Synopsis:
Sinister Horror Company presents The Old One and the Sea, a children’s book about the secret childhood of a young boy called Howard Phillips Lovecraft.
Howard is a lonely, isolated boy who lives in the run-down seaside town of Innsmouth. Most of the town’s men left to fight the Great War and didn’t come back, and those that did, like Howard’s neighbour Mr Derleth, brought their own scars and strange stories with them. None quite so strange as what is about to happen to Howard, however.
An undersea earthquake brings a strange black reef to the surface just off the coast of Innsmouth, and with it something else. Something old, and forgotten, and every bit as lonely as the young boy who discovers it. What follows is a unique and secret friendship that will change the life of both Howard and his bizarre new friend forever.
Edition:
E-book
Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary e-book copy of The Old One and the Sea from the publisher in exchange for review consideration. As usual, this does not in any way impact the contents of my review.
My Thoughts:
This is such a cute book. If I had children, I would most definitely have picked them up a hardcover copy of The Old One and the Sea. It hits all of the notes that I want from a kid’s book:
- a wealth of healthy messages (more on that in a moment)
- a cohesive story
- connection to genre
- cute illustrations
So, you’re probably wondering about those healthy messages, huh? The Old One and the Sea is basically a coming of age story. It deals with the value of friendship, the importance of standing up for what we believe, and why you shouldn’t default to fear when faced with the unknown, or believe everything you hear. While the rest of the town of Innsmouth is terrified and driven to near-violent frenzy at the very idea of Cthulu, young Howie has actually met the creature. And he rather likes him. Oolu is his friend, in fact. The introduction to the book encapsulates this idea very well, I think:
“A lot of older readers will tell you that they know him from other books, and they’ll probably tell you that he’s a whole lot different. That the story you’re about to read here isn’t right, because that character belongs in nightmares and scary books and creepy films. That they already know the right version, and what you’re holding here is entirely wrong.
Older readers always talk that way. It’s one of the saddest parts of growing up. We become like statues, unwilling to bend or flex. What we think we know becomes the truth, and it’s difficult to let that change.”
Much like Jones says that people become like statues, so too are the people of Innsmouth. They have heard bad things about Cthulu, and so they are not willing to give Oolu any sort of chance. As soon as they become aware he may be in the area, they start to rile themselves. Eventually they are so worked up that they are willing to do whatever it takes to find and end Oolu. Even if that means they have to get forceful with little Howie. Luckily the lonely little boy has more friends to rely upon than he realized.
About the Author:
Lex Jones was born and raised in Sheffield, north England, in 1985. A keen writer from a young age, he was always fascinated with the supernatural and is obsessed with stories. He loves films, books, theatre, video games, graphic novels, anything with a good story that captures the imagination. His books tend to have a supernatural (or at least ‘unusual’) undercurrent, as this moves them away from the more boring aspects of real life.
Rating:
I think this book is just too cute. It reminds me of The Adventures of Lil Cthulu, a video which YouTube has apparently now blocked in the US and I can’t seem to find anywhere else. But he looked like this, and I loved it, and I hate that I can’t do better than a tiny, janky lil screenshot.
I think it would be worthwhile to get in physical format if you have children to read to (or you just want to see the illustrations well – I don’t think an e-reader does them the justice they deserve).
The Old One and the Sea By Lex H. Jones Sinister Horror Company Published: November 1, 2019 ISBN: 9781912578153 Hardcover, Paperback, E-book 108 Pages Publisher's Website
