Merry, Will, and Captain Toms

This is a picture of three great characters from the pentology (like a trilogy of five) called The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper. The bearded man is Merriman Lyon, a mysterious figure who everyone seems to know casually. The elderly man on the right is Captain Toms, a kindly old seafarer who lives in a big stone house with his lovely red dog, Rufus. The boy in the middle is one of the most main characters: Will Staunton, an eleven year old boy who wakes up on his birthday and finds the world upside down and discovers a startling heritage. He’s my favourite character. Although Will is eleven, in ‘reality’ he is an ageless, powerful Old One, one of an ancient group called the Light (who are fighting against the Dark, no surprise there) who seem to centre on Welsh myths like King Arthur. All these three in this picture are Old Ones. Will is the youngest and last, and Merriman is the eldest. I liked The Dark is Rising very much.