Heap House

and some of my aunts and cousins would steer clear of me, not even speaking to me,
[...]
'But how could you tell Clod?' my relations wondered. 'How could you know the safety pin was there?'
'I heard it,' I said, 'calling out.'

From the publisher's summary: 'The extensive Iremonger family of Filching (“kings of mildew, moguls of mould”) has made a fortune from junk, building a dark and sprawling mansion from salvage scrap. Heap House is surrounded by the dangerous, noxious, shifting Heaps that stretch beyond its bounds, while within its walls, certain objects begin to display strange signs of life.'

I simply loved this book which is beyond a doubt Dickensian in some of its themes; we've got orphans and dirt heaps (taken directly from Dickens's [Our Mutual Friend]) as the main protagonists of the story, and though each book isn't especially long, I suppose the trilogy as a whole might be considered Dickensian in length as well, if it ever gets published in one tome. Clod Iremonger is a descendant of a family dynasty which was literally built out of garbage. The family home, commonly referred to as Heap House is composed of sections of former London dwellings and places of business and it stands in the midst of The Heaps; mounds of discarded objects from the big city which unfortunate workers spend their days sorting through. Unfortunate because it seems the heaps have their own laws of physics and are constantly in motion, and anyone can go under and disappear for good if they aren't properly tethered and dressed in full protective gear before approaching them.

The story takes place in an alternative 19th century England. The year is 1875, during which times common folk are known to suffer from a terrible disease which literally 'objectifies' them: one day cracks start appearing on a person's body, and the next they are transformed into an object—anything from a bathtub to a teapot to a box of matches or nose tweezers. The Iremongers, who lord it over everyone, live by one strict rule, which is that each family member is given a "birth object" from early infancy, and they are instructed to keep this object about their person at all times. This can be easily done when the object is portable, such as Clod's universal plug, but less so when it takes the form of a marble fireplace, such as his venerable grandmother has been saddled with, which has always prevented her from leaving her rooms, though it hasn't stopped her from ruling with an iron fist (she is the one who assigns the birth objects, which are thought to be highly personal and indicative of an individual's personality). Clod's peculiar gift for "hearing" the objects has gotten him in trouble with the family. Already shunned by his grandmother who holds him responsible for the death of her daughter, who died giving him birth, he is considered strange and unstable. Most of the objects in the house call out names to Clod, and the one he hears most often is his own universal plug, which continually calls out 'James Henry Hayward' in a young pleasant voice. Other than specific names, which they repeat whenever they are within hearing distance, they seem to have nothing else to say however... but surely there is a deeper significance here?! and of course there is, as we discover with the unfolding of events.

As any proper Victorian household, the family live 'upstairs' and the servants live 'downstairs'. The lower orders must never be seen by the family, although they themselves are considered as family too. In fact each person who works in Heap House is called 'Iremonger' and has forgotten whatever her or his name was before entering the house. We meet Lucy Pennant in the third chapter; she like Clod is another orphan, who lost both her parents to the strange disease (we learn what objects they've become in the second book). She has just been brought to the house and is assigned the task of looking after the house's fire grates. Lucy Pennant is a redhead with a strong personality, who is 'freckled and spotted and moled' and has teeth which are 'not quite white' and one tooth which is crooked... she has no intention of letting anyone letting her forget her own name. She also has no intention of blindly following the rules, which forbid her from exploring around the house, which is how she comes to meet Clod Iremonger. Inevitably, a friendship develops between them, which will turn Heap House inside out and be the cause of incredible events.

An exciting adventure story with great themes: 'Delightful, eccentric, heartfelt, surprising, philosophical.' is what Booker Prize winner Eleanor Catton had to say about this trilogy, and I must say I wholeheartedly agree with her. I'm more than halfway through [Foulsham], book 2 in the trilogy, and will no doubt tackle [Lungdon], which came to my attention via NPR's praise in their 2015 roundup, very soon too.