For Anyone Who Has Wandered

BETWIXT: A place, a not-here, not-there world somewhere in between.

I believe that Tara Bray Smith the author of Betwixt puts it so elegantly. “I liked the idea of there being an alternative current that hums and crackles just at the edge of our visible world. Now I realize it is a metaphor for the sometimes confused and ill-at-ease way we feel in our lives , but as a child I thought of it more realistically: if you enter that forest, you’ll go somewhere else. Somewhere exciting!” I love that idea that if I go through this closet or fall down that hole, I will be transported into a world that is not my own. Not a world that is make-believe or part of a fantasy. But somewhere that is within reach, somewhere that is on the other side of that door.

I am not going to lie I am 22 going on 6! I live for the fantasy and fairy tale life. That just within reach world that is so different from my own. Going to school and dealing with the ups and downs of everyday life sometimes makes it hard to remember what being a kid really feels like, the carefree days and wild adventures. Books allow me to feel this way without even moving from the couch. In the book Betwixt, Smith resonated those feelings within myself. She made it possible to put yourself into the book and relate to Morgan, Nix and Ondine.

At the beginning they seem like normal kids, who live a normal boring life. After a trip out to a rave in the middle of the woods these three realize that they are not as normal as they thought. They actually belong to a group called the Fay, and are actually changelings. (fairy creatures traded at birth with real children, with odd powers and seeming lack of human empathy). They began to question the life they have been living and the people they have grown to know and love. If they are changelings who else around them also belongs to this fantasy world. They have a hard time grasping the concept and their destiny as fay.

I did enjoy this book, but not for the main reasons one should enjoy a book. I really found the way in which Smith approached the story amazing. It is not until half way through the book that you find out what the characters actually are. But you learn about their life and they all became part of each others lives before they knew the truth. I also enjoyed how Smith wrote the book from multiple perspectives. It really gave the book depth and allowed you to learn more about each character because you could see them from others eyes. The one thing that I feel like lacked in this book is Smith left many questions unanswered and many things very vague.

Having a high interest in the fantasy and fairy tale life. I was able to make inferences and assumptions about many events and questions I had. But if someone were to pick up this book having no background I feel like they would be left confused. I also did not find the ending quite satisfying. It is left open, which can be seen as a good thing because it leaves one to create their own idea with what happens. It was just left to open and with no real direction.

“When you find something out about yourself that you’ve always known, how are you supposed to feel? Not shocked,because the knowledge isn’t wholly a surprise. Not at ease. Consciousness rarely breeds ease.”