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Aiken left behind 'Wolves Chronicles' and legacy of literature

Joan Aiken left behind a legacy of children's literature.JOAN AIKEN, who died in January at the age of 79, wrote poetry, plays and short stories for all ages, but it was for her children's books that she was best known.

Date published: 3/9/2004

Starting with "The Wolves of Willoughby Chase" in 1962, Aiken invented a Victorian world of wicked governesses, strong-minded orphans, and reversals of fortune that would have made Dickens proud.

Even better, Aiken set the "Wolves Chronicles"--there were 10 books written over 40 years--in an alternative England where King James III reigns (the House of Hanover has never ascended the throne) and America was once invaded by the Romans (some of us still speak Latin, it seems).

These changes allowed Aiken to stretch her imagination to its limits, setting her books everywhere from London to Nantucket, in Roman America (what we would call South America), and in a chilling underground world where hundreds of children are kept hidden.

Her characters are equally inventive, starting with Dido Twite.

Introduced in "Black Hearts in Battersea" as a feisty Cockney waif, Dido is passionate, fearless, and filled with an adventurous spirit. That stands her in good stead as she maneuvers through myriad political intrigues and the machinations of villains, including her own rascal of a father. Her language is colorful, too.

"So why do I have to be off-loaded in this mirsky capsy way in the dead o' night without a word's warning?" she complains as she's rowed to shore on a foggy night.

Equally appealing is Simon, who first appears in "Wolves" as a poor gooseboy who rescues Bonnie and her cousin Sylvia after their parents leave on a sea voyage and the cruel Miss Slighcarp sends the girls to an orphan school.

Aiken tantalized readers by introducing new characters such as Dido's sister Is (short for Isabel), featured in "Is Underground" and "Cold Shoulder Road."

But she returned to Dido and Simon in her most recent book, "Midwinter Nightingale," published last fall.

The story begins on a train creeping through the dark, rainy countryside, as Simon makes his way to the ailing King Richard.

Simon must keep the king's whereabouts hidden from his enemies, especially the horrible Baron Magnus, who's spent the last 15 years shut up in the Tower of London, accused of being a werewolf. He's also in search of the missing coronet which must be worn at the crowning of the king's successor.

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Date published: 3/9/2004