I read this book out loud with my daughter. She enjoyed this one a bit more than the Princess and the Goblin (and I think I did as well), though she definitely liked both.
Here are some things that stand out to me about the book, as well as a couple of takeaways:
The interesting, though vague, storyline that humans who act in wicked ways turn into animals is thought-provoking. This element of the story is both intriguing and frustrating. It is frustrating because you never actually get to see the change take place. Curdie is given the power through the touch of the hand to feel the wickedness or purity of those he comes into contact with. This leads to his touching the hands of those who are inwardly snakes and dogs and the like. MacDonald gives us a glimpse of how the change takes place as he describes the moral backsliding of the king’s servants. Yet he never goes further. Perhaps that is the prerogative of the one who creates the imaginary world.
But there is certainly a hint in the story that Lena once a human (who has now become a terribly ugly dog-like creature). It appears that she is on the purgatorial road of once again becoming human, but MacDonald never gives us closure on this. There is certainly a hint at the very end that something happens to her, but we are never told what. One cannot help but find this disappointing. Of course, it leaves you free in your own imagination to determine her destiny for yourself. Yet, especially for a child (one such as this book was intended for), this is story-shattering. My daughter was terribly disappointed not to know what became of Lina after her venture into the rose-fire. I encouraged her to use her imagination and develop her own story of Lina. She did this, and, of course, determined that Lina became a beautiful woman (she even drew her own illustrations). But she has brought up the issue of this unresolved storyline several times since and would love a definite answer. At least the tension leaves you asking questions. There certainly must be a value in that, though one (me) might prefer resolution.
The creatures who become Lina’s cohorts in the battle (they are called the ‘uglies’) are certainly the most interesting part of the story. Ballbody and Legserpent are indeed memorable. Ballbody has already made several rolling attacks in my home in the past few days (in the form of a ball we kick around the house). This is fun, but my guitar playing is certainly thrown off by such attacks.
The highlight of our reading was toward the end in the king’s preparation for battle – especially the part where Princess Irene mounts her white pony. I had my head down as I was reading, only to look up and see that my daughter had mounted her stick pony, with toy bat (i.e. pretend sword) in hand, and was ready to go to battle. She then proceeds to grab a random object and blow it as the trumpet of war. These are priceless moments, and not just any book can provoke them.
I appreciate MacDonald’s imagination more after having read this book. His characters are very rich considering the fact that he never over-describes them. He has a way of making characters come to life that I greatly appreciate.
As for the ultimate takeaways: Negative – Don’t ever leave a significant element of the story unresolved. It is though provoking, but I just don’t think it’s worth it. Positive – 1. It’s always satisfying to see good prevail (and not only prevail, but prevail soundly) in the end. 2. Children will always take hold of the characters most out of the ordinary. By making the grandmother more ordinary in this tale, she becomes less memorable (though she is still quite memorable). The uglies caught, and kept, the attention of my daughter the most, along with Irene as she mounts her pony to go to war (my daughter never would have expected this). It’s a fun story and I am quite glad to have read it.
Tides and Turning 