HAZEL BUYS
One of a series of book reviews written for the CLCD, published on their web site,
the Children's Literature Comprehensive Database.
(Reviewed from copy received from the CLCD.)
The Spellbook of Listen Taylor
Jaclyn Moriarty
It is not often that an author captivates, as well as captures, the reader’s attention in the first sentence. Quirky characters abound in this entertainingly-written story of the Zing family and their closely-guarded secret. The secret defines every life that ripples outward from the Zing family center. A diary format parses out the intertwining stories; time moves forward then flashes back. Stories appear briefly and seem unrelated to anything else. The plot fills in like a jigsaw puzzle, slowly and from all directions. It appears that anyone passing by might place a piece, like a puzzle left in a hotel lobby. But this culture of whimsy is deceptive. Difficult adult themes, e.g., adultery, invasion of privacy, stalking, breaking and entering, theft, fraud and benign neglect substituting for parenting, abound. The spell book offers control and predictability where life pulses with the unexpected and futile. These events and situations are treated with a lightness of tone that is absurd except in the quirky world of the Zings. Even if it is a bit unbelievable that no one in on the secret ever cried “foul,” the premise is intriguing. The Zing family’s response to a series of problems that are as old as mankind is twisted but inventive. Their solution might have been tried before, but it is unlikely that it has been applied with an equal degree of novelty, persistence and commitment. Their motive, however, resonates with the old and familiar: they did it all in the name of love.Narration by Mu Shu Productions, a division of Zen Rabbit Studios, LLC
2009 - 2010 Zen Rabbit Studios, LLC
All rights reserved.
