A few months ago, I found myself (thanks to Emily) in possession of an advanced reader copy of The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente. Little did I know that it was soon to be become one of my favorite children’s books—and there are a great many children’s books that are near and dear to my heart, so that’s saying something. I adored it so much that the advanced reader was simply not enough, and as soon as I’d finished reading it, I promptly bought a hardcover copy for my shelf.
The girl who does all of the circumnavigating in this novel is September. In the beginning of the novel, you find out that September has grown “very tired indeed of her parents’ house , where she washed the same pink-and-yellow teacups and matching gravy boats every day, slept on the same embroidered pillow, and played with the same small and amiable dog.” So what better time to be swept off on the back of a flying leopard with the Green Wind and into Fairyland where she can make friends with a wyvern (a winged reptilian creature with a dragon’s head, the hindquarters of a snake or lizard, two legs or none, and a barbed tail—yes, I had to look that up. I wasn’t aware of the folklore creature that is the wyvern) and a Marid (in Arabic folkore, a jinn associated with open waters–yes, I had to look that up, too) named Saturday. Among the adventures that September has in Fairyland are an encounter with a wild herd of flying bicycles, a land in which autumn is everlasting and there are great feasts of many pumpkin flavored baked goods (where can I sign up for that?), and a few run-ins with an evil Marquess and the flying lions who do her bidding.
This book really reminded me of Lewis Carroll’s Wonderland tales in its writing style and its characters. I love Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, so I’m thrilled to find another author who brings Carroll-esque elements to children’s literature. Valente’s book is certainly written in such a way that it qualifies in the realm of children’s classics, and I sincerely hope that it becomes one.
And here is a little treat for those of you who are intrigued. Below I’ve posted a book trailer for The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making that I found on the delightful children’s literature blog Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast.
P.S. If you can’t see the video that I’ve embedded, you can also watch the book trailer here. -Kaycie
Comments are closed.