"Island of the Aunts" by Eva Ibbotson

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Read: 1/20/09

Yes, I like YA. No, not because I teach high school, though I sometimes use it as an excuse to read some YA fiction. However, there are instances when I temporarily lose my taste for it, especially after I've read a really good adult contemporary novel. But then, I go back to YA, usually when I read a terrible adult contemporary novel.

This is not really the case here. But I thought I'd give myself a break after going through a non-fiction book (which I reiterate, I enjoyed). So I picked up this book which had been on my shelf for the past month. First heard about Eva Ibbotson after my "baby" for Kris Kringle had a lot of her books on her wishlist. I found this specific title in Book Sale one day and thought I might as well try her out.

The verdict: Not bad. Very British, yet cute. Island of the Aunts gives a lot of kids their ideal fantasy about being away from their parents, who, for one reason or another, are so caught up in their adult lives and thus fail to give sufficient love and attention to their children. The being away thing is immensely constructive, though. In the story, there are 3 women who are real aunts, but not to the protagonists. Rather, their being Aunts is taken in the sense that in England, nannies are referred to as "Aunts." The Aunts tend an island that injured creatures of all manner and persuasion treat as a refuge. These Aunts care for these creatures, though they realize that they cannot do so forever. So, they decide that they must kidnap some children (in order not to reveal the location of their island and thus attract publicity) and train these children to carry on their work.

Needless to say, the kidnapping occurs with major glitches, which is fortunate, otherwise we wouldn't have much of a story.

The story is not a complete fantasy, though, where the adults do not react the way you'd expect modern adults to react. That, I appreciated.

All in all, I'd say Ibbotson is worth dipping into. A friend has recommended her adult works more strongly, though, so that's still something I hope to check out...once I've finished all 85 books on my TBR (To Be Read) shelf.

Who am I kidding? I won't wait that long.

3/5 stars

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