The Door on Half Bald Hill Review written by the Hobbit on 11/18/2020 This post contains affiliate links, you can find out more on our policies page or in the disclaimer at the bottom of the blog.
Know Before You Read The Door on Half Bald Hill
Book: The Door on Half Bald Hill
Author: Helena Sorensen
Genre: High Fantasy, Celtic
Pages: 302
Published: May 31, 2020
Age Suggestion: 16+
Themes: Death, sacrifice, love, hope, friendship
Warnings: There are mature themes in this story that make it more suitable for older readers 16+. This story also contains a lot of death and might be triggering for someone who has been strongly impacted by suicide.
Quick Summary of The Door on Half Bald Hill:
A small Celtic village in an unknown time is clinging to a desperate hope. Their water source, a river, is poisoned and is slowly poisoning all of the land. One of their leaders has called for them to accept their inevitable deaths. Another has searched for answers and can find none. Can the young bard Idris save his village, his world?
The Door on Half Bald Hill Book Review
***CONTAINS SPOILERS***
This story contains echoes of a Celtic Harry Potter and Narnia with a darker twist. The story starts slowly, telling you that all of Bailelean is dying. The physical reason for this is apparent. The river Adder flows through all the land, and eighteen years ago during a bloodmoon it suddenly became poisoned. To drink of it brings death. The poison has slowly spread out, turning dry land into bog, and polluting all other water supplies. What is not as apparent is the spiritual death ,the increasing hopelessness, that the people feel.
There are some fun, humorous moments, but overall this is a serious, somewhat dark story with a mystery at its core. What poisoned the river and the land? What happened at the bloodmoon? The story unfolds over the course of a year, using a Celtic calendar. The healer in the village of Blackthorn has had a vision that they should all accept their inevitable fate. The druid has been seeking for answers and has been unable to find any. The young bard, Idris, knows that descending into darkness is not the answer. In the interplay between these characters we see a story for a pandemic year. Fear and loss of hope seem certain.
A leader calls us to the darker side, and there appear to be no answers. But Idris does hope. He brings light to confront the darkness. The question is whether he will succeed, and what price that success will have, and Sorensen skillfully leaves you pondering and wondering these questions until you reach the final chapter (no reading ahead!).
–Why Read It–
You can do some interesting comparison with themes in Harry Potter and Narnia. Sorensen explores the life versus death themes that are in HP from a different angle, but it is a very similar theme, and it is quite relevant today. In Half Bald Hill we see that these decisions are not just made by individuals but by groups. Closely tied to this is hope versus hopelessness.
Sorensen explores a “deeper magic” and this has echoes of Narnia. If you are looking at the book through a Christian lens it definitely talks about atonement, and does so through the concept of “Christus Victor” (which is my preferred way to view the atonement in an overarching fashion). Indeed, this is a good introduction to looking at the atonement as freeing captives from the power of death, and it explores this in a powerful way.
–Plot/Story–
The story starts slowly, as you are dropped into Blackthorn village eighteen years into the disaster, and the details are filled in over the first few chapters. About halfway through the story begins to jump and you are pulled deeply into the mysteries of why the Adder is poisoned and whether light of darkness will win. And this is no feel good story where you know the good guys win. This reflects reality and there is doubt.
-Characters-
This is very much Idris’s story. Except for the prologue and epilogue, it is told entirely from his point of view. You definitely “get into his head”. Other characters are developed so that you know them, but none are as completely developed.
-What we loved about it-
I did not expect the ending. It is honest and not contrived. I would suggest that you read the book aloud, if possible in a group.
The Door on Half Bald Hill
Discussion Questions:
1. The events in the story take place according to the Celtic calendar. What is different about it? What intrigues you about a different calendar?
2. Did the ending surprise you (it did me!). Were there clues in the book (foreshadowing) that told us what was coming?
3. Idris has a lot of friends in Blackthorn. What does this story tell you about friendships? How do his friends push Idris to complete his promises?
–Final Thoughts–
There is definitely magic and the story is predicated on older Celtic religious practices. It is also definitely written by a Christian, but that is subtle (see Why Read It). I loved it but if any of these offend you should stay away.
It is a well told story that will be around for many years, and is thought provoking. This would be a great choice for a fantasy book club to read together and discuss.
If you enjoyed our Door on Half Bald Hill review, check out some of our other book reviews:
–The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe: This book is a classic for a reason! We also review the movie & have curriculum for both.
–Instant Karma: What happens when a very serious teen receives a strange power?
–Premeditated Myrtle: Myrtle has always been a little bit nosy and adventurous… but this time it might help the adults solve a mystery.
–Ignite the Sun: They’ve never seen the sun, they’ve just heard the stories. And while they know that it was bright, they don’t know the dark secrets that extinguished it.
Down The Hobbit Hole Blog and this Door on Half Bald Hill review use affiliate links. We only link products we think you’ll like. So, you are never charged extra for them. As Amazon Associates, we earn from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you. We also use cookies to gather analytics and present advertisements. This allows us to keep writing discussion questions and telling ridiculous dad jokes. Find our other reviews with discussion questions here. Our posts about faith here. And our posts about family stuff here.