You can almost hear Lizza channeling her mother as she narrates. Apparently, Joan Aiken gathered her two children together (Lizza has a brother, John) and read them each chapter of the book as it was written. The audiobook begins with an essay by Lizza Aiken in which she discusses her mother’s life and the process by which she wrote The Wolves of Willoughby Chase. I can think of no better narrator for this book than Lizza Aiken, whose performance is both natural and engrossing. When you read it, you will yearn for the days in which everyone spoke in grammatically correct sentences and children could be expected to know the definitions of words like, “slavering” and “reticule.” In short, Joan Aiken makes the English language sing. In addition to being memorable and appealing, Aiken’s tale is a lovingly crafted pastiche, which pays tribute to several different genres, including ghost stories, Gothic novels, and the works of Charles Dickens (which truly are a genre unto themselves). The protagonists, cousins Sylvia and Bonnie Green, will earn a cherished place in your memory as clever, affectionate heroines who use courage, intelligence and ingenuity in a quest to overcome seemingly insurmountable odds.
In The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, Joan Aiken presents an exciting story filled with memorable characters, including plucky orphans, cruel villains, terrifying wolves, and a boy who raises chickens.
I loved this book as a kid and I love it just as much as an adult.
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