Clive Barker

Abarat — (2002-2008) Grades 7-10. Publisher: Once upon a world, where time is place, a journey beyond imagination is about to unfold....It begins in the most boring place in the world: Chickentown, U.S.A. Candy Quackenbush lives in Chickentown, her heart bursting for some clue as to what her future might hold. When the answer comes, it's not one she expects. Out of nowhere comes a wave, and Candy, led by a man called John Mischief (whose brothers live on the horns on his head), leaps into the surging waters and is carried away. Where? To the ABARAT: a vast archipelago where every island is a different hour of the day, from the Great Head that sits in the mysterious twilight waters of Eight in the Evening, to the sunlit wonders of Three in the Afternoon, where dragons roam, to the dark terrors of Gorgossium, the island of Midnight, ruled over by the Prince of Midnight himself, Christopher Carrion. As Candy journeys from one amazing place to another, making fast friends and encountering treacherous foes -- mechanical bugs and giant moths, miraculous cats and men made of mud, a murderous wizard and his terrified slave-she begins to realize something. She has been here before. Candy has a place in this extraordinary world: she is here to help save the Abarat from the dark forces that are stirring at its heart. Forces older than Time itself, and more evil than anything Candy has ever encountered. She's a strange heroine, she knows. But this is a strange world. And in the Abarat, all things are possible.

Abarat: Much unresolved, but a fantastic read

Abarat certainly is an amazing creation.

While reading the book, I was swept away by the brilliance of the dark and powerful artwork that Clive Barker created. The interior art gave the book a texture and feeling that it would have lacked otherwise, much like John R. Neill's artwork added layers to Baum's (and others') Oz books.

Candy Quackenbush is a fairly normal, average girl. I was pleased to see this, because far too often we find authors creating unfashionable, socially inept, or withdrawn characters that they want us to feel sympathy for. There's a good reason that many authors seek to do that — there's nothing like rooting for the underdog. Granted, there is a scene of embarrassment in the very beginning of the book, but Candy's reaction to the embarrassment isn't to go off and cry about it — she takes matters into her own hands. So what we are left with is feeling proud of her, and that is what authors should strive for. The characters on the page need to create some form of powerful emotion within us, and it doesn't always need to be pity.

Her own hands — and her feet — lead her to a field with a dilapidated lighthouse where she meets one of the most original and odd characters I've ever come across in children's, young adult, or adult fantasy — the John brothers. And then immediately the story kicks into overdrive, as Mendelson Shape, a creature out of nightmares, assails them, looking to retrieve something that the John brothers have stolen. Through an act of heroism, Candy calls a sea to the plains of Minnesota — the Sea of Izabella, and the sea transports her and the John brothers to the Abarat, an astonishing archipelago of dizzying diversity.

Candy's encounters in the sea, and her immediate encounters on reaching Abarat, make for rapid page turning. There is simply so much to see, so much that is different than any experience we have come upon before.

But then the story slows down, and becomes, for far too long, a tour of Abarat and an introduction to fanciful creatures. There is absolutely no question that Abarat is an invention to be marveled at, and that the fanciful creatures possess highly unique qualities that are entertaining, but it's simply too much, and there isn't much happening other than a game of bait and chase. Candy has caught the eye of Christopher Carrion — who serves as the Dark Lord of this series, though there are other enemies — and he wants the item that the John brothers stole (and gave to Candy for safekeeping) and Candy herself. He has an odd sensation that he has seen her before, and gradually becomes obsessed with her.

I believe that books should have distinguishable plot and character arcs, and that the ending of a book should complete all of the various arcs. Abarat left quite a bit up for grabs. There wasn't much of an ending — only a wrap up in the final chapter to prepare us for the next book, and while it should be obvious from all of the groundwork laid in Abarat that there is a wild and exciting adventure ahead, nothing was resolved.

One might argue that the first two books of The Lord of the Rings had no discernible ending, and no arcs were resolved. However, that book was written as one book. The publisher, for various reasons, decided to cut the book into three — forever cementing into the minds of those who read fantasy the concept of the need of a trilogy to make something complete, for better or worse. Abarat isn't like The Fellowship of the Ring or The Two Towers. It is supposed to be a stand alone book, and instead it seems more like an extended prologue.

That aside, this was one heck of a story. I'm not going to fault Barker too much for not tidying up before he moved on to the second book. The real test will be the second book — if it lives up to this rather overwhelming creation. We'll see.

The artwork, the sense of closeness to the events as they occurred, and the uniqueness of Abarat make this a four star review. Normally books that don't resolve arcs get lower marks from me, but in the end I was so impressed with Barker's creation that I found that deviation forgivable.   —T.B.