Never deigning to transcend the genre to which it is clearly a love letter, this outstanding (and entirely teen-appropriate) tale draws its strength from a solid foundation of sense-of-wonder and what-if., 'A wonder and a joy. One of School Library Journal 's Best Adult Books 4 Teens titles of 2011 One of io9's best Science Fiction & Fantasy books of the year 2011Ĭompelling.

Combining elements of autobiography with flights of imagination in the manner of novels like Jonathan Lethem's The Fortress of Solitude, this is potentially a breakout book for an author whose genius has already been hailed by peers like Kelly Link, Sarah Weinman, and Ursula K. But her magic also drew the attention of her mother, bringing about a reckoning that could no longer be put off. There, outcast and alone, she tempted fate by doing magic herself, in an attempt to find a circle of like-minded friends. Fleeing to her father whom she barely knew, Mori was sent to boarding school in England-a place all but devoid of true magic. Then her mother tried to bend the spirits to dark ends, and Mori was forced to confront her in a magical battle that left her crippled-and her twin sister dead. But her mind found freedom and promise in the science fiction novels that were her closest companions. As a child growing up in Wales, she played among the spirits who made their homes in industrial ruins. Raised by a half-mad mother who dabbled in magic, Morwenna Phelps found refuge in two worlds. Winner of the 2011 Nebula Award for Best Novel Winner of the 2012 Hugo Award for Best Novel Startling, unusual, and yet irresistably readable, Among Others is at once the compelling story of a young woman struggling to escape a troubled childhood, a brilliant diary of first encounters with the great novels of modern fantasy and SF, and a spellbinding tale of escape from ancient enchantment.

Among others by jo walton