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A review by foggy_rosamund
The Lives of Christopher Chant by Diana Wynne Jones
5.0
2021: Possibly loved this even more on my reread. Especially charmed by the Goddess, who reads lots of boarding-school novel, and wants to exist in a school story from the 1950s, despite her ferocious powers. Very funny and charming. Also delighted to meet the cats again: Throgmorten the daring and Proudfoot the adorable.
Review from 2018:
This is an excellent children's fantasy novel: it does absolutely everything it needs to do. It begins with Christopher Chant (who we have met as an adult in Charmed Life, but this book stands alone), a lonely child with wealthy, self-obsessed parents, who can travel to other worlds. This is a singular skill, but Christopher doesn't know it: he gets solace from travelling, but doesn't know it's an exceptional skill until he meets his charismatic uncle, Ralph. Unfortunately, Ralph is not really on Christopher's side at all.
It's a fast paced novel, with Christopher shuttled from place to place, meeting many unsatisfactory adults. In another world, he befriends a Goddess in human form, and they become allies, along with a number of delightful and fiercesome cats. The story is very satisfying, keeping to its internal logic, and full of daring, and, not always present in children's books, genuine human emotion. It's fun to read and makes wonderful escapism.
Review from 2018:
This is an excellent children's fantasy novel: it does absolutely everything it needs to do. It begins with Christopher Chant (who we have met as an adult in Charmed Life, but this book stands alone), a lonely child with wealthy, self-obsessed parents, who can travel to other worlds. This is a singular skill, but Christopher doesn't know it: he gets solace from travelling, but doesn't know it's an exceptional skill until he meets his charismatic uncle, Ralph. Unfortunately, Ralph is not really on Christopher's side at all.
It's a fast paced novel, with Christopher shuttled from place to place, meeting many unsatisfactory adults. In another world, he befriends a Goddess in human form, and they become allies, along with a number of delightful and fiercesome cats. The story is very satisfying, keeping to its internal logic, and full of daring, and, not always present in children's books, genuine human emotion. It's fun to read and makes wonderful escapism.