The Thief of Always

     The Thief of Always is written by Clive Barker.  It is another one of my favorite books.  February is a hard time for Harvey Swick.  He hates the snow, cold, dark, and endless drag of school.  Luckily Rictus saves Harvey from despair by whisking him off to Mr. Hood's Holiday House. 
     The Holiday House is incredible.  Every morning at breakfast a warm breeze blows in welcoming spring.  By afternoon, summer arrives, allowing basking in the treehouse reading comic books.  Dinnertime brings Halloween and a room full of all the clothes and masks you can imagine, from any time period in history.  Once the snow flies in, you find a present under the tree that is the exact replica of what you were thinking of earlier in the day.  It is the perfect world, until you try to leave. 
    Harvey is an amazing boy.  Through his goodness and intelligence, he faces the battle of his life and the lives of all the other children who have lived and died in this house. 
     The author's illustrations are as amazing as the story.  I often wish to escape to a place of magic and celebration; Harvey taught me it can be a curse to be given what I wish for today.