Long before J.K. Rowling every invented her infamous Harry Potter and his world of wizards and witchery, John Bellairs wrote quality, entertaining children's literature about the magical realm of wizards and other supernatural drama. And though I am a huge fan of Harry and his friends Ron and Hermione, I must admit that I am an even bigger fan of John Bellairs.
I read most of John Bellairs 20-odd titles while I was in elementary and middle school. I started with perhaps his most famous tale, The House With A Clock in Its Walls. That spine-tingling story of suspense and sorcery had me hooked. I had to read everything else he wrote. The Curse of the Blue Figurine is the first book in a series of books about young Johnny Dixon and his friend Professor Childermass. Many other books about the daring duo (and later another friend of Johnny's as well) exist. This is the book that introduces us to Johnny and the Professor though.
Johnny Dixon is a shy young seventh grade boy growing up in New England in the early 1950s. His mother is dead, and his father is an airforce pilot who travels extensively, so he lives with his grandparents in the small town of Duston Heights. He doesn't have many friends, and lives in fear of Eddie, a bully in his Catholic grade school.
One night while he is listening to the radio, his grandparents neighbor, Professor Childermass comes over to visit. During the visit, the Professor tells Johnny a ghost tale about an alleged ghost that haunts St. Michael's Church, which is connected to Johnny's school. Apparently a priest who once served the parish became involved in the occult, and mysteriously vanished one night. Now they say the ghost of Father Baart haunts St. Michael's Church. (Obviously the Professor is not too used to spending time with children, as the ghost story scares the holy heck out of Johnny...as you can imagine!)
A few weeks later Johnny is hiding from the bully Eddie, and ends up in the church basement. While there, he finds a hollowed out hymnal that contains a blue Egyptian figurine and a cryptic note that is signed by the infamous Father Baart. The book turns out to be much like "Pandora's box" as all hell breaks loose (almost literally) once Johnny takes the figurine home.
Johnny becomes obsessed with the figurine, receives a strange ring from a stranger, and eventually encounters the priestly ghost himself during the rising action of this novel. Eventually the Professor begins to notice some scarey changes in Johnny and it becomes his duty to figure the mystery out and also to try to save Johnny from the evil forces that are after him.
This tale is a spooky one that might frighten younger elementary school children, but middle school students and mature upper elementary school students would probably be fine with it. I know the books used to scare me, but in that good way that most of us like to be frightened.
The writing is unique and offers a compelling story that most adults will enjoy as well. This particular novel drags a little bit at the beginning, as it is the first in the series, and must pay quite a bit of attention to introducing the main characters of Johnny, his grandparents, and the Professor. Later books in the series jump more quickly into the action of the story.
Johnny Dixon and the Professor are likeable, entertaining characters that the reader will quickly grow attached to and root for. I had my husband read this book, and once he finished it, he headed straight to the library to check out the rest of the books in the series. Johnny and the Professor are also featured in tales such as The Chessmen of Doom, The Trolley to Yesterday, and The Secret of the Underground Room, just to name a few.
As a note, I should probably say that some people would have problems with the topics of magic, witchcraft, and sorcery present in these books. Obviously I am not one of these people, as I think children can differentiate fantasy from reality, and these books always champion good over evil, etc. However, if this is a concern you have, you might want to preview these books before you hand them to your children.
I highly recommend that anyone who loves good children's literature and/or a good mysterious tale, that you check out John Bellairs books.
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