8/31/12

The Ghost of Opalina, or Nine Lives, by Peggy Bacon

The Ghost of Opalina, or Nine Lives, by Peggy Bacon (1967), is an utterly charming cat ghost fantasy story.

It starts in my most favorite way: "Phillip, Ellen, and Jeb Finley lived in the city until young Jeb was five years old. Then their parents bought a house near the village of Heatherfield, and, in late August, they all went to live in the country.

The house was large, rambling, and very old, set down on thick soft lawns like green fur, with wads of moss under the big old trees. There were old barns, old gardens full of box, a lily pool, old-fashioned flowers and shrubs."

I love books about children moving to old houses with lovely gardens, so I was predisposed in the book's favor from the get go.

And then I met Opalina--an cat whose opinion of herself is worthy of an E. Nespit magical creature. She is the ghost of a cat who met an untimely end in the 18th century, and she manifests to the children, who are delighted to make her acquaintance. She regales them with tales of her various lives spent living in the old house, keeping a keen eye on its inhabitants, and haunting when necessary.

The book is episodic, in that each of Opalina's stories is its own self-contained unit of historical fiction, but that being said, the story of the house through time as told to its new inhabitants (who have their own difficulties to face fitting in to their new schools) makes a satisfying whole. Something of the same sort as happens, for instance, in The Sherwood Ring, by Elizabeth Marie Pope.

In addition, I was charmed (unexpectedly, cause often I don't notice these things) by the illustrations (which are the author's own). This one, in particular, tickles me tremendously:

That's Opalina, haunting the dog that killed her in comet-like form.

I highly recommend it to any reader of children's books who is both a cat lover and old house lover! I'm awfully glad it was still in my state's library system (too expensively out of print to buy--$800 on Amazon!), and thank you, those commentors who recommend it to me when I reviewed Caterpillar Hall!

14 comments:

  1. I remember this fondly. I just checked to see if it is still owned by the library branch where I read it: part of me is happy it has not been discarded but part of me is sad that the Boston Public Library owns it but does not allow it to circulate. That prevents it from being stolen, certainly, but no new children will find it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ah gee, what's the fun of a book that can't circulate.

      Delete
  2. Oh my on the amazon price tag. And double oh my on the book! That opening! Off to see if my library system has it...but if no, ILL will work!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I put in my ILL request after I read the Caterpillar Hall comments, too! So glad The Ghost of Opalina doesn't disappoint! And I love the illustrations, too (more about them later).

    ReplyDelete
  4. Maybe you should snap up that $800 copy - the price quoted on Amazon UK is over $3000! It's a shame, I'd love to read it, it looks enchanting and that illustration is gorgeous.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That is astounding! Somehow I don't imagine it selling...

      Delete
  5. Once in a while Opalina shows up on eBay for auction with the bids starting low but then rising out sight in the last few hours of the auction.

    I sent an email to Purple House Press about Opalina. They specialize in bringing back out of print books. But haven't received a reply.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I hope they do; I sent this copy back to the library from whence it came with a little note saying it was worth something...I felt they should know. But I hope they keep it in ciculation!

      Delete
  6. I've been looking for this book for years! But as you noticed, it's become a collector's item -- apparently long since stolen from most public libraries. Thank you for reviewing it, as I've wondered whether it was as wonderful as I recall it. My absolute favorite book in the world when I was about 10 years old...and I jumped for joy to see that illustration of Opalina haunting the dog! Please may someone wise bring this back into print!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I have a copy. It was my very favorite book as a child. My first copy I checked out of the school library in the early 70's, and promptly lost it. After my parents paid for it, it was found again, and I read it many, many times. Sadly, it was also my sister's favorite and she took it to her house, and eventually sold it at a yard sale....probably for a quarter.
    I finally bought one 6 years ago. Not for a quarter, but I didn't pay 800.00 either!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I too love this book and had been enamored by it for years after starting it in 5th grade. It took me many years to track it down and I finally aquired a copy. It is my most cherished book!

      Delete
  8. I loved this book as a child, and now at almost 46 years old I am going to read it again!

    ReplyDelete
  9. A digital edition of this book is now available on Amazon.com for $9.99! It ain't the real thing, but I am so happy to be able to read the story and enjoy the illustrations once again.

    ReplyDelete

Free Blog Counter

Button styles