What is the setting of Playing Beatie Bow? Geographical location? Time period? Describe Abigail-when you discuss a character remember that you can refer to what they say, what they do, and what others say about them. What is the main conflict in this book? Why is it in the fantasy genre? Is this the type of book you would pick up or that you would have picked up as a child? 

This story’s setting starts out as Abigail’s typical day and her day to day happenings, in Sydney, Australia; she goes to school, lives with her mom, her father left her mom, and Abigail doesn’t get along with her grandma at all. Abigail is a sad and lonely girl depressed over her body image, but never wanting to conform. “When girls hung their hair in their face, Abigail pulled hers back off her face.” Abigail was angry at her father for leaving them; she would “pray that her father would fall off a scaffold…” Abigail’s grandma describes her as looking like a little witch and dodgy.  

The time period of Playing Beatie Bow starts in the 1970’s, where Abigail lives on “George Street North” until one day she wakes up and finds herself on a cobblestone walk way laying there. She sees a fury girl and ends up following her around while the fury girl tries to get away and out of her sight. Abigail ended up in the year 1873 and doesn’t know how this has happened. Abigail goes with the fury girl and meets the rest of the family.  

Playing Beatie Bow is a fantasy because these kinds of stories don’t happen in real life. We don’t just wake up and realize we are in a completely new place with all these strange people, and all these strange events happening to us. This story takes Abigail and puts her in a new world, takes her somewhere not realistic. Maybe this is Abigail’s fantasy, to leave her life and find a new way and new people. This book reminded me a lot of Harry Potter and The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, where these kids can go to and from one place to another and there is a way home.