Date: December 27th, 2005)
Performed by: Stephanie Leonidas
Blurb (Amazon): A fitful dream the night before her mothers surgery takes 15-year-old Helena to a world split into light and darkness. The queen of the White City is ill, and only the stolen MirrorMask can save her and her kingdom. As Helenas quest to find the Charm wears on, she realizes that she might not be dreaming after all.
I love Neil Gaiman's work, so I had to read this short story based on his movie, Mirrormask. It starts off simply enough - a family of circus performers with a teenage daughter who dreams of running away from the circus to have a normal life. Imagine your life of school/work with laundry and dishes and movie night being enviable to a teenager. Yeah, right.
But this tale is a fantasy, and a beautiful at that. There are the twisted, demented, dangerous bits coupled with the humorous, and deeply beautiful moments. Helena Campbell must find the balance to escape her dream world.
Her mother has fallen gravely ill and on the eve of her mother's serious operation, she finds herself drawn into this alternate reality, with the alternate faces of those she knows and loves. For friends and guides through this world she has a masked clown of sorts - Valentine, and a very wise and brave book.
This audio version was performed by the star of the film, Stephanie Leonidas. Since I had seen the movie, and already had a firm idea of the characters, this was a great match in creating the audiobook. She captured the teen angst perfectly.
+++: At ~75 minutes long, great for a commute or a session of dishes; love the deadly winged cats and the orbiting giants.
-: I wish there was a longer version....pout.....
