I’ve given up counting books in the Chrestomanci series because clearly my library and other sources number them differently but I’m sure that The Lives of Christopher Chant is not one of the books I’ve read yet.
If you’re familiar with the “current” Chrestomanci who appears in Charmed Life (the first book in the series), you should know that his name is Christopher Chant. The Lives of Christopher Chant is basically his backstory – how he came to discover he has nine lives and how he started learning about the role of the Chrestomanci. And of course, there’s dragon blood smuggling involved.
What struck me the most about this book is how DWJ managed to balance the fact that Christopher’s a child with the fact that children are the heroes of the story. On one of his trips to the other worlds, Christopher meets the vessel for The Living Asheth, a girl who’s called goddess and then Millie in the book. Both Christopher and Millie are powerful magic users, but they are both children! So while they have key roles to play, I thought it was interesting that they do not make the right judgements all the time – in fact, some big problems arise when Christopher chooses to trust the wrong person. It was a good balance between having the two of them as key characters who are needed to solve the problem and reminded the reader that as children, they can’t be expected to know everything.
Apart from that, I also enjoyed seeing what Christopher is like as a child. As the Chrestomanci, he’s a rather mysterious, unpredictable but very wise adult. As a child, he’s very different – and it makes sense! He hasn’t even begun training to be Chrestomanci in most of the book. I did read that there is another book about his life and I wonder how it would bridge Christopher as a child and Christopher as the adult Chrestomanci.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. The Chrestomanci series isn’t tied together chronologically, since the protagonists of most books aren’t related, so I enjoyed getting to know more about the person who ties all the adventures together.
I don’t know if I have ever read any of Diana Wynne Jones’ books. If I did, it was before I began tracking my reading. I feel like I probably did though, maybe when I was growing up. She’s come highly recommended to my daughter. I think we both would like The Chrestomanci series.
I think the Chrestomanci series would be something both of you would enjoy! And maybe Howl’s Moving Castle – you can always read and compare the book to the movie (:
I didn’t know there’s another book about his life. Do you know the title? And I agree about your observation that they are kids but also key magic users and make mistakes. It shows that they have a lot of growing up to do and lots to learn.
It’s supposed to be Conrad’s Fate (according to Wikipedia), although idk if Chrestomanci is the main character or just a character with a significant role.
[…] How about classic YA and dragon blood smuggling? Eustacia at Eustea Reads gets into Dianna Wynne Jones’ The Lives of Christopher Chant […]
I just started this series (with Charmed Life) so I’m happy to know that it’s just as enjoyable at book 5 (according to the series data I’m reading by) as it is at book 1 🙂
I hope you continue to enjoy the series as well!