Sunday June 5, 2011 Sequels, prequels and re-imaginings

Summer is nearing at its typical too-slow pace, and with it comes the promise of block-buster summer movies. This year Hollywood is counting on a number of 3-D and special effects films and there is sure to be the various remakes, retakes and sequels that they hope will draw back the audience which enjoyed the original film.

This pattern is certainly familiar in the book world as well. For every successful book there is pressure to produce a sequel or series which extends the reading pleasure. When Frank L. Baum wrote his book The Wizard of Oz he had no thought of a sequel in mind, but urging from thousands of children who loved the book and wanted to read more inspired him to write The Marvelous Land of Oz in 1904. After that, he was pressured by success to continue writing about Oz and produced a sequel every year until he died in 1919. And even after that, his publisher commissioned Ruth Plumly Thompson to create 21 more books set in Oz so that the characters could continue their adventures.

Most of the iconic and memorable characters in children’s literature have appeared again in subsequent stories; from Curious George to Fancy Nancy, the sequels seem to arrive annually for new generations of children to discover. I’d like to highlight some of the novels in the children and teen collections which are particularly good examples of different authors re-imagining a previously published classic.

Anne Shirley made her debut over 100 years ago in L.M. Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables, a true Canadian classic. On the centenary of this publishing event in 2008, Canadian author Budge Wilson published a prequel to the Anne story. It honours the original with faithful attention to details and works as a compelling back-story for those who love the character of Anne.

Peter Pan also has a back story, courtesy of Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson who shared writing the best-seller Peter and the Starcatchers in 2004. It was a prequel to J.M. Barrie’s Peter and Wendy, and it also spawned a series of Peter and the Starcatcher books.

For a very different take on a classic I recommend the young adult book The Looking Glass Wars. This book (which also became a series) has the creative premise that the books written by Lewis Carroll were actually distortions of true events which had occurred. In the world of the Looking Glass Wars, the character, Alyss, tells the ”real” story of her life. Knowing the original Alice books will greatly enhance one’s reading as you learn that the white rabbit was actually Alyss’ tutor Bibwit Harte, and the Mad Hatter was actually a very serious and sober bodyguard named Hatter Madigan.

It is not a new idea to adapt the classic Jane Eyre; the story has already been re-imagined in many books such as the Wide Sargasso Sea. Jane by April Lindner however, offers quite a new perspective for the characters. She places Jane Eyre into the 20th century, with Mr. Rochester as Nico Rathburn, a world-famous rock star. Imagine the possibilities.

Whether respectful homage to an admired or totally new creative works which are inspired by iconic characters, these prequels, sequels and re-imaginings will take you into somewhat familiar territory and then into a whole other world. This summer, you might wish to “revisit” an old classic yourself. You can find these and many others @ Your Library. Visit our book blog too, The Best of the Backlist, for lists of recommended reads from library staff. You’ll never know what you might discover.

Angela Meady, Head of Children’s Services