"Mirrormask" by Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean

"Mirrormask" (2005)

Written By: Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean

Illustrated By: Dave McKean

Source: Personal library

Website: Mirrormask


Synopsis: Helena Campbell is 15, the young daughter of entertainers whose lives revolve around a travelling circus. Although raised in the circus, Helena often dreams of leaving and joining what she calls the "real life". Joanne, Helena's mother, falls ill one night, after a fight with Helena, who now believes she is to blame for what happened to her mother. On the night of Joanne's surgery, Helena dreams of a strange world. The White Queen has fallen ill, and Helena is being blamed for it. A Princess who looks exactly like Helena has stolen the Charm (whatever that is) and the only way to make things right again is for that Charm to be retrieved. Helena goes on a quest to find the Charm, which turns out to be the Mirrormask. But before she can get to it, Helena meets strange characters (a man named Valentine who doesn't want to be a waiter), is captured by the Shadow Queen, and eventually meets the Princess, who's a mirror image of her, and who is bent on taking over her life.

Favorite Quotes

"Listen to those kids there", said Mum. "They all want to run away and join the circus."
"Let them," I said. "I want to run away and join Real Life."

Real-life Connections
"Mirrormask" (the movie) has been shown in selected theaters in the US and was received with varying reviews. Most people who aren't familiar with the previous collaborations of Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean probably would not immediately take to either the book or the movie, but those who are fans of their work will love the book. It actually feels more like a graphic novel, only easier to read, in my opinion. I haven't seen the movie, but if it's anything like the book, then we are all in for a treat. :)

Insights
Most of "Mirrormask", I believe, is an allegory, describing parallels between the struggles of Helena in the real world and in her dream. Just when I thought she has managed to escape the trials of her own Real World, she is plunged into another, with a different set of challenges, but with the same lessons to be learned. The challenges take on a more appealing guise, but does that make them easier to overcome? I think not.

Review
"Mirrormask", though following the "Alice in Wonderland" route that "Coraline" also took, feels a lot more surreal than "Coraline" was for me. Although Helena met her other self in much the same way as Coraline met her Other parents, Helena's Other World was fantastical, while Coraline's was just a mirror of her real world. The writing style is signature Gaiman, but when combined with McKean's art, it becomes almost like a graphic novel, with the art supplementing the reader's own visualization of the world being described. Somewhere along the way, the story became a little too weird for me, I admit, but that happens to me almost everytime when reading something of Gaiman's, so I am not surprised. I guess my imagination isn't up to par with his. :p

Rating (out of 5 dreamcatchers)