Book title: Kit’s Wilderness

Author: David almond

Copyright Date: April 1999

Number of pages: 233 pages (first edition)

~setting

Time:

Place: Decaying coal mining town of Stoneygate

~conflict

~point of view

~plot

Intro:

Rising action:
Climax:

Falling action:

Resolution:

~ Main character

 Christopher "Kit"[8] Watson: Thirteen-year old Christopher "Kit" Watson, the protagonist of the
novel and enjoys writing stories. He is from one of the "Old families."[5]
 John Askew: The antagonist, Thirteen-year old Askew, is described by critics as "alluring and
dangerous,"[9] befriending Christopher throughout the course of novel. He is a described as a
skilled artist and is from one of the "Old families."[5]
 Alison Keenan: Allison, or Allie, is a character that becomes friends with Christopher and has
aspirations of being an actor. She is seen as a "temptress and protector,"[9] and described as a
"bad-lass"[10] by Christopher's Grandfather.
 Grandfather Watson: Grandfather Watson is an old man who lives and has worked in the town
of Stoneygate. He worked in the coal mines before they were closed and is described by critics
as the "wise one."[9]
 Bobby Carr: Bobby Carr, acts as a body guard and messenger to Askew. He is suspicious of
Christopher when he first joins their group, and is used by Askew to fetch Christopher for their
confrontation in a mine shaft.
 Mother and Father Watson: Christopher's parents play the role of caretakers for Grandfather
Watson while he is ill.
 Miss Bush “Burning Bush”:[11] Miss Bush is a character who uncovers the game of Death,
which gets Askew expelled, and assigns Christopher the story he ends up telling Askew in the
mine.
 Father Askew: Askew's Father is an alcoholic who gets sober after Askew returns from running
away.
 Mother Askew: Askew's mother is the character that raises Askew and his baby sister. When
Askew runs away she asks Christopher to bring him back.
 Silky: The ethereal or imagined 'ghost boy' Kit Watson and his grandfather see in their dreams
about the mine shafts.

~Theme

~Moral of the story

SUMMARY:
Kit’s Wilderness is a 1999 children’s book from British author David Almond. It tells a magic-tinged
story of a young boy who moves to a former coal-mining town, his ailing grandfather, and the
strange games the children of the town play. Partly a ghost story, partly a coming-of-age tale, the
novel deals with themes of family, meaning, memory, and death. Almond, who grew up in the coal-
mining town of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, has written a number of award-winning novels for children
and young adults. He is a winner of the prestigious Hans Christian Andersen award for his first
novel, Skellig.
The novel begins when 13-year-old Christopher “Kit” Watson and his family move to a former coal-
mining town called Stoneygate to care for Kit’s grandfather. His grandmother has recently died, and
his grandfather is beginning to show signs of Alzheimer’s disease. Though unwell, Kit’s grandfather
does still remember much of his life, and tells Kit stories about his career in the coal mines and his
hardscrabble existence as a young man growing up in Stoneygate.
As Kit starts school, he begins to find friends among the misfits and outcasts. He makes friends with
a girl named Allie who calls herself “bad” but treats Kit with kindness. Her “bad girl” persona is a role
she plays; she dreams of becoming an actress someday. Kit also meets a strange boy named John,
who goes by the nickname “Askew.” Kit attracts Askew’s attention because he has been writing down
his grandfather’s stories and memories and sharing them at school. He is a budding writer, and he
draws admiration from teachers and students.

Kit and Askew initially bond: they both come from families with a long history in the town’s mining
industry, now gone. Both boys have ancestors who were killed in an 1821 Stoneygate pit disaster,
which killed over 100 young boys. Now the mine’s many tunnels are abandoned, perhaps haunted by
the many boys who died within.

Askew invites Kit to play “a game called Death.” The game, a ritualistic re-enactment of the children
who died in the pit, involves setting a knife on the ground and spinning it. When the knife stops, it
points at Kit, and Askew tells him he has been chosen to “die.” This means he must find his way into
one of the abandoned mine tunnels that still lurk beneath the town’s surface.

When Kit enters the den, he seems to see ghosts, the faces of the boys killed long ago. He is
frightened, afraid that he is losing his mind. His behavior changes after his trip to the mines; he is
temperamental and lashes out at Allie. A teacher notices how different Kit has become, and talks to
him, uncovering the ritual of the game. When school officials find out, Askew is expelled, forcing him
to stay home with an abusive father. The “game called Death” is put to an end, and the old den is
filled in.

But the game has lingering effects. Kit continues to see visions of the dead and questions his sanity.
He also sees characters from the stories he is writing. Yet the visions seem to be true ones, proof not
of insanity but of a special kind of insight. Kit’s grandfather, his mind deteriorating, also begins to
have visions of the dead and departed. His condition is worsening, and he is losing what remains of
himself and his memory.

Askew is angry at Kit for revealing the game. He runs away from home and seeks revenge on Kit,
using another boy named Bobby Carr to lure Kit into the pit. There, the two boys confront each
other. Askew is furious, but Kit finds a way to deflect the other boy’s anger: by telling him a story, by
using the power of his words.
Kit tells Askew he has a story for him. He tells Askew the story of a prehistoric boy named Lak, whose
life and circumstances seem to parallel Askew’s. As Kit tells the story, he has another vision, one of
the characters from the story. Askew sees them too: the boys share this strange affinity for the spirit
world. By the end of the story, one of the “ghosts” Kit’s words have conjured takes “a part” of Askew,
and the boy is no longer angry.

Allie finds the two boys in the mine with help from Bobby and takes them back to town. Askew is
able to go back to school, where he finds an outlet in art classes. His father stops drinking, and his
home life becomes tolerable. Kit’s grandfather dies, but the boy is at peace with the death, knowing
that his grandfather will always be with him through the stories he told of his life.

Kit’s Wilderness won the Michael L. Printz Award from the American Library Association and was a
silver runner-up for the Smarties Prize in the UK. Almond has said that aspects of the book are
autobiographical, particularly the details of the town. Almond went on to write many more critically-
acclaimed books, including The Fire-Eaters and A Song for Ella Grey.