whose spirit visits him in the real world (?). When I sit and try to think of how all these elements connected in the end, I'm left feeling very muddled about the whole thing. I get that the Lak/Lak's mother story was a representation of Askew's story. But...okay? What was that story's point? What was the significance of the stones Lak's mother gave Kit? What was the significance of the ammonite that Kit's grandfather gave him? Was there any significance in Allie's role in the Snow Queen?There's too many questions and things going on in this story for me to feel any sort of resolution at the end. I'm of the opinion that none of it really makes sense but that it's written well enough for people to finish it and just shrug about the whole thing. Which is what I'm doing.Anyway, I enjoyed Almond's writing style as well as the characters in this story, but the story itself was just a jumble of too many elements that didn't connect for me in the end.
What do You think about Kit's Wilderness (2001)?
De wildernis door David Almond. Het boek gaat over een jongen die Kit heet. Kit die verhuist naar de stad waar zijn opa vroeger woonde. Die plaats heet Stoneygate. Zijn oma was al vroeg doodgegaan en zijn opa voelde zich alleen daarom zijn is Kit verhuist. De eerste schooldag komt hij een rare jongen tegen genaamd John. John heeft een raar spel bedacht genaamd de dood. Het spel wordt in een oude verlaten mijn gespeeld middenin de Wildernis. Kit werd een keer door een leraar gevonden zogenaamd dood. Daar werd ze niet blij van en stuurde John de leider van school af. Die dag was John verdwenen en zijn ouders waren heel ongerust. Kit was aan het zoeken en vond John. Hij nam John mee naar huis en zijn ouders waren dolgelukkig. Het zijn verschillende letters en er zijn geen illustraties maar het is wel een aanrader omdat hij heel spannend is. Ik vind het boek vooral spannend omdat het net lijkt of jij daar zogenaamd dood op de grond ligt. Je kunt je heel goed meeleven in het verhaal want het lijkt net echt. Het is een makkelijk boek om te lezen vind ik, want het is geen moeilijke tekst en als het net echt lijkt kan je je er ook beter in verplaatsen. Vond het een mooi einde dat John toch nog mee wou naar huis.Dit is nog een klein citaatje dat ze zoeken naar John :Niet omkijken zei Bobby, en we sloegen af naar een klein dal. Kale doornstruiken groeiden lang een smalle beek. Ik zag bevroren watervalletjes, langs de oever grote kuilen die door spelende kinderen en de mijnwerkers van weleer waren gemaakt. Een woestenij van steen en natte grond en brem en struiken en toen ineens zag ie een grote mijn.
—Roel
A story that starts out deceptively simple, and then quickly whirls you into something far more intense. It keeps you on its toes, playing like it'll dive off the deep end at any time. Some parts are downright supernaturally disturbing, and just when you think the author will go for the jugular, he pulls back just enough to keep your heart racing but not in full panic.Since the cover is already muted in shades of grey, I didn't even know that this was categorized with the similarly colored "horror" sticker on the spine until halfway through the story-- which actually makes me appreciate it all the more, because the heart of this story is actually about how even the smallest act of kindness extended in friendship can save someone dancing on the edge of darkness.
—Jennifer
I honestly feel indifferent about this book. It wasn't great, but it wasn't horrible either. I felt the author did a great job explaining specific details as the story progressed. However, I found myself losing track of the plot line in the story. Therefore, it was hard to comprehend at times. In addition, the author captivates the reader's emotion throughout the novel. I felt fearful of Christopher Watson's life when he was alone with Askew. I thought that Askew was definitely going to kill Christopher due to his mental state at the time. I was also surprised Christopher persuaded Askew to go back home to his family after being missing for so long. Overall, I felt this story is too challenging for middle school students because it tended to be hard to follow at times. I feel the main audience this book appeals to is at least the high school level. If I had to sum this book up in one word, I would say that it is odd. The author definitely thought outside the box when he wrote it due to the dark concepts the book portrays.
—Jaclyn Franzen
