100 Cupboards

Henry York has just moved to Henry, Kansas where he and his cousin Henrietta have discovered something very curious in his attic bedroom. A strange thump in the night has dislodged the plaster on the wall above his bed, exposing a curious set of compass dials. The more they chip away at the plaster, the more they discover: specifically, 99 cupboards, the key to their late-grandfather’s room that has been impossible to open for two years, gateways to other worlds, and that Henry York is not at all who he thinks he is.

In N.D. Wilson’s 100 Cupboards, he lays the foundation for a new world-hopping fantasy series that has amazing potential, but also some serious flaws.

I drank in fantasy books when I was younger. I'd go to the library and scan the shelves for cool covers with dragons or flip through their pages in search of the word "faery". I could explain to you in detail why it was ludicrous that J.K. Rowling suggested a "witch" was the female equivalent of a "wizard".

Fantasy series were the best. When I found one book I liked, I had to read them all. Sometimes I got in over my head. The religious undertones of Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy and L'Engle's Time Quartet, left me in the lurch, struggling not only to maintain a grasp on the worlds the authors had created but also how to fit in what little knowledge I had of Judeo-Christian theology.

This was not the case with 100 Cupboards; in fact, N.D. Wilson’s story line was so simplistic and undeveloped that I found myself wondering what self-respecting fifth grader would read it. Unfortunately, I cannot suggest that this book be offered to lower level readers either; Wilson’s language is so flowery that one can’t help but wonder if he is trying too hard. Moments of descriptive metaphor were thrown in so haphazardly that it served no other purpose than to jar the reader. Nice turns of phrase out of context, these moments are nothing short of ridiculous within the text. I often found myself thinking, “Was that really necessary?” rather than seeing what Wilson wanted.

The problem with Wilson’s language in this book is that most of the time it is casual, following around 12-year-0ld Henry and echoing his tone. Occasionally it would follow other characters, again taking on their tone as if it was the character’s personal narration. The times when he flowery descriptors he would leave all character behind and the language just presented itself as a masturbatory demonstration of Wilson’s ability to use poetic devices.

Reading fantasy series as a child I would often start in the middle of a series, love the book, and have to go back to the very beginning. More often than not, however, I would find that the first book was my least favorite in the series. These books were a slapdash introduction to the characters, the fantasy world, the premise, and the characters’ overarching goal throughout the series. As with most sitcom pilots, they tend to leave you cringing, wondering how this ever got picked up as a series in the first place. I couldn’t help but wonder if it was the same with 100 Cupboards.

Wilson’s writing could be forgiven because his story is good. He has created wonderful characters, a rich fantasy world, an intriguing premise, and the foundations for what could be solid overarching goals for the characters. Unfortunately, in presenting one of these goals, he botched the ending of the book. Once again, I was taken aback, but unlike with the language, it was too simple. I didn’t buy it.

What had been a secret between Henry and Henrietta, was suddenly spread amongst the cast. I followed Wilson as he told me that Uncle Frank and Aunt Dotty already knew about the cupboards. But then in the last quarter of the book, he spilled the beans to the two sisters that were barely present in the story. It was hard to see why they needed to be included all of the sudden.

At the same time, he introduced three new characters, one of which was the series’ antagonist who just waltzed into the house and knocked everyone out effortlessly. If her magic is that strong, how is the reader supposed to believe the deus ex machina of Henry rushing through a magical cupboard at just the right time and tackling her?

The last straw is when the handsome neighbor conveniently comes over to play baseball with Henry, gets involved in the struggle, and knocks the antagonist out with his bat.

In the end, I was overwhelmed. By the end of the book, the cupboards had gone from a secret between two to a family affair. There are 8 people, including a neighbor and a child escaped from an alternate universe, to keep up with in the next book. Of course that does not include the departed Grandfather’s mysterious mistakes that set this all in motion or the unimaginatively named WitchQueen’s growing reign of terror.

I really like the premise of the story, and have a strong feeling that the rest in the series will be stronger than the first book, as is often the case with fantasy series. That being said, Wilson’s use of language will undoubtedly persist and it is impossible to predict whether the end of the others will be as ludicrous as 100 Cupboards.

Honestly, I would not recommend reading this book, unless you have fallen in love with others in the series and want a little background.

Even more honestly, I probably would have read this series in elementary school, regardless of the flaws; I really did enjoy the premise and the worlds Wilson created.