Diana Wynne Jones has already written twice about the country of Dalemark. In this new, and remarkable, book [The Spellcoats] she explores some of its prehistory, the archaeological evidence for which consists of two woven coats into which a narrative had been worked. The Spellcoats is the story of that weaving and of the weaver.

Stories of imagined worlds are acceptable only so far as they present inhabitants with whom we can feel some bond of sympathy. Miss Wynne Jones captures our interest and concern from the first page. Here is a united and reasonably happy family, father and three boys, two girls, living in a small and mainly hostile community, the village of Shelling. This stands on the bank of [a] river, and the river dominates their lives and puts a bound to their experience. War comes to the country, and father and the eldest son go...