It seemed that the world was full of flowers, brilliant flowers that were orange and blue and yellow and white. They were waving slowly on long stalks like tall grass in the wind. There were shady trees and a river close by, making a soft singing sound as it flowed. But, astonishingly, the trees were purple and the river was golden and the sky above was a bright translucent red."

The first thing that needs be said is that Julie Andrews Edwards clearly has a love of the English language as much as a love of imagination. This is a novel aimed at kids, and perhaps because of that, she's packed it full of incredibly descriptive language, and from time to time she'll have one of the adult characters explain a word to the kids, usually in a very whimsical way. And I think in that regard it was just a triumph.

In an age where writing classes seem to have it in for adverbs, it's refreshing to see an author so obviously having fun using them.

As to the fantasy world of the Whangdoodle: it's incredibly marvelous and charming. One of the reviews on the back compares it to 'Alice in Wonderland,' and 'The Wizard of Oz', and I would add 'The Phantom Tollbooth.' It's that brand of whimsical fantasy where the water sings when you touch it, there's a boat where you can order any type of ice cream you want, flowers that smell like freshly baked bread, a cat who lives in a house made of yarn, and a creature with a sweet tooth with a picture of a daisy on it. And all just because, why not?

And honestly, it's so much fun getting to explore a fantasy world that isn't too caught up in its own mechanics. How does any of this work? Where did this world come from? Who knows, who cares? Let's just wander around discovering things.

There's a major through-line about the importance of fostering imagination, about teamwork, very staple messaging for a book aimed at kids of a certain age (8-12 according to the back of the book).

There is a very weird turn at the end when the fantasy comes slamming to a halt because the main adult character is charged with using his knowledge as a professor of genetics to engineer another Whangdoodle for the titular king of this world.

That was...a choice. I have a feeling it must have been super topical when she wrote this, because she even dedicates the Epilogue to talking about it again: "We will have a tremendous responsibility on our hands. If we're going to play God we must try to do it with honor and decency." (p.277)

It feels very out of place to have this serious discussion about the implications of science in the real world in a story about a creature that grows slippers on his feet and subsists on candy. And it's made even weirder by the fact that he wants specifically for the Professor to create a female Whangdoodle to be his wife. And then when this is achieved, she isn't really able to speak and doesn't know anything and so the Professor reminds the Whangdoodle that he'll have to take care of her and teach her. I dunno, it was just very odd.

Like, sure, go wild with your science is the new creationism allegory, but at least try to make it a bit less... weird.

Luckily, this all goes on at the very end of the book, so the flow overall and the adventure of the kids and the professor trying to get to the Whangdoodle's castle is fun and exciting, and as I say: the worldbuilding up until we reach the castle feels natural and lighthearted.

Thouroughly enjoyed it (minus the genetics bit which I'm still scratching my head over).