Who is Rupert Starbright? A boy? A myth? A legend? In fact he is a 
brilliant young boy with a heart of gold and an imagination so vivid that his imaginings become real. In his latest adventure, Rupert unearths a bell in his backyard and enters unknowingly into a mystery about a long forgotten holiday, Winter Joy.
“The Winter Joy was a special and wondrous holiday… on the night when the Eyes of Aranthal were in the sky over the moon; the Cat of Winter Joy would travel the land and leave gifts for all the folks in the world who had been kind to others… Everyone would ring their gildens – that’s what the bells are called – on the eve of Winter Joy. In the town square the great bell – the Gildengroat – was rung, too, and we all would gather to hear it. Until one night…”
When Rupert rings the bell, strange creatures begin to haunt the night. He sets out to investigate and steps through to a world and a mystery that no ordinary boy could solve. Along with the help of his best friends, Squeem and Pie O’Sky; Rupert has the perilous task of going “face – to – face with the Ghost of Winter Joy”.
Mike DiCerto has created a vivid and enchanting fantasy world in his newest book (which is the third in the adventures of Rupert Starbright). Despite the fact that I am not part of the target audience; I couldn’t help coming back to find out what would happen next. He uses familiar landscapes to entice his readers and then skews them to appeal to one’s imagination. This works wonders for a child’s imagination; giving them a spring board for their own imaginations to run wild. Rupert is a very relatable character with all the curiosity of a child, adventurous spirit of a boy and a heart of gold to boot!
So much fantasy and imagination can let a person get lost in other worlds. This story, though, contains aspects that keep pushing the reader back into reality. First, a gun is pulled on Rupert by an adult. As a young reader, especially one with an active imagination, a gun is too violent of an image to be placed in a children’s book. What would the repercussions be if a child were to re – enact that part of Rupert’s adventure with a real gun? There is already enough danger involving children and guns. Using one in a fantasy children’s book is a very ‘ballsy’ choice. Second, a vital plot twist is revealed to the reader just before the characters discover it themselves. This serves to rip the reader right out of Rupert’s world and back to reality as a mere reader. Fantasies are made to be lived, not just watched; experienced, not just read on a page.
Even so, DiCerto uses easy – to – understand language. There are a great number of plot twists and plenty of action to keep the story lively. Even the reluctant juvenile reader will be glued to the page until the very end! The Ghost of Winter Joy is a good start for any new or young fantasy readers and it will charm from start to finish!
You can order your own copy of The Ghost of Winter Joy from Amazon as either a physical book or an E-Book.
-Tiffany Bishop
