The king feared he might die before his niece, Victoria, turned eighteen, since this would make the Duchess of Kent regent, ruling on behalf of Victoria until she came of age. The old monarch loathed the duchess. He made it quite clear that he hoped the power of the throne might never fall into the duchess’s hands, but his health was failing fast, and Victoria’s birthday was still months away. As a fail-safe, the king ordered Darwin to feed the chameleomorph a steady diet of his own, royal blood. It was his hope that a facsimile king might rule just long enough for Victoria to come of age, if necessary.
Darwin, a loyal subject, reluctantly obeyed. Fortunately, William survived a full month beyond Victoria’s birthday, and the bizarre project was aborted—but not before the beast had developed a nearly perfect resemblance to the old man.
With no human language or social cues, the doppelgänger was a grotesque caricature of the king. Most disturbing of all, the thing craved human blood, and it grew violent unless supplied with a meal laced with the stuff. When she learned of the secret, the newly crowned Queen Victoria was horrified and disgusted. She ordered the creature destroyed, along with all of Darwin’s notes on the species, lest some immoral soul be tempted to recreate her uncle’s abomination in a twisted effort to secure the crown.
Darwin again obliged his ruler, completely editing the monumental discovery out of his Journal and Remarks concerning the voyage of the HMS Beagle. The findings did fuel his interest in the abilities of organisms to adapt and change, and one can practically see the creature hiding just beneath the words in his subsequent publication of his work, The Origin of Species.
Ever the scientist, however, Darwin could not completely destroy such spectacular knowledge, and he created a secret dossier of the entire affair. These documents, never published, were kept in a location known only to Darwin himself.
At the time of his death in 1882, Darwin’s dossier resurfaced. How Jackaby came to be in possession of such an impossible artifact I have never learned, but he allowed me to take a quick glimpse at its pages before returning it to the shady Dangerous Documents section of his private library. More than just chameleomorphs, the collection comprised accounts of dozens of unfathomable entities. In the few moments I had with the journal, I saw entries that I fear may never be cleansed from my memory. Strange and exotic grotesqueries seared themselves in my mind, but worse still were the ones all too familiar. It is a profoundly unsettling experience to see childhood nightmares—things recalled as horrid fantasies—laid plain, in perfect detail, upon the page. Jackaby had said not knowing was the worst, but I must confess, on many dark nights since then, I have found myself nostalgic for my ignorance.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
There are several people I wish to recognize, without whom this series would not exist. Elise Howard has been Jackaby’s fairy godmother in so many ways, using her magic to usher it through countless essential transformations. Thank you for helping get my ragged little manuscript all dressed up for the ball. Lucy Carson has stalwartly championed these books, pushing through hell and high water to help my stories weather the storm and see the light of day. Above all, Katrina Santoro has been Jackaby’s guardian angel from the start. She has been a sounding board, an anchor to reality, and wings to greater heights. She has saved readers from some of my worst writing and helped bring out some of my best. At my most confident I consider myself her creative equal, and my efforts to earn the right to that claim have made Jackaby a better series and me a better writer. Thank you for everything. Thank you to my parents—Eleanor, Russ, Janice, Frank, Kacy, and Joe—and to all my friends and family. I am humbled to have received such supportive encouragement from so many people every step of the way.
Beastly Bones
William Ritter
Questions for Discussion
ALGONQUIN
Questions for Discussion
1. Abigail takes great care to describe the living spaces of those around her—from Jackaby’s eclectic assortment of objects to Charlie’s minimal personalization of his home. When you go to a person’s house, what sorts of things are the most telling about their personality? How do William Ritter’s descriptions of the characters’ spaces contribute to your understanding of those characters?
2. On page 75, Jackaby says, “Deep down, our dear Jenny does not believe the truth is hers to find. Until she does, I do not know if providing it to her would be a kindness. Perhaps she fears the answers might be more painful than the questions, and I cannot say that they will not be.” Is it sometimes a kindness to withhold or not pursue the truth? If so, is this one of those times?
3. Miss Fuller is, in many respects, the type of woman Abigail hoped to become when immigrating to the United States. How does Miss Fuller’s influence affect Abigail—especially her performance as a detective? Is Jackaby or Miss Fuller a better role model for Abigail? Why?
4. Miss Fuller tells Abigail, “Behind every great man is a woman who gave up on greatness and tied herself into an apron” (page 181). Was this universally true in the 1890s? Do you think it is true today?
5. Do you think Abigail will ever return to England? If she were to return, how would her parents receive her? How do you think her time in America would affect her own expectations and choices for her life back in England?
6. On page 193, Jackaby says that Mr. Hudson once had a goldfish capable of granting him any wish he desired if he set it free, but Mr. Hudson made no wishes. What might be behind Mr. Hudson’s decision to keep the goldfish—and behind his collection of magical creatures in general?
7. Abigail sees the pale man multiple times throughout the course of Beastly Bones. Given that the pale man is creating paranormal mayhem, why might he be staying within sight of Abigail and Jackaby, in particular? What larger things might he be up to?
8. On page 217, Abigail says, “I bade Charlie goodnight and sank into my bed. In my mind I could see Jenny Cavanaugh shaking her head in disappointment at my shoddy display, and then Nellie Fuller rolling her eyes at my having tried at all.” What might Jenny and Nellie have thought of Charlie’s behavior in this scene? Did he have an opportunity to make his feelings for Abigail more overt—or were they obvious enough? Were you happy with the progression of Abigail and Charlie’s relationship?
9. How might the ending of Beastly Bones have been different had Miss Fuller had a different fate?
10. Hatun’s prophecy about Abigail’s death still hangs over her. Do you expect it to come true?
Reader’s Guide by Emily Parliman
KATRINA SANTORO
WILLIAM RITTER began writing Jackaby in the middle of the night when his son was still an infant. After getting up to care for him, Will would lie awake, his mind creating rich worlds and fantasies—such as the one in New Fiddleham. Will lives and teaches in Springfield, Oregon. Beastly Bones is his second novel. Visit Will online at rwillritter.wordpress.com and find him on Twitter: @Willothewords.
A well-read life begins here.
Visit AlgonquinYoungReaders.com for more information on Algonquin Young Readers titles, including
Book Excerpts
Original Author Essays
Character Sketches
Author Q&As
Extended Author Bios
Educator Guides
Reading Guides
Activities
And more!
And connect with us online:
Follow us on twitter.com/AlgonquinYR
Like us on facebook.com/AlgonquinYoungReaders
Follow us on AlgonquinYoungReaders.tumblr.com
Published by
Algonquin Young Readers
an imprint of Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
Post Office Box 2225
Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27515-2225
a division of
Workman Publishing
225 Varick Street
New York, New York 10014
© 2015 by William Ritter.
All rights reserved.
Beastly Bones Page 21