REVIEW: Over Sea, Under Stone by Susan Cooper

4/5   ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆  

First in the series of five titles. I unfortunately am reading them out of order (which is an awful habit of mine - I tend to read as I come across them) but since The Dark is Rising deals with entirely separate events and characters I didn't feel this mattered much.

Cooper is a masterful storyteller, who particularly excels with tales which encapsulate the extraordinary - within a more traditional framework. It work deceptively well, and you are quickly drawn into the inner world of Simon, Jane and Barney as they navigate menacing supernatural presences, unexplained events and mysterious objects against the deceptively placid backdrop of the town of Trewissick, where they are holidaying.

Although these are children's books, they are definitely quite dark and in some ways quite adult. The children are at that age when they are growing up but have not yet hit adolescence - they still have wild imaginations as their worldview has not been tainted by the dullness and mundane existence of the adult world - there is a lot more scope for the fantastic and secret.

The story loosely follows the King Arthur legend, with the discovery of a hidden treasure map in an attic which leads to a race against time to discover a lost grail. The juxtaposition between the world of children and adults is set in stark relief as the children become the focus of a hunt - menacing figures stalk the headlands after dark and they are pursued by unpleasant and plotting locals (including the extremely strange vicar!) and there is an atmosphere of constant threat, which is evocatively built up by Cooper against the background of the Cornish landscape. At one point there is a scene reminiscent of The Wicker Man - the entire town becomes a carnival of comically and bizarrely dressed characters, and the way that the masquerade is used to mask the identities and intents of the characters - allowing more sinister individuals to slip unseen through the crowds due to their anonymity explores the frightening aspect to local village folkloric customs.

Although these are relatively modern stories, they have the feel of ancient legends. The themes are timeless and reveal the mysteries of the past casting their shadows on the present. Cooper has effectively woven her own distinct mythology amongst the forgotten gardens and attics of Trewissick, the standing stones, the Cornish coastline - exploring the eternal struggle between light and dark forces. Recommended reading.