Embedded Files
Paul Berna
I really enjoyed this book set around a network of islands and fenland in Brittany. It is an area that Fanch knows like the back of his hand and loves, this love of the sea makes us love it too, the varied landmarks, the currents to steer by and tides that hide and reveal areas to explore. Fanch likes the freedom and the solitude of sailing so it is telling whenever he decides to open up his boat to share with someone else. Lots of these moments of decision are brilliantly gentle and understated. As Lise (a friend of Fanch’s) says, her investigation of the titular mystery is only because she wants to share a moment of doing something happy with him. This idea of moments that create, cement or change friendships is present throughout the book. This structure of significant moments partially stems from Fanch’s character. He is careful, a watcher and a thinker, but happy to make decisive moves when he makes up his mind to something. He is also unusually self-assured for a character in a children’s book. In many ways he reminds me of Vango, not just for his character but for his deep attachment to an adopted mother on an island.
Fanch’s sense of freedom is challenged when a dinghy he salvages brings attention of the harbour master and crooks alike. Much of the book is in uncovering the story of this boat and what makes it so special. This makes a book that, without Fanch’s expert knowledge, could easily be a Swallows and Amazons type book about exploration and discovery into a mystery that reminds me a little more of The Big Six although with a very different tone. Fanch’s freedom is also challenged by his long-term rivalry with the schoolmaster who he calls Blackbeard and who tries to stop his truanting. When Blackbeard finally catches up to him the story takes an unexpected turn with another of those moments that make the book so lovely.
I enjoyed the illustrations throughout, particularly of Lise as they give her a quiet tomboyish look. Lise is an interesting character, their long friendship recognises that he can need his own space and time. In fact it often feels very asymmetrical with Lise caring a lot more about Fanch than he does about her until another of those moments deepens our understanding of Fanch. Many of the moments share this character, revealing a little more about an instinctively private main character and making him as much a mystery as the boat he unearths.
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