posted on 22 Jan 2023

The Bookshop at the Back of Beyond by Amy Sparkes

This is the third book in this imaginative series by this prolific and successful author. I like the way that she takes us straight into the action on the first page as we meet quick thinking Nine who is plotting to retrieve her toast from a determined little creature. The front cover has already given the reader a picture of the bookshop which is yet to be described in the text, but I enjoyed finding out more about the House at the Edge of Magic which is vividly painted as we follow Nine up the spiral staircase to her mother’s old bedroom:

‘ Every wall had a narrow bookcase filled with books, and was painted a bold turquoise. Empty picture frames hung on the walls and an unticking golden clock sat silently on the shelf’

As she moves to catch the creature she is suddenly transformed into ‘a rocking horse with a dragons head and a pigs tail’ which we learn is due to an old curse that had been placed on the house by the sister of Flabberghast the wizard who has trapped them there.

This sometimes confusing world of magic continues to be revealed as the spell fades from Nine. Before the end of the first chapter, she tries to solve the puzzle of a fragmented parchment and we learn a bit more about the other strange characters trapped in the house.

Younger readers will doubtless enjoy the detailed and dazzling descriptions of different rooms in the house and the curious array of Nine’s housemates that includes Eric the troll and Bonehead the gloomy skeleton ( my personal favourite). I imagine that they might be inspired to draw some wonderful pictures conjured up by the author.

It seems that the original curse is soon to be lifted and the characters plan a trip travelling in the house to the Land of Beyond as soon as possible. This entails visiting every shop there either to buy or to trade. They also have a very difficult mission to find and rescue Professor Dish when they get there.

The rollicking adventures continue in the Land of Beyond whose street of curious shops rather reminded me of Diagon Alley in Harry Potter world. The sweet shop packed with jars of enticing stripey sweets made my mouth water, but the best destination was definitely the wonderful Bookshop at the Back of Beyond. In the spirit of the story, am not going to reveal why it is so important to the plot but I can promise many more secrets and intriguing puzzles.

As I haven’t yet read the two other books in this series, I must confess that I found this complicated story quite difficult to follow at times. However, any younger fans who are more familiar with this whimsical fantasy world are in for a treat.

 

Karen Argent

January 2023