Readers in Wonderland: The Liberating Worlds of Fantasy Fiction

Rating:
Summary: Fantasy : a way of learning, not just escaping
Review: Deborah O'Keefe's READERS IN WONDERLAND: THE LIBERATING WORLDS OF FANTASY FICTION FROM DOROTHY TO HARRY POTTER helps us understand "the power and delight that lie in children's fantasy fiction" to "expand the mind and heart" of those who explore its worlds. Her book ranges across more than eighty works, most published since 1950. Many of these fantasies, such as Rowling's and Tolkien's, can be enjoyed by adults as much as by children, though at a deeper level. O'Keefe uses insights from psychologists and social historians to illuminate why we love to read fantasy, how different types of fantasy meet the changing concerns and interests of children as they mature, and what we can learn through fantasy about ourselves and our ability to make sense of and act responsibly in a confusing world.

Parents will find READERS IN WONDERLAND useful in choosing books for their children. The brief plot summaries given to illustrate points about plot, character, and theme make one want to read these stories for sheer pleasure rather than for the widening of perspective and exercise of imagination they offer. O'Keefe knows her material well, yet she wears her learning lightly as she persuades us that good fantasy, far from being simple escapism, poses questions more often than it gives simple comforting answers. We come away from this book aware that fantasy, which is "moral but not moralizing," opens our eyes to a world where joy and wonder are possible, even though courage and wit and steadfastness are required. READERS IN WONDERLAND is a very good place to begin reading and thinking about fantasy.