Attica - Hardcover

Kilworth, Garry

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1904233554 ISBN 13: 9781904233558

Publisher: Atom, 2006

Synopsis

A novel with echoes of timeless classics such as THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE, THE BORROWERS and ALICE IN WONDERLAND, Garry Kilworth's ATTICA reveals a twilight world of forgotten wonders, and extraordinary adventures - all happening just above our heads. Join Jordy, Alex and Chloe as they cross the portal from our world to a strange and wonderful other place, accessible for just a moment in time through the trap-door of the attic in their family home. From hat-stand forests, to towering hills of old musical instruments, deserts of old books and a great water-tank lake, the vast continent they stumble upon is one of limitless surprises - and that's before they meet the inhabitants: strange clans of small and lumpen people who live in homes constructed from all manner of found things and drive vehicles powered by old sewing-machine parts. It is against this remarkable backdrop that the three children will embark on a spellbinding adventure to recover a prized possession, save a life, and - somehow - find a way back home.

About this title

Review

This book is reminiscent of Narnia with its alternative, magical world. A fantastic read that will have imaginations working overtime. (The Bookseller)

An excellent book, good and original and, in all the best ways, strange. (Neil Gaiman)

One to watch. The book belongs in the mainstream of children's literature and has the ingredients to make it an 'adventure in the attic (classic')

Children's Bookseller Supplement

From the Author

This novel represents a departure from my previous juvenile fantasies which were, in the main, animal fantasies. I conceived Attica while actually working in an attic - it was where I wrote my books and shared my day with my cat Dylan, who often slept in my desk drawer. I used to stare into the blackness of the attic around me and wonder about what was actually in there. Every Friday night my wife and I go for a curry with Andrew and Cheryl, our good friends, to wind down the week. One curry night I talked with Andrew about the attic and the thoughts I had about writing a novel based on an attic as large as a continent: Andrew added some interesting avenues to explore. And this is a novel about exploration, of fantasy places and of the mind. I suppose the attic represents my head in which I take these strange journeys, attics and heads being at the top of their respective bodies, being both full of junk and seeming both to be infinite. Some of the characters in the book have been drawn from real life - another departure for me - the children are my grandchildren of the same names, the parents are a young married couple we are very fond of, the three-legged cat Nelson was the pet of a friend in Hong Kong where we used to live and Mr Grantham is probably me. I am talking about the 'characters' of these people and cats here, not about their situations in life, nor their physical appearance. Jordy, for example, is a very sporty grandson. Alex likes engineering. Chloe likes books, and so on. And Nelson wasn't ginger at all, but a big fluffy beast who looked as if his fur was unravelling.

About this edition

• Publisher: Atom
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 1904233554
• ISBN 13: 9781904233558
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 352