Welcome to the Land of Elyon. First-time writer Patrick Carman weaves a tale for young and old about a mythical land full of mystery in The Dark Hills Divide, the first entry in the Land of Elyon series (a trilogy is planned). It’s a series clearly targeted at kids, but any fan of the fantasy genre will quickly and hungrily devour it.The story concerns a young girl named Alexa Daley, who has a knack for getting into trouble and poking her nose into places it doesn’t belong. This is strongly frowned upon by the citizens of Bridewell, the walled village she visits once a year with her father. Bridewell is connected to three other walled cities, via three vast, walled roads. In essence, all four towns and the roads that connect them are walled in together, with no way to reach the outside, and no way for anything outside to get in.But things are not as they seem in Bridewell, as Alexa soon learns. The discovery of an engraved gemstone leads her to find a way out of the city, and it’s there she learns from a group of animals that she is destined to accomplish a very important task concerning a buried chapter of Bridewell’s dark past.If these story elements sound familiar — the young chosen one, the land full of mystery and enchantment, the fantastic creatures, and hints of a dark past — it’s because they are staples of the fantasy genre. Every fantasy writer from Tolkien and Lewis down to Rowling has used these archetypes to weave their tales. The trick, as always, is to find a new angle — a new way of telling the story so that it seems fresh and exciting.The angle that Carman takes is to pose the question: did the builders of the walls of Bridewell really intended to keep something out? Or keep something in? These questions naturally lead to universal questions about why walls of all kinds are built, and the importance of fair treatment and human dignity, which are certainly questions worth asking. The book doesn’t delve quite as deeply into them as one might hope, but it’s enough to spark conversation.The story breezes along pleasantly with an easygoing prose and short, digestible chapters. Carman gives extra attention to describing architecture and objects in great detail, especially in the opening chapters. It’s in those first few chapters where Carman stumbles a bit — he takes a great deal of time setting up his backstory and establishing the locations and characters before the story ever seems to get underway. But if you can make it past those opening chapters, the story is worth getting to.After the tale reaches its knuckle-biting conclusion, the book comes to a satisfying close. Yet we’re left with the knowledge that this is only Book One, and there is much more to come. Carman is off to an auspicious start, and fans are already hungry for more. Fortunately, he’s recently signed with Scholastic, Inc., to publish the entire series, so we can rest easy knowing that the rest of this classic tale-in-the-making, will surely be told. Check it out online

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