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The kingdom and the cave
Prince Michael is accompanied by the palace cat and a wise old mare on a long and dangerous search for the elusive Under People.
160 pages, Hardcover
First published March 23, 1960
96 people want to read
About the author
Joan Aiken
333 books603 followersJoan Aiken was a much loved English writer who received the MBE for services to Children's Literature. She was known as a writer of wild fantasy, Gothic novels and short stories.
She was born in Rye, East Sussex, into a family of writers, including her father, Conrad Aiken (who won a Pulitzer Prize for his poetry), and her sister, Jane Aiken Hodge. She worked for the United Nations Information Office during the second world war, and then as an editor and freelance on Argosy magazine before she started writing full time, mainly children's books and thrillers. For her books she received the Guardian Award (1969) and the Edgar Allan Poe Award (1972).
Her most popular series, the "Wolves Chronicles" which began with The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, was set in an elaborate alternate period of history in a Britain in which James II was never deposed in the Glorious Revolution,and so supporters of the House of Hanover continually plot to overthrow the Stuart Kings. These books also feature cockney urchin heroine Dido Twite and her adventures and travels all over the world.
Another series of children's books about Arabel and her raven Mortimer are illustrated by Quentin Blake, and have been shown on the BBC as Jackanory and drama series. Others including the much loved Necklace of Raindrops and award winning Kingdom Under the Sea are illustrated by Jan Pieńkowski.
Her many novels for adults include several that continue or complement novels by Jane Austen. These include Mansfield Revisited and Jane Fairfax.
Aiken was a lifelong fan of ghost stories. She set her adult supernatural novel The Haunting of Lamb House at Lamb House in Rye (now a National Trust property). This ghost story recounts in fictional form an alleged haunting experienced by two former residents of the house, Henry James and E. F. Benson, both of whom also wrote ghost stories. Aiken's father, Conrad Aiken, also authored a small number of notable ghost stories.
She was born in Rye, East Sussex, into a family of writers, including her father, Conrad Aiken (who won a Pulitzer Prize for his poetry), and her sister, Jane Aiken Hodge. She worked for the United Nations Information Office during the second world war, and then as an editor and freelance on Argosy magazine before she started writing full time, mainly children's books and thrillers. For her books she received the Guardian Award (1969) and the Edgar Allan Poe Award (1972).
Her most popular series, the "Wolves Chronicles" which began with The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, was set in an elaborate alternate period of history in a Britain in which James II was never deposed in the Glorious Revolution,and so supporters of the House of Hanover continually plot to overthrow the Stuart Kings. These books also feature cockney urchin heroine Dido Twite and her adventures and travels all over the world.
Another series of children's books about Arabel and her raven Mortimer are illustrated by Quentin Blake, and have been shown on the BBC as Jackanory and drama series. Others including the much loved Necklace of Raindrops and award winning Kingdom Under the Sea are illustrated by Jan Pieńkowski.
Her many novels for adults include several that continue or complement novels by Jane Austen. These include Mansfield Revisited and Jane Fairfax.
Aiken was a lifelong fan of ghost stories. She set her adult supernatural novel The Haunting of Lamb House at Lamb House in Rye (now a National Trust property). This ghost story recounts in fictional form an alleged haunting experienced by two former residents of the house, Henry James and E. F. Benson, both of whom also wrote ghost stories. Aiken's father, Conrad Aiken, also authored a small number of notable ghost stories.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
October 7, 2012
Many years ago when I was reading by the alphabet system (as did Francie in A Tree Grows in Brooklyn), trying to read all the fiction in my library by authors whose last name began with "A", I discovered Joan Aiken. I read several of her novels for adults and especially liked Midnight Is a Place as well as Voices In an Empty House.
The Kingdom and the Cave is her first novel, written when she was just 17 years old, which would have been 1941, but not published until 1960. It is now out of print and rather hard to find. By 1960 she had published two collections of short stories for children.
This first novel has the quality which had charmed me in the novels I read: she presents children as fully fleshed out individuals who are capable, full of courage and often more sensible than the surrounding adults.
Such a child is Michael, son of a King and Queen whose kingdom is threatened but who are clueless about how to protect it. Michael, his excellent cat Mickle and an old mare by the name of Minerva, save the day. One of the first things Michael has to learn is to speak U. A. L. (Universal Animal Language.)
So there is danger, adventure and magic. There are talking animals and evil Under People. Honestly, this is as good as the Narnia books (and free of the moral lessons) or even equal to Harry Potter in many ways. The book is recommended for middle grade readers.
Joan Aiken just wrote and wrote for more than 40 years; over 35 books (including the award winning Wolves of Willoughby Chase) and hundreds of short stories. In 1982 she even wrote The Way to Write for Children. I must check that out.
November 2, 2018
Written when Joan Aiken was seventeen, this charming and light-hearted fantasy novel relates how the kingdom of Astalon was saved from the invading forces of the Under People through the efforts of young Prince Michael, Mickle the palace cat, the wise horse Minerva, and a host of other helpful animals.
An excellent book for young readers with a taste for anthropomorphic animal fantasy, The Kingdom and the Cave is an engaging story. I was delighted to discover that Aiken includes an intelligent rat named Professor Nicodemus in her story, and found myself wondering whether this was an inspiration for Robert C. O'Brien, whose own animal-fantasy novel for children, Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH , included an important rat character by that name...
As Aiken was born in 1924, this novel would have been written in 1941, although I believe that it first saw print in 1960, published by Abelard Schuman of London. O'Brien's book was first published in 1971, so it is possible that his choice was a tribute to Aiken. If not, it must rank as one of those happy cases of serendipitous synchronicity.
An excellent book for young readers with a taste for anthropomorphic animal fantasy, The Kingdom and the Cave is an engaging story. I was delighted to discover that Aiken includes an intelligent rat named Professor Nicodemus in her story, and found myself wondering whether this was an inspiration for Robert C. O'Brien, whose own animal-fantasy novel for children, Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH , included an important rat character by that name...
As Aiken was born in 1924, this novel would have been written in 1941, although I believe that it first saw print in 1960, published by Abelard Schuman of London. O'Brien's book was first published in 1971, so it is possible that his choice was a tribute to Aiken. If not, it must rank as one of those happy cases of serendipitous synchronicity.
February 20, 2022
Tickling a lot of fairy tale tropes around young male characters heading off to meet their destiny and supported by a range of animal helpers due to his kindly nature, Kingdom is Aiken's first novel for children full of the dry comedy and high jinks that she is well known for. The Kingdom of Astalon has an ancient enemy that is returning from hiding deep underground in order to exact revenge after decades in hiding. The only heroes that can save it are a young Prince, a horse, a bat, a cat and a raucous gathering of rooks. After being taught how to speak to animals by a venerable old rat called Nicodemus, Michael and his feline companion, Mickle, gather all the friends, tricks and cunning they can to overthrow the enemy. It's a delight precursor to Aiken's hugely successful Wolves of Willoughby Chase which would become her most well-known story.
May 2, 2021
It's tempting to keep this, since I have a particular fondness for Aiken's works and a compulsion to complete collections...but since she's apparently written over a hundred books, I suppose I can toss out that idea and only devote shelf space to her best.
This story is charming and quirky, demonstrating Aiken's trademark off-kilter creativity. The impressive bit is that, according to the bio, she wrote this when she was 17. It's an extremely well-written work for that age, and of reasonable quality for any age group. The writing is polished, descriptive, and approachable - easy to read, but never dull. That's a more difficult accomplishment than one might think.
Things did get a bit too silly for me near the end. I gladly suspended disbelief for elements such as young Prince Michael learning every variation of animal language in a single night - a gargantuan task, particularly since the text itself mentioned that one needed the use of whiskers, etc, to convey more subtle meaning. It's a fantasy story with talking cats and magic, so...why not, really. He can speak to horses and badgers and birds if he really wants to.
But the entire plot line with the Under People invading the kingdom (from their cave - see the title connecting there?) was almost...superfluous? The entire book was building up to the battle, which is over almost as soon as it'd begun. There are a lot of questions left hanging at the end, like: why was the governess in league with the Under People? (Aiken seems to have a Thing about evil governesses; I wonder if she'd had particularly bad experiences with them in her own childhood.) How did the Under People get into the castle and the King's secret room early on in the book, and why were they seemingly invisible at that point? What information were they even looking for, since they were already well underway with an attack on the kingdom? How did they develop giant ants and earthworms, when their magician had spent 50 years solely working on a way to open the magic box? Why did Mickle's name unlock the box? Has there always been a Court Cat named Mickle, and he's just the latest in a line of loyal royal feline advisors?
And pushing in a double coronation at the end - King Michael and King of the Cats Mickle - felt rushed, with the main villain whisking himself away in a balloon so he could conveniently reappear to cause more trouble in later installments of this series.
I don't think this one became a series, but it's interesting that Aiken thought in those terms as a young author, too; she's known for her elaborate, sprawling worlds, and I still haven't even worked my way through her most well-known series (beginning with a beloved book from my childhood, The Wolves of Willoughby Chase).
A great start for a teenage author, and a fun enough read, but not of extremely lasting value. It reminded me at points of The Princess and the Goblin, which I found charming and nostalgic. I wonder if she took inspiration from that book, since some of her other works drew on (and expanded from) other classic sources, such as Jane Austen's writing.
Oh, and a sidenote: I didn't like the illustrations at all. Had those been more detailed and attractive, that might've swayed me into keeping a copy. Good art - that fits with the tone of the writing - really does make a difference with children's literature.
This story is charming and quirky, demonstrating Aiken's trademark off-kilter creativity. The impressive bit is that, according to the bio, she wrote this when she was 17. It's an extremely well-written work for that age, and of reasonable quality for any age group. The writing is polished, descriptive, and approachable - easy to read, but never dull. That's a more difficult accomplishment than one might think.
Things did get a bit too silly for me near the end. I gladly suspended disbelief for elements such as young Prince Michael learning every variation of animal language in a single night - a gargantuan task, particularly since the text itself mentioned that one needed the use of whiskers, etc, to convey more subtle meaning. It's a fantasy story with talking cats and magic, so...why not, really. He can speak to horses and badgers and birds if he really wants to.
But the entire plot line with the Under People invading the kingdom (from their cave - see the title connecting there?) was almost...superfluous? The entire book was building up to the battle, which is over almost as soon as it'd begun. There are a lot of questions left hanging at the end, like: why was the governess in league with the Under People? (Aiken seems to have a Thing about evil governesses; I wonder if she'd had particularly bad experiences with them in her own childhood.) How did the Under People get into the castle and the King's secret room early on in the book, and why were they seemingly invisible at that point? What information were they even looking for, since they were already well underway with an attack on the kingdom? How did they develop giant ants and earthworms, when their magician had spent 50 years solely working on a way to open the magic box? Why did Mickle's name unlock the box? Has there always been a Court Cat named Mickle, and he's just the latest in a line of loyal royal feline advisors?
And pushing in a double coronation at the end - King Michael and King of the Cats Mickle - felt rushed, with the main villain whisking himself away in a balloon so he could conveniently reappear to cause more trouble in later installments of this series.
I don't think this one became a series, but it's interesting that Aiken thought in those terms as a young author, too; she's known for her elaborate, sprawling worlds, and I still haven't even worked my way through her most well-known series (beginning with a beloved book from my childhood, The Wolves of Willoughby Chase).
A great start for a teenage author, and a fun enough read, but not of extremely lasting value. It reminded me at points of The Princess and the Goblin, which I found charming and nostalgic. I wonder if she took inspiration from that book, since some of her other works drew on (and expanded from) other classic sources, such as Jane Austen's writing.
Oh, and a sidenote: I didn't like the illustrations at all. Had those been more detailed and attractive, that might've swayed me into keeping a copy. Good art - that fits with the tone of the writing - really does make a difference with children's literature.
May 17, 2019
This is a charming children's book from 1960, very much the old-fashioned sort of story with a talking cat and a quest to save a kingdom and some exciting adventures with sweet set-pieces mixed in. I read somewhere it was Aiken's first novel, written at 17, and I would believe it, but it does not detract.
February 10, 2022
Fascinating to read this one that she wrote when she was so young. She had the skills of plotting and engaging the reader. She also had a good awareness of how badly people can behave and seems to be describing Boris at one point! Amusing about human failings in comparison with other animals and strong about women. It is a bit simple, like the bare bones of the book, but I quite liked that.
April 15, 2019
The Kingdom and the Cave is lovely imaginative story about a true prince, a sarcastic cat, and their loyal friends who risk everything to save their kingdom from destruction. The cat, Mickle, was my favorite! Find it at the Giddings Public Library under JF AIK. -Miss Taylor
June 20, 2018
It's clearly an early work, and its rough around the edges, it's a fair enough read, but as with other books I have read by Aiken, you do have to work hard to maintain that interest level.
April 4, 2019
My favorite book by Joan Aiken, (that I've read so far)! A lovely imaginative story with a strong spine of realism. The sarcastic cat, Mickle, was my favorite 🐱😆
April 28, 2017
Ahhhhhhh!
Nice!
My childhood back a bit!
Read this again after so many years, just finished now on openlibrary.org
It brought back so many memories.
Mickle was just how i would expect a cat to be, alternatively haughty and thoughtful, sometimes even kind (but not usually, lol).
i hope my kids will read this one of these days.
i will also source for more books from Joan Aiken.
Thanx to https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1... who helped me remember the name of the book after I had spent 3 months searching for the book on https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/..., thanx to https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1... for helping me out with my Kindle questions, and thanx to https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1..., the lady-in-the-kung-fu-hustle, who pointed me to openlibrary.org
Goodreads is sometimes awesome :)
Nice!
My childhood back a bit!
Read this again after so many years, just finished now on openlibrary.org
It brought back so many memories.
Mickle was just how i would expect a cat to be, alternatively haughty and thoughtful, sometimes even kind (but not usually, lol).
i hope my kids will read this one of these days.
i will also source for more books from Joan Aiken.
Thanx to https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1... who helped me remember the name of the book after I had spent 3 months searching for the book on https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/..., thanx to https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1... for helping me out with my Kindle questions, and thanx to https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1..., the lady-in-the-kung-fu-hustle, who pointed me to openlibrary.org
Goodreads is sometimes awesome :)
August 15, 2013
Great fun! Mickel and Michael both get crowned in the end, but what a madcap adventure they have in getting there. Prince Michael learns the universal language for talking with all creatures great and small--so he, his cat Mickel, a water rat, a horse, ravens . . . why even a bat all pitch in to defend their Kingdom from the Under People. (I especially loved the giant earthworms as mighty under world steeds!)
This madcap fantasy is proof that Joan Aiken was born to write, given she was seventeen when she wrote The Kingdom and the Cave.
This madcap fantasy is proof that Joan Aiken was born to write, given she was seventeen when she wrote The Kingdom and the Cave.
June 28, 2010
I read this so long ago that I only remember bits and pieces of it's plot. But I do remember the excitement and tangy twist that the fantastical world felt like. And Mickle. I do remember Mickle. How delightful he was...
September 9, 2009
A fantasy book. We went to the library book sale. I had to see the books I bought for 10 year old daughter were any good. The animals talk to the little prince and they work together to save the kingdom.
February 5, 2014
A juvenile. Young prince saves the kingdom with the help of his animal friends. Above average for this kind of thing.
February 23, 2016
A super quick read full of magic and adventure...if you have a spare couple of hours this is perfect with a cup of tea and a biscuit.
July 20, 2016
A treasured part of my childhood memories. A fantasy novel that like so many other juvenile offerings of this genre is superior to most of what is available for adult readers.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews