Fairies in the Forests (The Stolen Child - Keith Donohue)

Member Name: blackviolets

Product:	The Stolen Child - Keith Donohue
Date:	10/05/09 (53 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: storyline

Disadvantages: bit confusing at times as to which person is narrating

It's been a long time since I've read a book about fairies hidden in the forest. OK so technically speaking these creatures are more likely to be called Hobgoblins or Changelings.

These changelings live a life of eating acorns, berries and other such foods that they are capable of foraging. The other part involves them seeking out young children who they can kidnap, then change their own appearance so they can then take the place of the once missing child. This involves a lot of research beforehand, in case the parents are suspicous that their darling son or daughter has changed personality or has forgotten a good deal of things.

In this story the changelings have caught hold of a 7 year old boy, Henry Day, soon to be known as Aniday when he begins the transformation into a fairy type creature. When his replacement goes back you can tell the boys Dad is suspicous of him a little bit. Noticing that there is something a bit different about him but can't quite work out what it is, which when he is certain doesn't lead to a happy outlook for him.

As Aniday begins to forget his past life and that of how he came about being a changeling, we also see how the replacement Henry deals with his new life. The fact that as the years go by he has to painfully change his appearance by stretching skin and bones and pulling out teeth to resemble a normal boy.

As each chapter goes by, the story flips between Henry and Aniday. At some points this can be a bit confusing as you have to work out which one is it who's telling the story. It shows the closeness that grows between Aniday and the other changelings. Despite everything, you can see that he still holds onto little human aspects and sometimes little events can evoke memories from his past.

I believe that this novel is largely based on the poem by William Butler Yeats, which was also called The Stolen Child. I did actually enjoy this book which I was a bit dubious about at the start. It's different from other novels which have been around lately and although the idea of faries hiding in forests is somewhat thought to be more ideal for little children, this one is appropriate for older readers.

you can get this for £6 on Amazon and is well worth the money!

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