MG historical adventure/fantasy/thingie?

edutton

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Hey all,
I'm developing a story idea (with series potential :)) that's been in the back of my mind since the '90s, that I THINK will fit most comfortably in MG... but I'm wondering about a couple of things. First, is there still room in the market for anthropomorphic stories, or are they overdone ATM? And, I need to find some good comps for my own reading, to see what's being done in this space now (since I bet the stories I loved in the 70s probably don't qualify...) I've got a small TBR pile started with Seraphina and the Black Cloak, and the first Explorers book, but I need more. Much more!

I consider the story to be primarily historical adventure in tone and focus, I added fantasy in the subject line b/c talking animals -- not sure whether that alone qualifies it for that categorization though.

Any and all thoughts, suggestions, recommendations or gentle admonishments will be gratefully appreciated!

This is the working blurb:

Nikolai Stoyanovich Krisayev is the last of a long line of Russian rat nobility, living in exile in 1880's Paris. When he rescues a visiting mouse princess from armed kidnappers, he is thrust into the midst of a silent war being waged secretly in the streets and sewers of the city.

With only his wits, his father's sword, and the aid of a shadowy figure who may or may not be on his side, he will have to fight to save both the princess and the city he loves.
 

amyall

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In my opinion your blurb sounds interesting. I love that you've put a mouse from Russia in Paris during the 1880s, you've already started the wheels of my imagination turning. As far as saturation, I don't know how many other similar books are being produced right now. The Tale of Despereaux does jump to mind as being a big one. I'm not the best resource for that information but something tells me the MG age group takes quite a bit before the market gets saturated. From the description of your book I would definitely go with Fantasy. Though your setting is real the talking animals put it squarely in Fantasy (for me anyway).

Best of luck with your book!
 

edutton

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In my opinion your blurb sounds interesting. I love that you've put a mouse from Russia in Paris during the 1880s, you've already started the wheels of my imagination turning.
Thanks! The Belle Epoque is in full swing, there's the World's Fair and the building of the Eiffel Tower, anarchists all over the place... it's definitely a time and place with a lot of story potential.
 

frimble3

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You had me at 'rat nobility'. Yeah, for me, anthropomorphic animals = fantasy. And, the setting sounds like something you could do a lot with.
 

playground

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MG fantasy is definitely huge. When it comes to anthropomorphic stories, that's where my knowledge unfortunately lacks. With reading your blurb (of course it doesn't tell the whole story), but one thing came to my mind is, why must the characters be rats? I'm not saying they can't be of course.

There has been some pretty solid success with talking animals with human MCs, such as with the Fablehaven series (though you could argue those are more mystical animals of course).

Just some thoughts to think over.
 

remister

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There's a series that was recently reported on Publishers Weekly about animal stories in historical events. So I think like a couple of rats solving a mystery and they happen to be on board the titanic. Something like that. Historical with talking animals.
 

Brightdreamer

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Most recent comp I could think of (and this is going by what I've seen at the library, not something I've read personally, so read the blurb and see if it's close to target or not) would be the Mouseheart series by Lisa Fiedler, and also Ratscalibur by Josh Lieb (though the latter looks a little lighter.) Also judging solely by what I see, there's still a fair amount of interest in anthropomorphic MG stories; the Warriors books, the Last Survivors, the Ga'Hoole books and spinoffs, and more go through quite often. (Also, the Redwall books still have a strong following, so don't count them out for having been written long before the current crop of MG readers was born.)

Unless you see agents specifically stating that they're oversaturated, I'd not worry about whether you're too late to the party... and even if you are, just wait a few years and the winds may shift again. If you believe in this story - and it does sound intriguing - go for it.
 

edutton

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Thanks everyone for the responses and kind words! I definitely believe in this story, and I'm glad people seem to find it interesting. :)

I will dig into those comps! I used to enjoy the Redwall books when my daughter was around 8-9, and I love Mouse Guard and Mice Templar... I'd also love to find some good non-fantasy MG historical adventure/suspense type stories, but the couple that I've seen lately (Spy School, for instance) tend more to the humorous side - which I love, but this story is a bit more serious.
 

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All I'm here to say is that this actually sounds amazing and I wish I had thought of it.
 

frimble3

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Thanks everyone for the responses and kind words! I definitely believe in this story, and I'm glad people seem to find it interesting. :)

I will dig into those comps! I used to enjoy the Redwall books when my daughter was around 8-9, and I love Mouse Guard and Mice Templar... I'd also love to find some good non-fantasy MG historical adventure/suspense type stories, but the couple that I've seen lately (Spy School, for instance) tend more to the humorous side - which I love, but this story is a bit more serious.
There's 'Ben and Me', by Robert Lawson, purporting to be the story of Benjamin Franklin and his mouse associate, Amos, (who looks more like a rat) first published in 1939, but still in print. Humourous, but more historical than 'fantasy'.
 

edutton

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There's 'Ben and Me', by Robert Lawson, purporting to be the story of Benjamin Franklin and his mouse associate, Amos, (who looks more like a rat) first published in 1939, but still in print. Humourous, but more historical than 'fantasy'.
I remember that book! :)

I've also been looking at some (slightly older) non-animal-centric MG historical adventures (some of Avi's stuff, for instance, and "The Ghost in the Tokaido Inn" et. seq.), but I'm honestly not sure yet what's popular in that vein from this decade...)
 

edutton

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HistoryLvr

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Your idea reminds me a lot of The Secret of NIMH, which was popular was I was a kid in the '90s. I don't read much MG anymore, but I can't imagine kids ever getting tired of stories like that, especially if there is cool history in the books. So I guess I'm saying I don't have any concrete evidence for you, but I think my niece would be interested in a book like yours and I would have at 10. Good luck to you!
 

Debbie V

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The Tale of Desperaux. Newbery. 2003. (Nothing more to say there.) Not sure if any of Kate DeCamillo's more recent books would fit your needs.

The Warriors books are in YA in my library. My son is reading them now.
 

Davy The First

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Anthropomorphic stories are still in vogue for sure, and that premise sounds fab.