We love reading about the terrible things they do and we cheer when the hero strides in and saves the day. One of my favourite things as an author is writing the baddies. Working on the Arthur Quinn books, I always looked forward to Loki’s scenes because I couldn’t wait to see how nasty he was going to be this time. A really evil baddie is important to a story. It makes us root for the good guys even more!
So who is my best book baddie? (Try saying that five times fast!) Well, I have loads of great choices, don’t I? Maybe Lord Voldemort or his even-ghastlier sidekick Bellatrix? Or how about Miss Trunchbull or Mrs Coulter or Count Olaf or The White Witch? Or maybe it’s Loki himself? As much as I love to hate all these vile villains, one baddie jumps straight to the top of the queue.
And that sick, sinful scoundrel is…
The Other Mother!
What’s that you say?! You haven’t heard of the Other Mother?! You haven’t read Coraline by Neil Gaiman?! Well in that case, why are you still reading this blog? You should be on your way to your nearest library or book-shop right this instant to pick up a copy! Hop to it!!
I won’t give too much away about the book but I can say that it’s about a girl called Coraline – (that’s CORaline, not CARoline!) – who discovers that there’s a whole other world hidden behind a door in her house. And this weird world is ruled by the Other Mother; a woman identical to her own mum except that she has two large black buttons for eyes. The thought of those eyes is enough to give me nightmares! There’s no way of telling what she’s thinking or even if she’s really looking at you. All you see is your own reflection in the high-polished buttons. Pretty scary, I think!
At first Coraline thinks that the Other Mother is nice and trustworthy but the longer she spends with her, the more she realises how wicked she really is. She wants to keep Coraline all for herself and she will stop at nothing to get what she wants.
I’m not going to say any more about the book because I don’t want to give away any shocks or surprises. But I urge you to read it! Baddies remind us how good the goodies are. And they don’t come much more evil than the Other Mother.