Reading The Castle in the Mist took me back to when I was a kid discovering the magic of reading. In a world of children’s book filled with crazy amounts of face paced adventure, post-apocalyptic worlds, and extreme fantasy worlds, this story takes us back a beautifully simpler time.
The Castle in the Mist follows the adventures of siblings Tess and Max as they spend the summer with their Aunt in a remote part of England. One day, after a fight with Max, Tess runs off and discovers a large fence and a magical key that opens the gate. Inside she finds William, a boy around her age, who she befriends immediately. What follows is a magical adventure that tells a great story about the importance of friendship, a story that I believe is important for readers of all ages.
This short book took me very little time to read but was a great break from my world and, for the time it took me to read it, I became a child again, feeling the magic of the book coming out through the magic of reading.
In a world of very gendered children’s books, Ephron’s The Castle in the Mist is refreshingly accessible for all readers, making it one that children and adults can enjoy together.
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