The previous discussion and nominations have realigned my sights a little...
I nominate
Duncton Wood by William Horwood.
Quote:
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Enter the magical, colourful, poignant world of Bracken and Rebecca, Mandrake the tyrant, Boswell the scribe, Hulver, Comfrey... and all the other moles of Duncton Wood. Set deep in the English countryside, this enchanting story tells of an ancient community losing its soul - but saved by courage and love.
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730 pages (in paperback)
Here are some example links/prices:
Amazon US - USD$2.51 |
Amazon UK - £1.99 |
Amazon CA - CDN$2.99 |
Amazon AU - AUD$3.69 |
Kobo US - USD$2.99 |
Kobo UK - £1.99 |
Kobo CA - CAD$2.99 |
Kobo AU AUD$4.99 |
Kobo NZ NZD$4.99
Also see
Goodreads.
It's a little like
Watership Down by Richard Adams, including the fact that it can be quite violent. And it's a little like the
Narnia books by C.S. Lewis, in that religion is quite clearly part of this story. But it's also very much its own story. When I last read it 10 years ago I enjoyed it very much, although perhaps not with the full enthusiasm of my youth.
Do not be concerned that it looks like the start of a series; this first book was not written with any intention of a series. It was only 8 years later that Horwood decided to cash in on this book's success. (That's a bit cynical sounding, the next 5 books are quite good, although with rather more extreme violence.) The story definitely covers both the "Labyrinth" and "Quest" elements of our theme.
Having been a very popular book in its day I suppose many of you may have read it already ... not that it matters.
At the risk of putting down my own nomination, I will say that Dunction Wood is Horwood's first book, but not his best. That honour, IMO, goes to either The Stonor Eagles or Skallagrigg - these both got a 5/5 from me. (I have not yet tried his more recent Hyddenworld fantasy series.)