To ask for help identifying this book?

[SmallPaperBoat]

DD 13 read a book when younger and is dying to read it again.

In the story, a rich girl is 'kidnapped' by a female teacher and taken into a forest. A girl goes looking for the rich girl and enters a new world through a gap.

There is no sunlight ever in this world.

This new world is like a forest and there are pig-like creatures that protect her from dangers in the forest.

There is a castle on the edge of the forest which has a cellar. The rich girl is taken there, has a tube attached to her head where her happiness is extracted. The happiness is turned into powder that the villagers use to their benefit.

Possibly the rich girl dies, not sure.

Does this sound familiar?? Thank you!

I'd say if you put the above into an AI with a few more specifics you've got it. Haha. Soz not much help!

I've tried bits through AI and DD keeps saying no hoping someone can make sense of this bizarre story!

The book you're describing sounds like "The Silver Child" by Cliff McNish. It follows the story of Rachel, who is kidnapped by a teacher and taken into a dark, parallel world where happiness is extracted from children. This world is devoid of sunlight, filled with pig-like creatures, and features a castle where the happiness is turned into powder. The protagonist, a girl named Julia, enters this world to rescue Rachel.

ChatGPT says it could be The Peculiar by Stefan Bachmann:

The book you're describing sounds like "The Peculiar" by Stefan Bachmann. It follows the story of a girl named Hettie who enters the mysterious world of the faeries to rescue her kidnapped sister, who has been taken to the underground kingdom of the faeries. The world she enters is dark and foreboding, and there are indeed pig-like creatures known as "pucks" who help her along the way. The rich girl's happiness being extracted and turned into powder is a key plot point in the book.

Thank you both but DD says no arrgh! Also how weird that two books have the same story lol

That is not The Silver Child by Cliff McNish. Completely different book.

If you look up the plots of those two books, they are totally different and not at all as the AI describes. ChatGPT is just spitting out nonsense based on the prompt.

Maggie Blue and the Dark World by Anna Goodall?

Yes! That's the one. Read it to my eldest and that was the exact plot.

Is it The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman? It’s the last in his Dark Materials trilogy so would be unusual to read just that one. Could be one of the first two (Northern Lights/The Subtle Knife)

I just read your op again and there’s only vague similarities so probably not. Ignore me 😬

"The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making" by Catherynne M. Valente.

Ooooh I think it's Maggie Blue! That rings a bell... off to check...

It IS Maggie Blue! Thank you wise mumsnetters x

Impressed applause to all 👏👏👏

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