Microsoft Word final-current Developments at the Intersection of British Children-online-version doc
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FINAL Current Developments at the Intersection of British Children ONLINE VERSION
Shadowmancer: The Curse of Salamander Street
138 is designed as a sequel to Shadowmancer . On the whole, the main characters correspond. In contrast to Shadowmancer, the sequel is influenced by the events related in Wormwood, especially by the destruction and the chaos caused by the comet and its meteorites in London and the resulting general confusion of the country. Set only three days after the coming of the comet, the plot takes up the paths of Jacob Crane, Thomas and Kate, Raphah and Beadle, but also of the villain Demurral and his helpers. Instances of violence are abundant and it is interesting to see that violence is not restricted to the villains, but is also employed by “good” characters. People get stabbed to death, strangled, shot through the eye, speared, burned and tortured on an electric chair. All these incidents of violence, by no means exhaustive, reflect the general tone in Taylor’s novels and show the degree to which graphic violence has become a fixed and not to be underestimated element in British fantasy novels for children. According to a sticker on the book cover, Delaney’s The Wardstone Chronicles are extolled as the perfect reading material “for those who have outgrown Harry Potter”. Set in a remote England of a fictitious past, Delaney’s series focuses on the work-related adventures of a spook 139 and his apprentice. The aim of their daily chores is to keep evil at bay in their local district of the County. Naturally, malevolent boggarts, witches and other creatures of the dark have no intention of being caught and bound for good, so they do their utmost in order to resist capture. In direct confrontation with the spook and his apprentice Thomas as well as during their wicked pursuits, the evil creatures bring violence into play. By contrast, both the spook and Thomas only resort to violence if all other means have failed. In the first volume, The Spook’s Apprentice, 140 Thomas Ward becomes the new apprentice to the spook. As part of his initiation, the boy is made to spend a night alone in a haunted house, where the ghost of a miner walks. Thrown in at the deep end, the apprentice learns about his new profession the hard way. For instance, he broadens his knowledge of witches not only by means of theoretical instruction by his master, but also by direct contact to the involuntary clients. Among other things, Thomas can now corroborate the old stereotype that witches do indeed murder children to supply her need for blood. 141 The spook’s job is thus one where the slightest mistake or carelessness is a matter of life and 138 G.P. Taylor. Shadowmancer. The Curse of Salamander Street. London: Faber and Faber, 2006. 139 Here, Delaney uses the term “spook” not in its usual context, but as a job description. 140 Joseph Delaney. The Wardstone Chronicles. The Spook’s Apprentice. London: Red Fox, 2005 [2004]. 141 Ibd., p. 158. 127 death. At the centre of The Spook’s Curse 142 stands the quest to kill the Bane, a very powerful and dangerous creature trapped in a subterranean cave. Its favourite method of killing is squashing its victim. To end all the killing, the bane needs to be stabbed in the heart. The Spook’s Secret 143 revolves around the Spook’s and Tom’s fight against the evil necromancer Morgan, who has set its mind on invocating an ancient heathen God by means of a grimoire so as to establish a reign of terror with the God’s help. Also, Thomas is to be sacrificed by Morgan during a ritual to invocate this God. Yet, Morgan fails and the God kills Morgan on the spot. The necromancer shatters like an ice stalactite and when he thaws, the grimoire is “lying in a pool of blood.” 144 Download 1.22 Mb. Do'stlaringiz bilan baham: |
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