7. MirrorMask

Gaiman, Neil and Dave McKean. MirrorMask. HarperCollins Publishers: New York, 2005.

Annotation: Helena yearns for an ordinary life, one that is far from her circus performing family but when she is jolted into an unfamiliar and magical world she thinks twice about the life she once had.

Justification For Nomination: Cruising through the YA reading I stumbled upon this gem and debated whether it was considered a children's book and was misplaced from the children's section. I checked in with the librarian on duty so I wouldn't mistake the reading and found that was in deed considered teen reading, due to some disturbing images. This made the intrigue for the story and visuals even more appealing to me.

The style the books was written in, reads like a picture book but zig-zags and swirls across the page and around the visual art work presented. Presented through Helena's voice the text comes off slightly angsty yet proper and poetic. Author, Neil Gaiman, proves he is no stranger to bizarre and wonderfully descriptive worlds. "Coraline," one of his earlier works, uses a similar plot of a girl that doesn't quite fit in who is transported to a strange and dangerous world. Both stories intertwine internal and outer conflict resulting with a final decision and showdown with the protagonist and evil force that wants them.

The setting of Mirrormask and the characters were brilliantly and carefully created. Even without the illustrations and visuals my mind was set free to interpret each unique vision to my own hearts desire. Usually the trouble with fantasy is creating an entirely different universe, but both writer Neil Gaiman and illustrator Dave McKean did a phenomenal job getting their visions across.

Mixed with a few still shots and original sketches, the tone of the book really took this simple story to a dark place. Through Helena's journey she is faced with disturbing, vial, creatures and at one point is consumed with darkness. The idea of good/light and bad/dark is played to its advantage in this book and you really see the internal battle between the two.

Another reason this book works so well is the sense of empowerment that Helena takes on. In her old life she is constantly answering to others while in this new one she is her own boss. The new problems she faces in this other reality is the conflict of being replaced in the old one or a sense of abandonment. Similar to "Alice in Wonderland" or "The Wizard of Oz," our protagonist finds the old world more to her liking and reveals the unsuspected horror and race to find a way home.

In the end, MirrorMask is a great run-away, fantasy tale that carries itself with its strong multi-dimensional plot line and twisted imagery. The characters are well written, the style and formatting of the text fits with the madness of every situation and the descriptions are literally out of this world. I highly recommend it to all ages, even the most daring of children.