Light Boxes

Light Boxes is a strange and moving tale about a never-ending February, where snow falls relentlessly, new crops cannot grow and all modes of flight are banned, making balloonist Thaddeus' life difficult. Recently, though, as February reaches its 150th day, children have started to disappear and everyone blames February. A war ensues with February, now living on the edge of town in a hut with a girl who smells of honey and smoke.

It’s hard to describe the plot of this fantastical allegory but one thing’s certain- it’s brave and adventurous and a pleasure to read. It concerns itself with retribution, seasonal disaffective disorder, religious fervour, foreign policy, flight and abducted children in such a fantastical way, told in different streams of consciousness and narrative that you’re totally immersed in this small town and its snowy woe.

With bursts of poetical language, compact language and bursts of emotion, Light Boxes is a beautiful and moving read, striving to burst through situations with light and hope. It’s perhaps reductive to call it a modern day fairy tale as it takes place out of time but its strength lies in its other-worldy imagination.