The Witch’s Boy

The Witch’s Boy by Kelly Barnhill

Genre: fantasy

I read it as a(n): paperback

Length: 372 pp

Her Grace’s rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Once, there were twin brothers, Tam and Ned, who built a raft to go to sea. The raft broke and Tam drowned in the river. Ned nearly died of an infection until his mother, grieving over the loss of Tam, captured Tam’s soul and stitched it to Ned. The villagers said that the wrong boy lived because Ned was never the same, speaking with a terrible stutter and not being able to read or write. At the same time in another part of the world, Aine, the daughter of the bandit king, learns that the wrong boy will help her and save the kingdom from a devastating war.

This book was pure fantastical joy. It seamlessly wove together the magical with the mundane, which is one of my favorite storytelling tropes. Everywhere in the story, there are elements of magic, from the way Ned’s mother, known as Sister Witch, captures Tam’s soul, to the forest that moves and protects those it cares about, to the standing stones and their living memories. Magic in this world is wicked, always trying to lead those who wield it to misuse it in some way. Sister Witch remained good and uncorrupted by the magic because she kept it in a clay pot in the basement. Her one time slipping up was in stitching Tam’s soul to Ned. The villagers in general are quick to leave her and eventually Ned on the outskirts of society, but are even quicker to call on her if they need help to heal a sick child or injured adult. Ned, too, is shunned and demeaned, blamed in some way for Tam’s death and treated as an idiot because he couldn’t read or write and could barely speak. 

Set as a counterweight to Sister Witch’s goodness and her resistance to the corrupting influence of the magic is Aine’s father, the bandit king. He has a talisman made from a piece of the stones that hold most of the magic in the world. The stones are ready to move into a new form and leave the world, taking the magic with them. Aine’s father, however, is driven partly mad by the magic and he is at its whim, using it for wicked deeds and lacking the strength of will to control it. 

The way people view Sister Witch and Ned explores the idea that the things we fear the most can also be a source of salvation. The dichotomy between being seen as outcasts but also as someone who is needed is a great metaphor for the dualities we face in ourselves. It also shows that embracing differences and facing down our fears can lead to self-discovery and growth.

Love and friendship are central themes in the story. The unconditional love between Tam and Ned is fairly gut-wrenching. When Aine comes along, the friendship she and Ned form help him to deal with his grief and guilt while at the same time giving Aine a new focus for her unmoored existence. The bonds that form between Ned and Aine as well as between the wolf and both children show how genuine love and friendship can help to heal, awaken hidden strengths, and inspire deep courage. The trust, loyalty, and unflagging support this unlikely group of friends share with one another transcend the social norms of both their societies and defy the expectations of all who know them. In the end, Aine’s love for her father is what redeems him, though his redemption comes at a high price, and the love Ned’s parents have for him and his brother breaks the curse he’s had of carrying a soul that is not his. All of these various relationships highlight the transformative power of love.

At its core, The Witch’s Boy is a story about the transformative power of love and the unbreakable bonds of friendship. Barnhill effortlessly captures the essence of these emotions, exploring how they can guide us through life’s darkest moments. 

Favorite line:

• A word, after all, is a kind of magic. It locks the substance of a thing in sound or syllable, and affixes it to the ear, or paper, or stone. Words call the world into being (29).