Fog Hounds, Wind Cat, Sea Mice

Three elegantly crafted short stories resonant with meaning which dexterously weave magic into everyday matters and the everyday into magic. The old king is dying and his menacing Fog Hounds which 'flow over the ground as the wind itself', haunt Tad's dreams. What is the significance of the ring of tea leaves round the rim of Tad's cup and why do the hounds seek him out? Lukey's aunt who lives next door to unpleasant neighbours from Bournemouth, has given up being a witch - 'with all the private health insurance schemes nobody these days needs witches', she tells Lukey whom she suspects, when the neighbours' house disappears, of inheriting the family habit. Hella must wait until she is twelve before picking the fruit from the plum tree planted for her by her lost sailor father. When the sea draws back to let her pass, the adult reader can only gasp at the audacity of Aiken's literary references (Greek myths, the Old Testament) so seamlessly incorporated into her casually conversational, beautifully structured text.

Bailey's sensitive pen and ink illustrations with cross hatching complement the moods of these stories well.