TITLE: The Grimmelings
AUTHOR: Rachael King
PUBLISHER: Guppy Books
ISBN: 978-1916558250
PODCAST EPISODE: None
REVIEWER: Mark Norman
We have heard a million times before how important liminal spaces are to folkloric tales – those boundary spaces where things are not quite one thing, but haven’t quite yet transitioned into the other either. Where two worlds are starting to become blurred. And that is exactly what the Grimmelings are.
Grimmelings comes from old Scots dialect and refers the first and last glimmers of light in the day, dawn and dusk, a time that in my part of the world we would call dimpsey. Author Rachael King begins each chapter with one or two similar old dialect words and their meanings, words which would have been used by the old Scottish grandmother Grizzly around whom some of the story is set, and which will come up during the course of the chapter. An unusual and clever way of using the dialect of the past which is so important in folklore.
Grizzly now lives with her family in New Zealand with her family, where the story is set. She has brought with her the language of her homeland, many of the old customs and beliefs which have shaped her life … and possibly something a little darker.
Meanwhile, thirteen-year-old Ella is concerned that she has accidentally caused a local boy who she cursed to disappear. This concern stems from the fact that Ella’s father had also gone missing in a similar unexplained way some years before. These disappearances seem to centre around a body of water not too far from the stables which Ella’s mum owns and runs for riding experiences.
This middle-grade fantasy story will certainly appeal to young girls who have grown up reading Lauren St John or other equine titles, but don’t be fooled into thinking that they are the only audience who will enjoy The Grimmelings. Because one of these horses is not like the other ones.
Rachael King has employed the same patterns of migration which have allowed folklore tales to travel the world, change and develop over the centuries. She seamlessly imports Scottish kelpie lore into a new environment in New Zealand, weaving the strands of her narrative together more intricately than the most beautifully plaited and beribboned mane and tail.
For a long time, we suffered from a barren wasteland of decent books for children which used folklore at their heart – both fiction and non-fiction – but in recent times publishers and commissioners have understood the importance of these titles and we are now spoilt for choice with fantastic folklore-themed children’s books. Rachael King has written one of the finest.
AUTHOR: Rachael King
PUBLISHER: Guppy Books
ISBN: 978-1916558250
PODCAST EPISODE: None
REVIEWER: Mark Norman
We have heard a million times before how important liminal spaces are to folkloric tales – those boundary spaces where things are not quite one thing, but haven’t quite yet transitioned into the other either. Where two worlds are starting to become blurred. And that is exactly what the Grimmelings are.
Grimmelings comes from old Scots dialect and refers the first and last glimmers of light in the day, dawn and dusk, a time that in my part of the world we would call dimpsey. Author Rachael King begins each chapter with one or two similar old dialect words and their meanings, words which would have been used by the old Scottish grandmother Grizzly around whom some of the story is set, and which will come up during the course of the chapter. An unusual and clever way of using the dialect of the past which is so important in folklore.
Grizzly now lives with her family in New Zealand with her family, where the story is set. She has brought with her the language of her homeland, many of the old customs and beliefs which have shaped her life … and possibly something a little darker.
Meanwhile, thirteen-year-old Ella is concerned that she has accidentally caused a local boy who she cursed to disappear. This concern stems from the fact that Ella’s father had also gone missing in a similar unexplained way some years before. These disappearances seem to centre around a body of water not too far from the stables which Ella’s mum owns and runs for riding experiences.
This middle-grade fantasy story will certainly appeal to young girls who have grown up reading Lauren St John or other equine titles, but don’t be fooled into thinking that they are the only audience who will enjoy The Grimmelings. Because one of these horses is not like the other ones.
Rachael King has employed the same patterns of migration which have allowed folklore tales to travel the world, change and develop over the centuries. She seamlessly imports Scottish kelpie lore into a new environment in New Zealand, weaving the strands of her narrative together more intricately than the most beautifully plaited and beribboned mane and tail.
For a long time, we suffered from a barren wasteland of decent books for children which used folklore at their heart – both fiction and non-fiction – but in recent times publishers and commissioners have understood the importance of these titles and we are now spoilt for choice with fantastic folklore-themed children’s books. Rachael King has written one of the finest.