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Magic and Milieu

 by Joanna Skevis

Secret worlds. Magic and mystery hidden in plain sight, invisible to ordinary eyes. And aren't we thrilled to enter such worlds, riding the  mind of an outsider? This describes milieu stories, which focus on the place in which the story is set. The first chapter book I ever read was a milieu story. It was called Afternoon of the Elves, by Janet Taylor Lisle. I reread it countless times, even after I had moved on to more challenging books. There was something so magical about the dreamy children's fantasy that I never really outgrew it.

Milieu stories are written for readers of all ages. And some, meant for children, hold powerful appeal for adults as well. Consider the Harry Potter series. Readers far older than Harry sympathize with his plight and delight in his world. These stories are accessible to children, yet are as rich and thoughtful as many books for older readers.

           So what is that magic that made Afternoon of the Elves worth reading over and over, and made Harry Potter so famous? Literal magic they have in common, and yet many fantasies fall flat, the sparkle and flash of magic not enough to make up for deficiencies in character development and logical flow. It is the fascination of a strange milieu, and the transformation of a sympathetic character. That Harry didn't know he belonged in the magical world makes our discovery of it (when Hagrid says "Yer a wizard, Harry!") all the more enchanting.

           You see, milieu stories—many speculative works fit the description—have three parts, or phases. The first is discovery, when the outsider/protagonist pierces the veil of mystery and secrecy to enter a hidden world and earn the natives' trust. The next phase involves detailed, loving descriptions of a world unlike our own, as seen through the protagonist’s reactions as (s)he becomes more and more an insider. The last stage is action/determination as the protagonist and major characters participate in dramatic events that alter the milieu.

           Of course, the phases can overlap. And different fantasies give differing amounts of time to each phase. Some, such as The Lord of the Rings, skip the discovery phase altogether, by featuring a native protagonist. The mystery stops halfway through book one in HP as Harry becomes part of the magical world, in fact, a feature player.

           Afternoon of the Elves takes a different tack—the entire tale is about the discovery, although the other two stages are used in an unusual way. Hillary, an ordinary girl, is invited by her strange next-door neighbor to see, in Sara-Kate's overgrown garbage dump of a backyard, a miniature village Sara-Kate says is inhabited by elves.  Sara-Kate tells Hillary everything about them. As Hillary slowly becomes an insider, her time with Sara-Kate and the elf village changes how she views the real world.

          This, I believe is the magic of Afternoon of the Elves and Harry Potter, among others. Stories like these throw a light on a mundane world that is really anything but if we look with open eyes. They show that appearances can and often do lie. They tell us that magic is there, if we could only see it just beyond the veil.  If only we could walk through the wall to Track 9 ½ or divine the passage into Diagon Alley. Sara-Kate knows and Hillary learns that the way to find this magical world is not about where you look, but how.

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