Wynne Jones’s inimitable style showcases a multi-generational cast of heroes and a chaotic finale at the village fête. Andrew Hope leaves his job as a university lecturer when his grandfather bequeaths him both a house and a field-of-care. Andrew isn’t exactly sure what the field-of-care is, but he knows he needs to protect it. Perhaps it has something to do with the mystical beasties he’d forgotten inhabit his grandfather’s land. Or perhaps it has something to do with 12-year-old Aidan, the runaway who’s taken refuge with Andrew after being chased from a foster home by creatures he calls Stalkers. Goodness knows Andrew won’t get a moment’s peace to write his Great Work unless he takes control of the whole shebang. A rousing finale—complete with zeppelin-sized squash, a bouncy castle and several Darth Vaders—brings it all home for a gleeful, magic-packed conclusion. Too bad much of the humor comes from cheap fat jokes, classism and jibes about the cognitively disabled; the mean-spirited moments mar an otherwise playful frolic. (Fantasy. 10-12)
