Christopher's Folly
At the time I wrote Christopher's Folly, we had two cats, Tigger and Buddy. On weekends we would leave for our cottage on Friday afternoons and return on Monday mornings. One Monday morning, Tigger decided to hide in an out-of-reach place. I got so angry with her. When she realized how mad I was, she came out on her own, thoroughly repentant.For the rest of that week, I felt so guilty and sorry about my anger with her. Well, she had that effect on me, eh. Someday, I'll tell you her story, too, along with Buddy’s. From how I treated her, I expanded my thinking to how we treat animals in the wild overall, and how we take, take, take. The next time we were at the cottage, a story came to me – all of it, all at once. By Sunday night I had the first draft and all I had to do was choose a name for my character. I thought of Christopher Columbus, “What if they had come with different intentions?” In my story, Christopher mistreats his dog, Princess. That night he dreams that he travels to a land where only animals live. They welcome him and show him how to live. But he takes too much and two of the animals disappear. Guided by the spirits of these two animals, Christopher thinks about the harm he has done and what he must do in the future. ReviewsThis absorbing story is an allegory about humanity’s arrogance toward the environment. The modern world’s self-destructive greed is easy to recognize in young Christopher. Yet Mosionier tells her story without alienating people from nature. Humans, Christopher discovers, are not enemies of the environment but an essential part of it. The animal characters in the illustrations by Terry Galagher are especially enjoyable. Highly recommended. - Steve Pitt, Canadian Book Review Annual, 1997
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