Part of my library’s summer reading challenge was to read a book published the year you were born. Since I didn’t think If You Give a Mouse a Cookie would count, I chose a favorite from my childhood, The Castle in the Attic.
William, a ten-year-old gymnast, has to say goodbye to his long-time nanny, Mrs. Phillips. She decided to move back to England, but before she leaves, she gives William a large model castle that has been in her family for years. With the castle comes the one knight, the silver knight Sir Simon. Dreading Mrs. Phillips impending departure, William pulls out the knight…and finds out he’s alive, albeit only two inches tall. After realizing Sir Simon has the magical ability to turn living things small, William hatches a plan to shrink Mrs. Phillips and keep her in the castle, but obviously, things backfire. To save Mrs. Phillips and find a way to make her big again, William must be magicked small himself and go with Sir Simon to defeat an evil wizard who’s taken Sir Simon’s kingdom. William is scared, but he must learn to face his fears to save the ones he loves.
When reading this as a child, I loved the magical aspect to it, but reading it as an adult, I guess the story didn’t sparkle as much. William, the main character, seemed overly emotional, and I don’t really see many children, especially boys, connecting with this story. I don’t know if the story is just dated or just the way it was written, but there is very little to infer. All the morals, words of wisdom, and character emotions are told to us explicitly, which makes the story seem very stilted.
I still enjoyed the story for the memories that it held for me, but it may be a little too bland for today’s elementary schooler.
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