Welcome once again to the Littlest Library, where guests get to choose the ONE book they’d like to save and add to the collection. This can be a physical copy of a book you own or a book that means something to you personally.
The ONE book rules
- You can choose ONE book
- see rule #1
That’s it.
It can be any book you like, but in the words of the Highlander, there can be only ONE.
We’ve talked Liz de Jager, Adam Maxwell, and Chris McDonald. Today I’d like to welcome my friend Richard to talk about the one book he’d choose.
The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper.
I really want to say this is a book that I discovered in my childhood but I was actually introduced to this when I was 21 and started going out with my wife.
The Dark is Risking is a fantastic book set in British mythology. Technically it is the 2nd book chronologically in the 5 book sequence but the first is really more of a prequel.
Set in the 70’s, in midwinter, it tells the story of Will Stanton, an 11-year-old boy who turns out to be an Old One, an immortal, and powerful being who protects Britain against the forces of the Dark (capital D) but not yet fully realised his power he has to gather the 7 signs of the light.
Essentially it is a short but immensely satisfying read. The reason it is my one book, is the first year we were together my wife read it to me and since then, we read it to each other every Yule, now our daughters now join in, it is our “family” book.
If you ever read LeGuin or Garner you’ll love this. Susan Cooper paints a modern fantasy, the two layers of the “real world” as we know it and then the magical, just below just out of sight.
If you’re interested, the BBC has done an adaption and it will be on the BBC iPlayer starting on 20th December.
ps. Some time ago a film was made of this called “The Seeker” – please don’t watch this. Hollywood took control away from the author and made a terrible film.
Thanks Richard! I love seeing old, battered, much-loved paperbacks that have been read and re-read and re-re-read. There’s a history to those pages, and it’s a perfect choice for my littlest library.
Do you want to take part in the Littlest Library ONE book challenge?
Drop me an email to dakegra@gmail.com with a photo of your book, and some words to explain why it’s your ONE book.
espresso coco 