Book Review - Travel Light, Naomi Mitchison

While at WisCon this weekend, I walked past the auction table and saw a galley copy of a book called Travel Light. I hadn't heard of it, and on a whim I flipped to the first sentence.

"It is said that when the new Queen saw the old Queen's baby daughter, she told the King that the brat must be got rid of at once."

Five minutes later, I was at the Small Beer table buying the book. (I dare you to resist that first line.)

Halla, the young princess, is rescued by her nurse, who turns into a bear and carries the baby off into the woods for safekeeping. Eventually her care is transferred to dragons, who teach Halla the value of treasure. Only later, when she is out in the world and struggling, will Halla learn to confront the beliefs she held when she was young. This, as with all her choices, is dealt with in a stunning, delicate way; it is only natural that Halla would wish to hoard what she is afraid of losing, and the book presents this dilemma with the objectivity of a court reporter, who says nothing of what Halla feels and writes only what Halla does. Halla is told to give up her treasure and travel light; she does or does not. The choice is hers.

I'm not even sure where to begin reviewing this book, since it's one of those stories that leaves me with no objectivity; it's a childhood story, no matter how far out of childhood one is, and in my case at least, childhood stories strike deeper. There is such an air of wisdom about it - not a spare word - that it took me longer than usual to read, because I would read a chapter and love it so much I would have to go back and read it again immediately. The prose is masterful, describing horrifying things in a way that makes them seem as immediate and harmless as a bad dream, and describing beautiful things in a way that makes you want to carry the book with you and show relevant passages to strangers.

My favorite thing about the book took my by surprise about forty pages in: it isn't a fairy tale at all, but a life. There is no careful tying of loose ends in Travel Light; some things return more often than one wants, and other things vanish, and one cannot find them again for a world of wishes.

This is the sort of book I wish every child would read, and then give to their parents, or not. The book feels like a secret; it only makes sense to want to keep it. The choice is theirs.