Is there anything better than reading a much-loved classic from our childhood? Join us on the PaperBound Blog as we chat with fantasy author Robin Jarvis all about the return of his tantalisingly dark-edged series, The Deptford Mice, starting with Book One: The Dark Portal.
Your book, The Dark Portal, is the first in a series that captivated many readers’ imaginations over the years, and is now back with an updated text and brand new illustrations. Can you tell us a little more about it, and why you decided to give a new lease of life to this series?
Daniel Seton, editor at Pushkin Children’s Books contacted me and said he’d love to reissue the series, as he was a fan of the mice back in the day. It’s also the 35th anniversary too, so it was absolutely the right time and it’s given me the chance to cram as many new illustrations in there as possible.
You are returning to this series after working on other things for a number of years. Are you excited about inspiring a new generation of readers? What are you looking forward to most?
I was actually a bit nervous at first, as it’s been a while since I last ventured into those Deptford sewers, but the characters have never been far from my thoughts. They really have continued to live out their lives in my head, so I know what they’ve been up to. I hope new readers will be able to dive into that world and be excited and a bit scared by it. I’ve had brilliant feedback already from the original fans who now have children of their own, and it’s been such a pleasure to hear that the stories have stayed with them all this time.
The best stories are those with fright and menace in them. From a young age I watched anything with a monster in and enjoyed escaping into other worlds.
What do you think readers gain from your books, and do you think elements of fear in stories for younger readers can be a good thing?
Oh absolutely. The best stories are those with fright and menace in them. The original versions of fairy tales contained some really gruesome aspects, such as the stepsisters hacking off their toes and heels to squeeze their feet into the slipper, or the wicked queen in Snow White being made to wear red hot iron shoes and dance until she dropped dead. When I was young (a very long time ago) I was mad about monsters – still am. The scares in my books are safe scares. The threats are fantastical, the sort you’d never encounter in real life. I like to think of my books as white knuckle reads.
Is there anything you had to change when coming back to this book as you thought about it for a new audience?
Yes, apart from giving the writing a good old dusting, there were certain things that I wasn’t comfortable with, such as the Raddle sisters, two elderly mice who I originally described as ‘old maids’. Deary me, that had to go. The biggest change was Madame Akkikuyu, over recent years I’ve noticed she’s attracted criticism because some people thought there was a racial element and bolted human concerns onto her. She was a black rat, as in her fur was black, just as Piccadilly’s fur is grey and Oswald’s is white, but they all have pink skin. In fact, if Akkikuyu’s skin wasn’t pink, the tattoo on her ear wouldn’t stand out and that’s the big plot point of The Crystal Prison. Still, I don’t want anyone to get the wrong idea about her, so her fur is now a rich brown instead and the bone with which she stirred her potions has become a key from a tin of corned beef – which is a much better image anyway.
Your writing has been described as Brian Jacques’ Redwall meets Kieran Larwood’s Podkin One-Ear books. What other stories, writers or media have you been influenced by in your own writing?
From a young age I watched anything with a monster in and enjoyed escaping into other worlds. The Green Knowe series was a favourite, as was Tolkien.
You’ve had such a creative career so far. Do you have any tips for readers wanting to write or do something creative with their future?
Just read and absorb everything, until you decide what stories/styles/themes/characters you enjoy the most and that should give you an idea of what you want to do.
The Dark Portal by Robin Jarvis is published by Pushkin Children’s Books and out now. The next two books in the series, The Crystal Prison and The Final Reckoning, will be released in June and autumn of this year.
Robin Jarvis
When Robin isn’t writing, he’s probably making something, usually a creature from one of his books to take with him to events and signings. It’s something he’s always done.
Before he started writing, he was a model maker and he gets grumpy if he can’t make something. It’s so much easier now he has a resin printer, no more mess on the kitchen table for weeks on end. At the moment he’s making Madame Akkikuyu, which brings him full circle, as he first made a wearable version of her all the way back at the beginning, 35 years ago.
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