Of the many genres aimed at young
readers, fantasy has proven to be extraordinarily popular and an ‘awesome’
number have appeared on our shelves. All
fantasy has certain common elements: they must take place in a consistent, if
imaginary world. Their major theme, much like the fairy story, is good versus
evil, with good eventually winning out against what seems like insurmountable
odds. The reader is asked to suspend disbelief with a completeness that is not
required in more traditional genres.
If
the best fantasy is written with flair and imagination, it can also be used as
metaphor, such as coping with climate warming, protecting the environment,
ensuring endangered animals survive, overcoming totalitarian rule. They all
offer the hope that everything can and will, turn out for the best.
‘eSide:
A Journey Through Cyberspace’, has gone through several metamorphosis.
Originally a long short story for my collection ‘My Horrible Cousins and Other
Stories’ and called ‘The Great Google’, I extended the idea into a five part
novel that would hopefully help more reluctant readers tackle what would
otherwise be a big project, and feel a sense of achievement. Because this story
blends fantasy, science fiction and reality, I had hoped that it was different
enough to make it stand out from the usual Tolkien style novel.
I
already had one of my favourite characters in place, the magician tGF,
favourite because he commands dishes to wash themselves, towels to hang
themselves on a line, and manage lots of other household tasks with just a
twitch of his fingers. I liked the idea
of placing fantasy inside a recognisable setting, and the small, friendly Conch
Café where some of the action takes place is similar to many cafes in my home
city of Melbourne.
Sam and her single mother Kate live in the
rear of the Conch Café, close to Sam’s best friend Melody and her dog, Billy.
The building is owned by greedy witch Hecate Badminton who will do anything to
own the café’s Good-Luck-Conch that she believes will give her immortality.
After Hecate steals the shell and the café burns down, the girls have a series
of remarkable adventures inside the wicked witch Hecate’s mainframe computer or
in ‘eSide’ as they are pulled into a totalitarian digital world. Because
computer graphics create unique scenarios, the girls must travel through new
and dangerous worlds to overcome some of their worst fears before they can
recover their conch and return home.
“Neptunia”
combines a very modern predicament with a gentle introduction to “Homer’s
‘Odyssey”. Cassie
Georgiana Odysseos has the potential to become a champion swimmer. However, her
life is interrupted when her father leaves home, and Cassie’s mother sends
Cassie and her little brother Timmy to stay with elderly Mike and Peg Calypso
in Ithaca, a small country town without a swimming pool. Finding a small bronze box, the magic entry to Neptunia, Cassie is asked by Miss Iris
Laertes, a previous Olympic swimming champion, to carry an important message to
that city of water.
Lost in an unknown ocean, Cassie’s plasticine
figures come to life when a wrathful Mer-King Neptune holds Cassie responsible
for the damage humans are inflicting on his oceans. Athena, a telepathic turtle, informs Cassie
that before she reaches Neptunia, the
Mer-King will do everything in his power to exact his revenge and that she must
undergo three dangerous trails before he will listen to her message. However, Cassie manages to use
‘strength, strategy and spirit’ to conquer the dangerous One-Eyed Octopus, the
wily Enchantress, and the fearsome Boil and Bubble. Between adventures, the
story pictures her life back home.
Both
novels are aimed at upper primary readers. Teacher Notes are on my website. www.goldiealexander.com
“eSide: A Journey through
Cyberspace”
and “Neptunia” are both
published by www.fivesenses.com.au “eSide” for $16.95. “Neptunia” for $14.95
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