Island of the Aunts

"Kidnapping children is never a good idea. All the same, sometimes it has to be done."

Eva Ibbotson is always a good choice for a read aloud, and we definitely enjoyed this one. A blurb on the back of this book pretty much sums up why we like Eva Ibbotson so much: "Once again Ibbotson takes readers on a voyage to a place where magic is mundane and it's the people who are strange." Kindly old aunts Etta, Coral and Myrtle live on a forgotten island that has become a refuge for the world's magical creatures -- mermaids, selkies, stoorworms, boobries, and naaks are among the creatures who seek care, rehabilitation and refuge here. The aunts are aging, and understand that they must teach a new generation to care for these creatures, and to show more take their place when they die. With no natural heirs, they decide to kidnap some worthy, unappreciated children to bring to the island and train. Fabio and Minette come to love and value the work they perform on the island, but of course, must face reality (and their parents) sooner or later. A very fun read aloud.

Ibbotson, E. (2001). Island of the aunts. New York: Puffin Books. show less

What do you do when you are getting older and have no relatives to take over your life's work? Why kidnap some children, of course! So begins this fantastic tale of Dickensian children living in a Roald Dahl world. Three eccentric aunts live on a secret island and nurture the unusual creatures that come to them for refuge: a family of Mermaids living in sinks and tubs, a giant nesting Boobrie who must be kept fed, and an enormous hypochondriac worm who mopes about the place. When the aunts realize they won't be able to continue on alone much longer, they hatch a scheme to kidnap some children to help them in their work. Their plan succeeds, and the ocean's balance is maintained with the help of the grand Kraken. That is, until one boy's show more father reluctantly decides to rescue his son and make a fortune exploiting the creatures of the island.



This is the second Ibbotson book which my daughter and I have read aloud, and we both thoroughly enjoyed it. The aunts are wacky but loving, the creatures of the island are human-like in their cares, and the kidnapped children enjoy an adventure of magical proportions. For children who love animals and are concerned about the health of the environment, this book will particularly resonate and entertain. If you like [James and the Giant Peach], you will enjoy this story as well. show less

This book came to me recently because I had recalled reading it as a child wherein I recalled being impressed by it's ability to make me feel like it took place in a dreamlike state, an early example to me of what it feels like to have a story that takes place half in a prosaic narrative format but also half in a mythological mode. Something felt ancient about the idea of the aunts even then, and I feel as if the way it plays on the archetypes they represent is excellent, and more than a little subversive.

Interesting book. This is an easy read and Ibbotson's writing is very well done. The only hesitation I have about this book is its premise kind of gives me the creeps. It is about a group of women who kidnap children to help them take care of the animals on an island. The children end up enjoying their time on the island and don't want to women to get in trouble for kidnapping them. The whole time I was reading it, I kept getting tripped up by Stockholm Syndrome vibes. The premise was kind of creepy so I don't know if I enjoyed the book to its full extent. Again, Ibbotson writes fantastically so if you can get over the weird capture-bonding thing going on, then I would recommend this book.

A sweet story about three "Aunts" who set off to kidnap some children from the highest of motives, for the good of the creatures of their hidden island and for the children's own good. Some heavy-duty villainy is attracted to the island as a multimillionaire of a thoroughly bad type joins the search for the "kidnappers", and of course the Aunts can't keep the children permanently, but everything turns out well in the end. A fun read and worthwhile, but I haven't the room to keep it.

So far this is the 3rd story I’ve read by Eva Ibbotson, but unfortunately it’s my least favorite. It starts charmingly enough with the Aunts explaining that kidnapping is bad, but in this case it needs to be done. They need someone who will continue on with their legacy of caring for the magical and regular creatures that come seeking help to their far off island. Since neither of the three has children kidnapping is the only way. I know some reviewers had a problem with the kidnapping part, but I thought it was handled rather well and it did not bother me. What did bother me were some of the unexpected adult themes that were thrown in.

Looking at the book and from the description I was expecting a charming, fairy tale like story show more with maybe an environmental theme. The 3 quirky aunts, a mermaid and giant bird are featured on the cover, there are some funny illustrations inside and it’s what I know Ibbotson produces from reading some of her previous books. But to my surprise she threw in a mermaid with an abusive, cheating husband, another mermaid who was manhandled and possibly sexually assaulted by a Lord, villains who are strapping some serious guns and are implied to do drug runs and carry whores on their yacht and a bratty kid who smiles while “thinking about: all the people he hated lying dead in their own blood” (p. 61).

Not at all what I expected.

I don’t know what age group this is geared towards, but these themes didn’t seem appropriate for children’s literature especially one that won a literary award. I don’t know. Maybe it’s just me being an “adult” or a “prude” even though I normally don’t let things like this bother me it did with this book. I felt like it could’ve been a better book if Ibbotson hadn’t thrown those things in and had concentrated more on the environmental theme of the book. Maybe children reading it will glaze over those details and get distracted by the funny illustrations, but for me I just found it jarring.

I did enjoy parts of the story though. The aunts for the most part were hilarious and quirky. I liked the illustrations. This one in particular had me laughing:


I also enjoyed the magical creatures…even the mermaids. I loved that the kraken makes an appearance and it’s not the typical mythological creature we are used to seeing. Overall, it is a creative story and I think any child or adult, for that matter, would love to visit the magical island. I’m only marking it two stars because the adult themes bothered and distracted me from the story. show less

"Kidnapping children is not a good idea. All the same, sometimes it has to be done."

So begins Eva Ibbotson's book Island of the Aunts. It's a story about an island where three eccentric aunts take care of mermaids and other mythical creatures. One day the aunts decide they need to kidnap some children to help them take care of the creatures — and the story takes off from there. Three children are kidnapped through various means and brought to the island to help the aunts in their work.

This story was fairly enjoyable for the most part, though I could have done without the slightly preachy environmentalist/every-living-thing-is-a-person stuff. In some places the humor reminded me of Roald Dahl (just a bit). It was also a little like show more The Perilous Journey (sequel to The Mysterious Benedict Society) but I liked this book much more. The humor of the opening line is subtly scattered throughout the story. I would have enjoyed more of it.

I did not feel the characters were very memorable. Also, the plot was predictable, which is why I'm giving this book three stars. The prose was good, but nothing brilliant. Overall, an enjoyable though not very memorable book. show less