![]() It’s a puzzle why this work was neglected for most of the 20th century. ![]() The plot is too complicated to recap here, so let me just say that the writing is exquisite and the imagery is haunting. Who is on the side of good and who is not becomes more and more ambiguous. As one person after another falls prey to the lure of fairy-fruit, more and more people also turn out to be complicit in its resurgence. They are doing their best to forget about magical doings beyond the borders of their realm and in their own past, particularly regarding fairy-fruit, the consumption of which is too shocking to mention. The town of Lud-in-the-Mist is a thriving port and market town inhabited by comfortable, unimaginative burghers. (The undercurrents of sexuality are heavily metaphorical for the most part, but they occasionally pop to the surface.) Teens could certainly enjoy Lud-in-the-Mist, and older children whose tastes run that way, as a read-aloud with a bit of prudent skipping. Though not written as a children’s book, it’s really is no less suited for children than Ursula LeGuin’s A Wizard of Earthsea (which, to be fair, would today be marketed as Young Adult). ![]() Lud-in-the-Mist is a neglected masterpiece of early 20th century fantastical and fairytale-inspired works. ![]()
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