You don't have to listen to Katherine Rundell for long to know that she is big on courage, big on hope, and big on wonder. It's no surprise, then , that her 'Impossible Creatures' books are wonderful, in all senses of the word. Crammed with awe inspiring mythical creatures (sphinxes, dragons, unicorns among the more recognisable, and ratatoskas and gaganas among the more obscure) and human characters who are beautiful inside and out, the stories conjure a landscape that inspires awe. Not only that, her authorial asides - a bit reminiscent of C.S. Lewis in their tone - add a sense of something deeper and even more wonderful to her narrative that reaches beyond story and into life itself - 'Take a human by the wrist', she says, ' and you have in your hand a piece of unending longing'. 

In Rundell's world - the Archipelago - there is no god like there is in Lewis's, but the stories centre around the existence of an 'Immortal', a being who has existed since the beginning , and is reincarnated in a new human body each time the life of its previous host comes to an end. To know the Immortal is a joy that fulfils the yearning in Christopher's heart  She drops bombshells of insight into her writing that are so succinct and true that they stop you in your tracks for a moment - and I love that - but somehow she does it so that they add to, rather than detract from, the adventure at hand. In 'The Poisoned King', she has the wise sphinx speak concisely about the destructive power of unforgiveness: 'Take care, child, that you do not burn through your own heart, and leave yourself with nothing but a scorched scar to rely on'...what a brilliant truth to give to a child, wrapped in the folds of a story that sees it out. All that is before you even get to the richness of the language she uses (cacophony is one of her favourite words....), her poetic flair, her grippingly imagined narrative that has you rooting for good to win out every step of the way, and her knack for including hidden asides about Donne and Shakespeare!

Incredibly, because her storytelling is so fine and her imagination so compelling, she does all this in a way that is accessible, attractive, and exciting for children - really quite the achievement! All the accolades really are well deserved -  I heard S.D. Smith say recently that children's books 'should make children more dangerous to the darkness'. Rundell's books do just that.