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ARTICLE

Book Review: The Fire Within
by R.J. Carter
Published: May 12, 2005

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Author:	Genre:	Publisher:	Price:
Chris d'Lacey	Juvenile	Orchard Books Scholastic Inc.	$12.95 US $16.99 CAN

Cover art by Angelo Rinaldi. Cover designed by David Caplan.

"It's hard to stop Muggles from noticing us if we're keeping dragons in the back garden - anyway, you can't tame dragons, it's dangerous."
-- J.K. Rowling (through Ron Weasley)
All David Rain wanted was a room to rent, a quiet clean place to stay while he attended his college classes. Miss Elizabeth Pennykettle's room fit the bill, and, according to the requirements (must like children and cats and dragons...), he fit hers as well.

There was only one cat to deal with. And only one child, Liz's eleven year old daughter Lucy, a ubiquitous little quidnunc full of questions and secret answers.

But there were plenty of dragons. Nesting in bookshelves, sunning on windowsills, reclining on tables.

Dragons everywhere--all pottery pieces done by Elizabeth.

Or are they?

As David quickly becomes entrenched in Lucy's concerns, he begins to notice strange things about the Pennykettle aerie: such as how dragons seem to appear and disappear from their usual sitting places; how their eye color seems to change when you're not looking; and the strange absence of either a kiln or a central heating unit to explain the warmth and the gentle sussurant hrrr-ing that fills the home.

The main plot of this book, however, is not about dragons. Far from it.

It's about squirrels.

A large oak has recently been cut down in the neighborhood, and the squirrels who lived off it have been displaced. One in particular, Conkers, is of particular worry to Lucy. Conker has only one eye, having been mysteriously wounded of late. Lucy's concern is contagious and soon David is setting traps and trying to beat the the irascible (and squirrel-hating) neighbor, Mr. Bacon, to the catch.

Meanwhile, his gift from Elizabeth--a "special dragon" that David has named Gadzooks (Lucy's special dragons are named Gawain and Gwendolyn, and Elizabeth's is named Guinevere)--inspires David in his dreams to write a sort of children's story for Lucy's birthday, a tale of Conker and his fellow squirrels, and how he comes to be found and cared for. It's the first time David has attempted storytelling. But it's the best gift he can give her, in that it's all he can afford and in that it's all she really wants.

     What if he did try writing her a story?
     It couldn't be that difficult, could it? A little tale about squirrels? A short animal adventure? He already had the characters and setting: Conker, Cherrylea, and the bullying Birchwood chasing around the library gardens? He could type it, print it, bind it at college--make it look like a real book. A special present from David and Gadzooks. It was worth a try.
     It was also cheap.
     "What do you think?" he said, swinging up into a sitting position and taking Gadzooks off the windowsill. He ran a finger over the dragon's snout. "We need an angle. A plot, I s'pose."
     He closed his eyes briefly to think.
     And, in that blink, it happened again. David saw Gadzooks take his pencil from his mouth and scribble down another word on his pad:
NUTBEAST
     "Nutbeast?" David muttered. "What's that supposed to mean?"
     There was a gentle hrring noise from above.

David's tale is mysterious in several respects, for much of it comes when he closes his eyes and sees Gadzooks writing the words on the dragon's little tablet. What's more, many of the events he develops for Conker and his cohorts actually come to pass either as he's writing them, or shortly thereafter.

Whether the dragons are real or not, and whether Liz and Lucy are more than what they appear, is left a mystery (although by the end of the tale, David has made up his mind about what he believes, as, I'm sure, the more adventurous and daring readers will have as well.)

Chris d'Lacey's charming self-portrait is an endearing bit of fiction that will have readers longing for more tales of the special dragons, and the people they come to possess. I shouldn't be a bit surprised to learn that the author has cannily thrown in with a sculptress of dragon pottery, hoping to cash in on the surge of orders from youngsters eager to have their own dragon, and discover the fire within it, and within themselves. (This just in: "I do have a sculptress (the real Mrs Pennykettle) here in England, but there are no plans to overrun the world with clay dragons as far as I know (out of my hands, anyway). I'd much rather kids understand that the story, at its core, is about creativity and where ideas come from, a concept that's fascinated me all my writing life." -- Chris d'Lacey. Thanks Chris!)

An inspiring bit of fiction aimed at the 7-10 year old market, accessible to all ages, and captivating of children and adults alike. Well done.

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