Customer Reviews

Wild Robert

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4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
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Most of Diana Wynne-Jones' fantasy adventures are solid, self-enclosed stories all by themselves. "Wild Robert" is a charming, interesting fantasy adventure, but it never quite figures out where to go or what to be. It's an entertaining novella, but not Jones' best.

Heather lives at Castlemaine, where her parents are the curators. But Heather hates the tourists and the lack of privacy. Then one day, she climbs onto an old mound and wishes that the legendary Wild Robert would come help her get rid of the tourists. Then she hears a voice: "Did someone call?"

It turns out that Wild Robert has been trapped in the mound for over three hundred years, because he studied the magic arts. Now he's just as ticked off as Heather is about the tourists -- but unlike Heather, he has no problem using his magic to help drive them away...

Diana Wynne-Jones seems to specialize in stories about the fantastical intruding on everyday people. And "Wild Robert" is one of those books. It's only a short novella (or long short story), but Jones manages to keep the storyline interesting and original (such as the feud of the old paintings).

Jones' customary sense of humor carries the story along, with the background about medieval witchcraft, magic, and the clash with modern-day tourists (who can be pretty obnoxious). The problem is that there isn't much of a plot -- Wild Robert visits, works magic, and weird things happen. At the end of the book, the story is clearly ongoing. Nothing changes, except that Wild Robert is hanging around.

Heather and Wild Robert are the principal characters in this book, and they are the only ones who get much development. Heather is a fairly typical Jones heroine, gutsy and willing to believe the unbelievable. It's Wild Robert himself who steals the show, with his tragic past and distinctly odd sense of humor.

"Wild Robert" is an entertaining light read, with a likable half-living hero and plenty of supernatural hijinks, but at the end you wish that Jones had expanded it into a fuller book.

This story is about a little girl who lives in an old house where her parents are the caretakers and tourguides. One day, while trying to escape a horde of tourists, she accidentally wakes the mischievous ghost of Wild Robert.

This was another great story by an author I truly admire. Read it! The illustrations are great, too.

Wild Robert was a great book filled with mystery, sadness,and joyfull feelings. It is so funny and suspenceful you won't know what to do.I bet you that once youv finised it you will turn the book over and over in your hands saying " Wow ".

I am a big DWJ fan and have been since the first book I picked up of hers, I have more or less read everything she has writen. While I have to admit that this is not the best thing she has ever writen, it is still worth the price of the book and is a quick read.It contains all the quaint and dare I say cute imagery that Diana is characteristically known for. I think my biggest problem with it is that it left me wanted another 50 pages to finish an other wise adorable story.

Wynne Jones is a fabulous author and her daring takes her in all directions in her writing. This work is good, but gives the feeling it's not one thing or t'other. It would make an excellent first two or three chapters for a novel, or, if rewritten, an excellent short story. As is, with 116 pages, it is either too much, leading nowhere, or not enough. Personally, since I can't get enough of her work, I would vote for a novel ;).