Let's ride the Sea of Izabella all the way to the Abarat!

Hello fantastic people of the internet. Today I want to talk to you about one of my favorite book series, Abarat. Abarat is written by Clive Barker. There are currently three books out, and two more on the way. I read the first one when I was in high school, and absolutely loved it. It's a fantasy series in which a girl from a small place in Minnesota called Chickentown travels to another world and has to find her way while coming to terms with the fact that it might not be a coincidence that she's there.

Abarat was written for young adults, but is a darker fantasy series that can be enjoyed by anyone of any age. Clive Barker takes a story that could have been a watered down preteen novel, and turns it into a nitty gritty tale about surviving in a world very different, but also surprisingly similar, to our own.

Mr. Barker also does all of his own artwork! 

The so-called 'bad guy' of the piece is the Lord of Midnight himself, Christopher Carrion. Carrion is a complex villain. He feeds off of the fear and agony of others, yet Barker has made him diverse enough to actually be relatable. Obviously you're not going to relate to the darker parts of his personality, (or maybe you do, which is, you know, O.K.), but you start to see why he is the way he is, and it's certainly enlightening. 

Yes he's terrifying and grotesque, but he just wants to be loved! 

Don't let the artwork scare you too much, this book is absolutely fantastic. Clive Barker is a very talented man. He writes novels, short stories, creates artwork, and is generally always doing something creative. This is probably why there is normally a one to two year hiatus between each book, an unfortunate side effect of your work being in high demand, I imagine. Though, being a fan of many things, one gets pretty used to handling a hiatus. (If this is your first one, don't worry, the shakes will go away eventually.) The wait being my only complaint, I would absolutely recommend reading this book. It's a very easy read, without feeling like it was written for a younger audience. What are some of your favorite books? Or for those of you who have read this, what other books do you recommend?