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stinamirabilis 's review for:
Beyond the Deepwoods
by Paul Stewart, Chris Riddell
This is one of those series, like the famous Harry Potter, and like the Chrestomanci series of Diana Wynne Jones, that I used to fervently and desperately wish were real. Or rather, that felt so real incredibly real that I simply couldn't believe they weren't. Yes, my 11th birthday was somewhat spoiled with the absence of a letter from Hogwart's, but it's no time to dwell on that.
I remember first reading this aged 11, at a very unhappy time in my childhood, and it was the very best escape into fantasy I could have hoped for. The world that Paul Stewart paints for us is simply magical, without leaning on all of the cliches of typical fantasy elements. It is entirely original, and wonderful.
For me, this series is deeply, deeply underrated. I never hear it mentioned, and nobody I know seems to remember it from their own childhood. This list didn't mention it when I was surfing earlier. I am really shocked that it continues to lie so far under the radar.
I have read the earlier books in the series dozens of times over the years, and have recently discovered a couple of newer ones that I haven't read, so I will be re-reading the entire series again. Every time I re-read them, the books never lose their magical quality, never become old. Definite 5-star.
I remember first reading this aged 11, at a very unhappy time in my childhood, and it was the very best escape into fantasy I could have hoped for. The world that Paul Stewart paints for us is simply magical, without leaning on all of the cliches of typical fantasy elements. It is entirely original, and wonderful.
For me, this series is deeply, deeply underrated. I never hear it mentioned, and nobody I know seems to remember it from their own childhood. This list didn't mention it when I was surfing earlier. I am really shocked that it continues to lie so far under the radar.
I have read the earlier books in the series dozens of times over the years, and have recently discovered a couple of newer ones that I haven't read, so I will be re-reading the entire series again. Every time I re-read them, the books never lose their magical quality, never become old. Definite 5-star.