Sally Gardner’s breathtaking fiction novel Maggot Moon tells the story of Standish Treadwell, “a breeze in the park of imagination” (Gardner 4), determined to bring light into oblivious minds. Told in an informal first-person perspective, the reader can easily navigate through Standish’s every thought, bringing the reading experience to life. This novel seamlessly develops Standish’s conflict with the Motherland.
Standish grew up in poverty with his grandfather after his parents had disappeared, and was never heard from again. When Hector, Standish’s best and only friend, disappeared as well, Standish decided to take matters upon himself. The young dreamer was not discouraged by the “what ifs (that were) as boundless as the stars” (Gardner 1), and was determined to expose the truth behind what everyone was led to believe about the moon landing. Standish Treadwell, who “can’t read, can’t write” (Gardner 3), would not stop until he did everything he could do to scrub away all the filthy lies that have been etched in the minds of the people, until he divulged all the sins of the Motherland, until he freed the minds of his brainwashed society.
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Since the book is told in the narrative of a dyslexic teen, the wording is often simple, but conveys powerful meaning. Many chapters leave readers in anticipation, ending with a vague statement like “Or so I thought three weeks ago.” (Gardner, 61). Every event that occurs in the story contributes to the development of the final conflict, from the intermittent disappearances, to the cruelty and injustice of the environment that Standish grows up in. With the strikingly distinct personalities and the unexpected twists and turns, tension is created as the story