THE DIAMOND IN THE WINDOW

In her first book, The Majesty of Grace, Jane Langton revealed remarkable insight into the inner life of a very normal, very charming little girl — a child the reader could identify with. Grace's struggle to achieve a compromise between fantasy and reality held an important lesson as well as a profound truth for her young audience. This second book reflects a vast departure in theme and style. Reminiscent in structure of Alice In Wonderland, it gives full vent to fantasy in following the escapades of Eddy and Eleanor in a world of dreams and nightmares. An old New England house about to be usurped by creditors, is the setting. Tracing valuable treasure to save it,- the problem. The solid citizens of Concord have threatened Aunt Lily with eviction unless she can scrape up the back taxes on her house. Determined to help, Eddy and Eleanor begin rummaging through the attic and discover a hidden room where two children lived years ago. According to Aunt Lily, Ned and Nora disappeared from their beds along with her fiance, Prince Krishna. As Eddy and Eleanor settle down in the mysterious beds, they are thrown headlong into a series of dual dreams —exciting and colorful — each inspired by Uncle Freddy's quotations from Thorean and Emerson or by a possible clue to the hidden treasure. The bubble dream climaxes a long odyssey. Eddy vanquishes the villain imprisoning the missing trio and Prince Krishna presents Aunt Lily with the Star of India, a precious jewel heretofore considered worthless. The fantasy, however rich in detail, is unaccented and too cumbersome to sustain attention, though there is much to be said in praise of Miss Langton's imagery. The attempt to weave New England history into the main fabric — to incorporate Thoreau's and Emerson's ideas, is fascinating but may be ineffectual for this age group.