Hilary McKay
Author of Saffy's Angel
About the Author
Image credit: Hilary McKay / Scholastic.co.uk
Series
Works by Hilary McKay
Associated Works
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Legal name
- McKay, Hilary Jane
- Birthdate
- 1959-06-12
- Gender
- female
- Education
- University of St Andrews (BS; 1981)
- Occupations
- biochemist
children's book author - Agent
- Molly Ker Hawn
- Nationality
- UK
- Birthplace
- Boston, Lincolnshire, England, UK
- Places of residence
- Matlock, Derbyshire, England, UK
- Associated Place (for map)
- England, UK
Members
Reviews
I am distrustful, generally speaking, of sequels written by someone other than the original author, particularly when the sequel in question is following upon an especially beloved classic. It always seems, somehow, to be riding another's coattails (I know, I know - aren't all writers doing that, to some extent?, you might be wondering), and it rarely satisfies the reader who loved the original. I don't think I've ever come across a Jane Austen remake that impressed me (and I've read a few), show more and the current craze for "monster-mashups" - think Jane Slayre, Little Women and Werewolves, Android Karenina, and so on - leave me cold.
There are exceptions to this general rule of course, from John Gardner's Grendel, which offers the monster's view of the epic of Beowulf, to Jane Lesley Conly's two follow-ups (Racso and the Rats of NIMH and R-T, Margaret, and the Rats of NIMH) to her father's Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH. Hilary McKay's sequel to Frances Hodgson Burnett's classic Victorian tale, A Little Princess is, as it transpires, another such exception.
I adored Burnett's tale of a privileged young girl who discovers, for a time, what it means to be young, vulnerable, and poor in Victorian England, and read it countless times as a girl. I wasn't sure how McKay could expand upon her story without doing it violence, but as it turns out, she didn't try. Wishing for Tomorrow is not more of Sara Crewe's story, it is Ermengarde's story, and (to a lesser extent) the story of Lottie, Lavinia and the Misses Minchin. It is the tale of what happened at the "Select Seminary for Young Ladies," once Sara departed, and manages - wonder of wonders - to offer a convincing, and even sympathetic(!) explanation for the behavior of some of the less admirable characters in the original.
McKay doesn't make the mistake of trying to duplicate Burnett's style or worldview - she obviously has her own - nor does she take Burnett's view of these characters as her own. Lavinia is revealed as an intelligent girl who's simply never been given the opportunity to use her mind, Miss Minchin as a frustrated and embittered woman who was also denied, as a girl, the opportunities she deserved. As for Ermengarde, she emerges from the veil cast by Sara's perception of her, much less of a lumpen "clod" than first appeared. I was amazed to discover that I loved (or, in the case of Miss Minchin, could at least sympathize with) each of these characters, despite finding them either lackluster or repugnant in Burnett's original. No small achievement on McKay's part! I think I may have to track down more of her work... show less
There are exceptions to this general rule of course, from John Gardner's Grendel, which offers the monster's view of the epic of Beowulf, to Jane Lesley Conly's two follow-ups (Racso and the Rats of NIMH and R-T, Margaret, and the Rats of NIMH) to her father's Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH. Hilary McKay's sequel to Frances Hodgson Burnett's classic Victorian tale, A Little Princess is, as it transpires, another such exception.
I adored Burnett's tale of a privileged young girl who discovers, for a time, what it means to be young, vulnerable, and poor in Victorian England, and read it countless times as a girl. I wasn't sure how McKay could expand upon her story without doing it violence, but as it turns out, she didn't try. Wishing for Tomorrow is not more of Sara Crewe's story, it is Ermengarde's story, and (to a lesser extent) the story of Lottie, Lavinia and the Misses Minchin. It is the tale of what happened at the "Select Seminary for Young Ladies," once Sara departed, and manages - wonder of wonders - to offer a convincing, and even sympathetic(!) explanation for the behavior of some of the less admirable characters in the original.
McKay doesn't make the mistake of trying to duplicate Burnett's style or worldview - she obviously has her own - nor does she take Burnett's view of these characters as her own. Lavinia is revealed as an intelligent girl who's simply never been given the opportunity to use her mind, Miss Minchin as a frustrated and embittered woman who was also denied, as a girl, the opportunities she deserved. As for Ermengarde, she emerges from the veil cast by Sara's perception of her, much less of a lumpen "clod" than first appeared. I was amazed to discover that I loved (or, in the case of Miss Minchin, could at least sympathize with) each of these characters, despite finding them either lackluster or repugnant in Burnett's original. No small achievement on McKay's part! I think I may have to track down more of her work... show less
The four Conroy sisters, aged between six and thirteen, are an absolute delight. Hilarious, believable and relatably bookish. Ruth, Naomi, Rachel and Phoebe are sent to stay with their grandmother for the summer, in a small rural village by the sea. Most of their ensuing mischief and adventures arise as a consequence of them running out of books to read.
McKay’s portrayal of four sisters, each with their own strengths and opinions, has a compelling veracity, and, oh, how they made me show more laugh! The only downside to the audiobook is that I didn’t bookmark my favourite quotes. I need a copy for my bookshelf!
McKay’s portrayal of four sisters, each with their own strengths and opinions, has a compelling veracity, and, oh, how they made me show more laugh! The only downside to the audiobook is that I didn’t bookmark my favourite quotes. I need a copy for my bookshelf!
Naomi Conroy crouched uncomfortably at the end of the garden reading a book. As usual, she had spent her Saturday morning at the town library, searching the too-familiar shelves for something new. On her left was the stack of books she had read since she returned, and on her right the pile she hadn’t opened yet. She kept her elbow leaning on that pile to guard them from her permanently book-hungry sisters. Even now, she could feel herself being watched, and without looking up knew that Ruth was hovering close by, waiting for her to finish. By law of the family, the book would become then common property, free for anyone to read.This is set during the 60s or 70s, and if I had read it when I was child, I wouldn’t have characterised it as “historical” at all (in part because I would have likely assumed that any differences between the girls’ world and mine was simply due to people doing things differently in England). But, as McKay acknowledges in her author’s note, she wrote this looking back at the past, and reading it now, it certainly “feels” like historical fiction. Which made me realise that there may well come a day when I read a book set during my own childhood and think Ahh, yes, historical fiction. show less
Binny misses her dog Max almost more than she misses her beloved father, who died recently. This may be hard to understand at first, but Binny knows her father is truly gone, while she is not sure about Max. When her father died, her family had to move to an apartment where they could not keep a dog. Max was given to Granny, but in his puppy rambunctiousness, proved too much for the elder woman. Without telling Binny or her family, Aunty Violet gave Max away. Binny has never forgiven her. show more
Three years later, Binny is now eleven and still searching for Max. Her family's circumstances have changed for the better, though from an odd source. Horrible Aunty Violet has died and given them her house and her will says it is particularly for Binny. Why? Binny hates her still and doesn’t want to move, but finally caves in to her family’s wishes. The house is small and needs work, but is in a lovely village by the sea. Though Binny struggles with visions of Aunty Violet’s ghost, she comes to love the little house and makes both friends and enemies in the village.
Kate is a young woman who loves people. She is sweet, kind and giving, always listening to everyone with her full attention. She owns the restaurant where Clem works. Binny brings her woes to Kate and helps her clear tables. Liam, Kate’s older brother, is very handsome – Binny falls in love with him at first sight – gruff, but kind-hearted. When makes Binny CREW on his seal-watching boat, she will do anything for Liam.
Binny’s best enemy is Gareth, the next-door neighbor boy who is very angry with his father for bringing his new girlfriend on their summer vacation. Gareth is brutally honest with everyone and likes to swear when he’s mad, but Binny finds this rather refreshing. She can be brutally honest back to him and not have to worry about hurting his feelings. The two get into a tidal wave of trouble while trying to remove an old fishing net from a seal haul-out site. This subplot is interspersed in five flashback chapters titled “The Rock Pools,” adding suspense to the story.
McKay artfully blends humor into her story of family dynamics. One of the funniest characters is Binny’s brother, James, a delightfully realized six-year-old full of imagination and creativity. James experiments with growing poisonous lettuce and wears a pink and green wetsuit that he found in the dumpster. When he is not allowed to have his own chicken, he builds a home for an imaginary one. “James, already busy on the floor with cardboard and tape, smiled inscrutably up at her. He patched up the holes in the lettuce box and added a door with tape hinges. Later, in his bedroom, he labeled each of the four inside corners with a stern instruction: EAT. DRINK. POO. EGGS.”
Binny for Short is at times warm and thoughtful, snarky and wild. Touches of irreverence are revealed as Binny and Gareth struggle with loss and confusion, yet the overall tone is one of encouragement and support. Readers will admire Binny’s dedication to finding her dog and Gareth’s perseverance in helping the seals. Recommended for children (and adults!) ages 9 and up who enjoy humorous family stories and unconventional characters. show less
Three years later, Binny is now eleven and still searching for Max. Her family's circumstances have changed for the better, though from an odd source. Horrible Aunty Violet has died and given them her house and her will says it is particularly for Binny. Why? Binny hates her still and doesn’t want to move, but finally caves in to her family’s wishes. The house is small and needs work, but is in a lovely village by the sea. Though Binny struggles with visions of Aunty Violet’s ghost, she comes to love the little house and makes both friends and enemies in the village.
Kate is a young woman who loves people. She is sweet, kind and giving, always listening to everyone with her full attention. She owns the restaurant where Clem works. Binny brings her woes to Kate and helps her clear tables. Liam, Kate’s older brother, is very handsome – Binny falls in love with him at first sight – gruff, but kind-hearted. When makes Binny CREW on his seal-watching boat, she will do anything for Liam.
Binny’s best enemy is Gareth, the next-door neighbor boy who is very angry with his father for bringing his new girlfriend on their summer vacation. Gareth is brutally honest with everyone and likes to swear when he’s mad, but Binny finds this rather refreshing. She can be brutally honest back to him and not have to worry about hurting his feelings. The two get into a tidal wave of trouble while trying to remove an old fishing net from a seal haul-out site. This subplot is interspersed in five flashback chapters titled “The Rock Pools,” adding suspense to the story.
McKay artfully blends humor into her story of family dynamics. One of the funniest characters is Binny’s brother, James, a delightfully realized six-year-old full of imagination and creativity. James experiments with growing poisonous lettuce and wears a pink and green wetsuit that he found in the dumpster. When he is not allowed to have his own chicken, he builds a home for an imaginary one. “James, already busy on the floor with cardboard and tape, smiled inscrutably up at her. He patched up the holes in the lettuce box and added a door with tape hinges. Later, in his bedroom, he labeled each of the four inside corners with a stern instruction: EAT. DRINK. POO. EGGS.”
Binny for Short is at times warm and thoughtful, snarky and wild. Touches of irreverence are revealed as Binny and Gareth struggle with loss and confusion, yet the overall tone is one of encouragement and support. Readers will admire Binny’s dedication to finding her dog and Gareth’s perseverance in helping the seals. Recommended for children (and adults!) ages 9 and up who enjoy humorous family stories and unconventional characters. show less
{Stand-alone. Children’s (8-12), fantasy}(2020)
Catches the spirit of childhood without being twee or precious. Magical. (Set in London).
Eleven year old Abi (Abigail) was always an only child until her father, Theo, remarried and she acquired a stepmother and two brothers, one older and one younger and she didn't quite feel like she fitted in any more.
(This made me laugh, so I read it again and it made me laugh again. 😄 It reminds me of my kids. And of my sister.)
Then the family moved houses and their new house, covered in ivy, felt magical and right. Everyone finally got their own rooms and there was even space for Rocky, the antique rocking horse that Abi had inherited from her mother. But maybe the house really is magical.
You know the feeling you get when you're absorbed in a good book, as though you're really there? (Of course you do.) Abi starts to realise that she has been transported when, for example, she tastes salt water after reading a book about a sea voyage. And maybe six year old Louis's imaginary pet isn't quite so imaginary.
I really liked this book. The magical adventures felt believable. But behind the story you can see the family unconsciously coming together. Although the children have their resentments and reactions at losing their old way of life, before they became one family, they also have moments of thoughtless kindness towards one another. I found the children were portrayed realistically and not as ultra-sweet or from an adult's doting view point (as in some books I've read recently); they have their uncertainties, their flaws, their moments of selflessness, their moments of unreasonableness and their tantrums (but without coming across as brats either).
(Louis is 6 years old and rather literal-minded. Very much like my 12 year old. Boys! )
I like Theo and Polly and the way they relate to all the children. They don't show any favouritism and they know how to deal with fraught situations, especially Theo who is an emergency room nurse. Hah - maybe they're too good to be true ;0)
This was a gentle, sweet story but with some tension when it came to the adventures. It made me laugh out loud and it made me feel like hugging my kids. It says, in the copyright bumph, that the target audience is 8-12 years old but it doesn't talk down to readers. I would put the upper age range higher; as an adult, I really enjoyed it.
One last quote because this, too, was familiar.
Recommended.
March 2021
5 stars show less
Catches the spirit of childhood without being twee or precious. Magical. (Set in London).
Eleven year old Abi (Abigail) was always an only child until her father, Theo, remarried and she acquired a stepmother and two brothers, one older and one younger and she didn't quite feel like she fitted in any more.
Louis, although utterly messy in his appearance, was obsessively tidy in his room. .... Max lived in a great heap of Max junk. He and Louisshow more
stuck a line of tape across their bedroom floor, dividing the enormous Max mess from the extreme neatness of Louis. Nothing could stop Louis seeing over the line, though, just as nothing could save Max from having to listen to Louis droning himself to sleep at night, like an out-of-tune mosquito.
(This made me laugh, so I read it again and it made me laugh again. 😄 It reminds me of my kids. And of my sister.)
Then the family moved houses and their new house, covered in ivy, felt magical and right. Everyone finally got their own rooms and there was even space for Rocky, the antique rocking horse that Abi had inherited from her mother. But maybe the house really is magical.
You know the feeling you get when you're absorbed in a good book, as though you're really there? (Of course you do.) Abi starts to realise that she has been transported when, for example, she tastes salt water after reading a book about a sea voyage. And maybe six year old Louis's imaginary pet isn't quite so imaginary.
I really liked this book. The magical adventures felt believable. But behind the story you can see the family unconsciously coming together. Although the children have their resentments and reactions at losing their old way of life, before they became one family, they also have moments of thoughtless kindness towards one another. I found the children were portrayed realistically and not as ultra-sweet or from an adult's doting view point (as in some books I've read recently); they have their uncertainties, their flaws, their moments of selflessness, their moments of unreasonableness and their tantrums (but without coming across as brats either).
“I am not your sister, and don‘t you dare put your disgusting spitty feet on my quilt.”
“All right,” said Louis, and rubbed them on Abi‘s bedside rug instead.
“You are truly disgusting,” said Abi severely, “and you should put those horrible pajamas in the washing basket.”
“What, now?”
“YES NOW!” said Abi.
Louis slid off the bed and disappeared, but came back much too quickly.
“I‘ve done it,” he said cheerfully.
(Louis is 6 years old and rather literal-minded. Very much like my 12 year old. Boys! )
I like Theo and Polly and the way they relate to all the children. They don't show any favouritism and they know how to deal with fraught situations, especially Theo who is an emergency room nurse. Hah - maybe they're too good to be true ;0)
This was a gentle, sweet story but with some tension when it came to the adventures. It made me laugh out loud and it made me feel like hugging my kids. It says, in the copyright bumph, that the target audience is 8-12 years old but it doesn't talk down to readers. I would put the upper age range higher; as an adult, I really enjoyed it.
One last quote because this, too, was familiar.
... where a recorder club was tormenting a Christmas carol to shrieking ribbons, ...
Recommended.
March 2021
5 stars show less
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- Works
- 84
- Also by
- 2
- Members
- 6,718
- Popularity
- #3,641
- Rating
- 4.1
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- 242
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