Posted on January 1st, 2017
Written by Catherynne M. Valente, illustrated by Ana Juan, age 10 and up
If you’re a fantasy fan and haven’t discovered Valente’s Fairyland series yet, I suggest you get reading! The Girl Who Raced Fairyland All The Way Home is the finale of this remarkable series of five books. The story began when Valente crowdfunded the publication of the first book, The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making. It was published online before being picked up by a publisher, and made history by becoming the first book to win a Nebula award before traditional publication.
The Fairyland series follows September, a 12-year-old girl from Nebraska during the second World War, after she accepts the Green Wind’s offer of an adventure into Fairyland. The feel of the books strikes me as very similar to Lewis Carroll’s Wonderland, capturing the same sense of sometimes terrifying wonder and strangeness. The denizens of Fairyland are far more True Fae than sanitized fairy tale, and while the books are recommended for age 10 and up, there are plenty of references for adults to enjoy.
In this final volume, September has been crowned the Queen of Fairyland, but to keep her crown, she must compete in the Royal Race, a Cantankerous Derby to find the Heart of Fairyland. Of course, first you must identify what the Heart of Fairyland is. In the process, September will rediscover old friends and old enemies, and face the terrifying possibility that Saturday, her marid maybe-more-than-a-friend, is going to lose all memory of her. She also wrestles with two sides of herself: the Engineer who is determined to win this race, and the girl who misses her family and wants to go home.
Valente’s writing is, as always, full of vivid descriptions, and as a result it’s probably best for stronger readers in the middle-grade group. One of my favourite touches from the series is the very obvious narrator who plays with the conventions of story. A passage I particularly loved in this book is when the Marquess, September’s rival, nearly arrives too late for the Derby, and the narrator explains: “I must admit: The Marquess actually overslept on the morning of the Cantankerous Derby….But I woke her….You might think it wicked of me – why not let that awful lady sleep through to the end of time? But, darlings, I have many more stories than September’s to look after, and I cannot neglect even one of them.”
Similarly, I have always enjoyed how Valente tackles typical tween and teen feelings of isolation and struggles to fit in, despite her rather fantastical setting. In a lovely moment early in the book – one which will probably speak to many adult readers – Hawthorn, a changeling who grew up in the human world and found his way back to Fairyland, challenges September by saying that he can’t trust a human: “You don’t know what it’s like to always, always feel that you don’t belong, to your family, to your city, or your school, knowing there’s something different about you, something off, that you’re not like theothers, that you’re an alien all alone.” The narrator’s response is one of the more poignant moments from the series: “Oh, but Hawthorn, my best and dearest boy….No one belongs when they are new to this world. All children are Changelings.”
As an end to the series, this volume is quite satisfying, tying up many lose ends and bringing back many intriguing characters from earlier books, even as it incorporates new ones into a very busy story. However, the cast of thousands starts to tell at the end. The pacing seems slightly off, as things feel increasingly rushed closer to the end. This may have been a deliberate attempt to capture the urgency of the Derby, but instead, it leaves the book feeling slightly unfinished, as if a deadline were approaching and Valente didn’t have the opportunity to flesh out final chapters as much as she did the earlier ones.
Without getting into spoilers, the tension of September’s choice between continued life in Fairyland and missing her family has an unexpected end – and not one every reader will enjoy. Personally, I found the result a little disappointing and a little too pat, with the characters getting much of what they want with little sacrifice.
However, the last two chapters in particular are a beautiful testament to the power of story. “This is my last magic trick, the curious wizardry of narrators….Endings are rubbish. No such thing. Never has been, never will be. There is only the place where you choose to stop talking. Everything else goes on forever….Sometimes I will be young, and sometimes I will be old, and sometimes you will be young, and sometimes you will be old. But for as long as forever, I will keep a room for you.”
Whether you like September’s particular ending or not, fans of the Fairyland series will find this a satisfying ending, suitably exciting and tense – and, of course, magical and fantastic. If you’re new to the Fairyland series, make sure you start at the beginning, but dive in! It’s a journey you won’t regret making.
About the Author:
Avid reader, budding writer, incessant singer. Married to a partner with OCD and parent of a child with autism. My opinions may be slanted by my experiences living in the socialist paradise of Canada.
Written by Catherynne M. Valente, illustrated by Ana Juan, age 10 and up
If you’re a fantasy fan and haven’t discovered Valente’s Fairyland series yet, I suggest you get reading! The Girl Who Raced Fairyland All The Way Home is the finale of this remarkable series of five books. The story began when Valente crowdfunded the publication of the first book, The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making. It was published online before being picked up by a publisher, and made history by becoming the first book to win a Nebula award before traditional publication.
The Fairyland series follows September, a 12-year-old girl from Nebraska during the second World War, after she accepts the Green Wind’s offer of an adventure into Fairyland. The feel of the books strikes me as very similar to Lewis Carroll’s Wonderland, capturing the same sense of sometimes terrifying wonder and strangeness. The denizens of Fairyland are far more True Fae than sanitized fairy tale, and while the books are recommended for age 10 and up, there are plenty of references for adults to enjoy.
In this final volume, September has been crowned the Queen of Fairyland, but to keep her crown, she must compete in the Royal Race, a Cantankerous Derby to find the Heart of Fairyland. Of course, first you must identify what the Heart of Fairyland is. In the process, September will rediscover old friends and old enemies, and face the terrifying possibility that Saturday, her marid maybe-more-than-a-friend, is going to lose all memory of her. She also wrestles with two sides of herself: the Engineer who is determined to win this race, and the girl who misses her family and wants to go home.
Valente’s writing is, as always, full of vivid descriptions, and as a result it’s probably best for stronger readers in the middle-grade group. One of my favourite touches from the series is the very obvious narrator who plays with the conventions of story. A passage I particularly loved in this book is when the Marquess, September’s rival, nearly arrives too late for the Derby, and the narrator explains: “I must admit: The Marquess actually overslept on the morning of the Cantankerous Derby….But I woke her….You might think it wicked of me – why not let that awful lady sleep through to the end of time? But, darlings, I have many more stories than September’s to look after, and I cannot neglect even one of them.”
Similarly, I have always enjoyed how Valente tackles typical tween and teen feelings of isolation and struggles to fit in, despite her rather fantastical setting. In a lovely moment early in the book – one which will probably speak to many adult readers – Hawthorn, a changeling who grew up in the human world and found his way back to Fairyland, challenges September by saying that he can’t trust a human: “You don’t know what it’s like to always, always feel that you don’t belong, to your family, to your city, or your school, knowing there’s something different about you, something off, that you’re not like theothers, that you’re an alien all alone.” The narrator’s response is one of the more poignant moments from the series: “Oh, but Hawthorn, my best and dearest boy….No one belongs when they are new to this world. All children are Changelings.”
As an end to the series, this volume is quite satisfying, tying up many lose ends and bringing back many intriguing characters from earlier books, even as it incorporates new ones into a very busy story. However, the cast of thousands starts to tell at the end. The pacing seems slightly off, as things feel increasingly rushed closer to the end. This may have been a deliberate attempt to capture the urgency of the Derby, but instead, it leaves the book feeling slightly unfinished, as if a deadline were approaching and Valente didn’t have the opportunity to flesh out final chapters as much as she did the earlier ones.
Without getting into spoilers, the tension of September’s choice between continued life in Fairyland and missing her family has an unexpected end – and not one every reader will enjoy. Personally, I found the result a little disappointing and a little too pat, with the characters getting much of what they want with little sacrifice.
However, the last two chapters in particular are a beautiful testament to the power of story. “This is my last magic trick, the curious wizardry of narrators….Endings are rubbish. No such thing. Never has been, never will be. There is only the place where you choose to stop talking. Everything else goes on forever….Sometimes I will be young, and sometimes I will be old, and sometimes you will be young, and sometimes you will be old. But for as long as forever, I will keep a room for you.”
Whether you like September’s particular ending or not, fans of the Fairyland series will find this a satisfying ending, suitably exciting and tense – and, of course, magical and fantastic. If you’re new to the Fairyland series, make sure you start at the beginning, but dive in! It’s a journey you won’t regret making.
About the Author:
Avid reader, budding writer, incessant singer. Married to a partner with OCD and parent of a child with autism. My opinions may be slanted by my experiences living in the socialist paradise of Canada.
