The Boggart

March 1, 1993
The Boggart, a Scottish spirit delighting in practical jokes, is ``one of the Old Things of the world'' and belongs ``to the cold separate heart of the Wild Magic.'' When the Volniks, a Canadian family, inherit the castle where the Boggart has lived for centuries, the shape-shifting mischief maker is accidentally transported to Toronto, where he discovers greater opportunities for trickery than he has ever imagined. Much gentle slapstick ensues when the ancient being visits Mrs. Volnik's antique shop and the theater run by Mr. Volnik. It falls to the Volnik children, Emily and Jessup, to befriend the prankster and send him home. Although far more lightheartedly, this boisterous romp draws upon the same powerful pre-Christian magic at the heart of Cooper's well-known Dark Is Rising sequence. Aside from all that is amusing and spooky, this tale offers a firmly grounded and utterly non-didactic introduction to some of the differences between the Old World and the New. Ages 9-12.

July 31, 1995
Newbery Medalist Cooper (The Grey King) spins a tale both haunting and comic, in which a Scottish spirit inadvertently moved to Canada pines for his ancestral manse. Ages 8-12.

January 1, 1991
When the Volnik family inherits a Scottish castle, one of the castle's more notable inconveniences, the boggart -- an ancient, mischievous spirit -- is inadvertently packed into a desk and arrives, upset and annoyed, at the Volnik's home in Canada upset and annoyed. Thrilled with the possibilities of electricity and other modern conveniences, the boggart plays both comic and dangerous tricks. Cooper's seamless fusion of the newest technology and one of the oldest forms of wild magic is most admirable.

(Copyright 1991 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

Starred review from January 1, 1993
Gr 4-7- -The Volnik family inherits a rundown old castle on an island off Scotland and visits their new property. After returning home, 12-year-old Emily and 10-year-old Jessup notice strange things happening. Their detective work eventually discloses the cause-a mischievous boggart has accidentally become trapped in a piece of furniture the family shipped home to Canada. Unfortunately, no adults believe them. The children claim innocence on Halloween night as pieces of furniture fly through the air and a bucket of water soaks their mother. Eventually, the boggart's pranks begin to cause serious problems; he becomes intrigued with the power of electricity, and causes a traffic accident that lands Emily in the hospital. Finally, he learns to communicate with the children by computer, causing the message- "I want to go to my own country"-to appear in Gaelic on Jessup's screen. When he gets trapped in a black hole in a computer space-adventure game, the youngsters devise a daring, risky, and ultimately successful plan to help the boggart return home. The novel is fleshed out with numerous, vividly realized secondary characters, including various actors at the Chervil Playhouse, where Mr. Volnik is artistic director, as well as the novel's true villain, Dr. Stigmore, a psychiatrist and a parapsychology scholar who insists that Emily is a troubled adolescent in need of hospitalization. The intelligently thought-out clash between the ancient folkloric creature and modern science guarantees a wide audience. A lively story, compelling from first page to last, and a good bet for a read-aloud. -Ellen Fader, Westport Public Library, CT