Every Heart a Doorway

Every Heart a Doorway
Cover of first edition
AuthorSeanan McGuire
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
SeriesWayward Children
Genre(s)Fantasy
PublisherTor.com
Media typePrint (Hardcover)
Pages173
Awards
ISBN978-0-7653-8550-5
Publication dateApril 5, 2016 (2016-04-05)
Followed byDown Among the Sticks and Bones

Every Heart a Doorway is a fantasy novella by American writer Seanan McGuire, the first in the Wayward Children series. It was first published in hardcover and ebook editions by Tor.com in April 2016.[1]

Every Heart a Doorway won the 2016 Nebula Award for Best Novella, as well as the 2017 Alex Award, Hugo Award for Best Novella, and Locus Award for Best Novella.

Plot

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Rarely, children may find doorways that transport them to other worlds. As a child, Nancy found a doorway that led her to the land of the dead, based on the story of Persephone and Hades. When she is returned to the real world, her parents do not believe her story. Nancy is sent to a boarding school for children who have had similar experiences.

The students include Kade, who spent time in a fantasy world with goblins and fairies; Jacqueline "Jack" and Jillian "Jill," who spent time in a world of vampires and mad scientists; and Sumi, who spent time in a nonsense world full of candy and rainbows. The students were all altered by their time in different worlds where they were able to be their true selves, and most long to return to them.

As Nancy is getting settled at the school, Sumi is found dead, as are others at the school. Nancy and her friends learn that Jill is killing students in order to make a key which will reopen her own doorway. Jack kills Jill, then returns to her gothic world. Nancy finds her doorway again and returns to the land of the dead.

Characters

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  • Angela: a student at the Home for Wayward Children, best friend of Loriel.
  • Eleanor West: the proprietor of Eleanor West’s Home for Wayward Children, a boarding school for children who have journeyed to magical lands and been forcibly returned to the real world.
  • Christopher Flores: a student at the Home for Wayward Children, known for housing the school's wardrobe.
  • Kade Bronson: a student who lived in Prism before coming to the School for Wayward Children.
  • Jack Wolcott: Jill's twin sister who trained under Dr. Bleak when they lived in the Moors.
  • Jill Wolcott: Jack's twin sister who was daughter to the Master when they lived in the Moors.
  • Katherine Lundy: a therapist at the Home for Wayward Children; after her own adventure to a magical land, she ages in reverse.
  • Loriel Youngers: a student at the Home for Wayward Children, best friend of Angela.
  • Nancy Whitman: the novella's protangonist, who lived in the Halls of the Dead before coming to the School for Wayward Children.
  • Seraphina: a student at the Home for Wayward Children.
  • Onishi Sumi: Nancy's roommate, who lived in Confection, a land of sugar, before coming to the School for Wayward Children.

Reception

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Reviews

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Every Heart a Doorway was well-received by critics, including starred reviews from Booklist[2] and Kirkus Reviews.[3]

Booklist's Erin Downey Howerton wrote, "This amazing fantasy pierces the shimmering veil of childhood imagination by reminding adult readers that their own doorways still exist deep in the chambers of their all-too-human hearts."[2]

Kirkus Reviews highlighted that "McGuire understands and has true compassion (never pity) for outcasts and outliers while also making it clear that being a misfit doesn’t mean you’ll necessarily get along with all the other misfits, who don’t fit for different reasons."[3]

Publishers Weekly similarly wrote, "This gothic charmer is a love letter to anyone who’s ever felt out of place". They noted that the "characters are strange and charming" and highlighted how "McGuire [...] puts her own inimitable spin on portal fantasy, adding horror elements to the mix".[4]

Likewise, School Library Journal's Gretchen Crowley noted that "the characters are well drawn, and their feelings about their impossible situation are believable. The alienation they experience and their struggles to find a way back will appeal to teens."[5]

In 2023, the book was banned, in Clay County District Schools, Florida.[6]

Awards and honors

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Locus included Every Heart a Doorway on their list of the top 13 recommended novellas of 2016,[7] and the American Library Association selected it for their 2017 Rainbow Book List.[8]

Awards for Every Heart a Doorway
Year Award Result Ref
2016 Nebula Award for Best Novella Won [9][10][11]
Tiptree Award Honor [12]
2017 Alex Awards Won [13][14][15]
British Fantasy Award for Best Novella Nominated [16]
Hugo Award for Best Novella Won [17][18][19][20]
Locus Award for Best Novella Won [21]
World Fantasy Award—Novella Nominated [22]
2018 Geffen Award for Best Translated Fantasy Book Nominated [23]

Adaptation

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In 2019, Syfy and Legendary Entertainment optioned to adapt the Wayward Children series into a television show adapted by Joe Tracz.[24]

In July 2021, Paramount Pictures acquired the film rights to the Wayward Children series. Pouya Shahbazian will produce the film.[25]

References

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  1. ^ Every Heart a Doorway title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
  2. ^ a b Howerton, Erin Downey (March 17, 2017). "Every Heart a Doorway". Booklist. Archived from the original on March 25, 2017. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Every Heart a Doorway". Kirkus Reviews. November 18, 2019. Archived from the original on July 6, 2022. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
  4. ^ "Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire". Publishers Weekly. November 2, 2015. Archived from the original on March 29, 2023. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
  5. ^ Crowley, Gretchen (July 1, 2016). "Every Heart a Doorway". School Library Journal. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
  6. ^ "District Reconsideration List". Google Docs. Retrieved September 28, 2024.
  7. ^ "2016 Locus Recommended Reading List". Locus Online. January 31, 2017. Archived from the original on May 11, 2023. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
  8. ^ "Every Heart a Doorway | Awards & Grants". American Library Association. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
  9. ^ "Nebula Award Recipients Announced". Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. May 20, 2017. Archived from the original on May 24, 2017. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
  10. ^ "Awards: Nebulas; Chautauqua; Anthonys". Shelf Awareness. May 24, 2017. Archived from the original on April 17, 2023. Retrieved April 9, 2024.
  11. ^ "2016 Nebula Awards Winners". Locus Online. May 21, 2017. Archived from the original on December 2, 2021. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
  12. ^ "McLemore Wins 2016 Tiptree Award". Locus Online. March 14, 2017. Archived from the original on March 2, 2023. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
  13. ^ "Alex Awards 2017". American Library Association. February 13, 2018. Archived from the original on February 25, 2018. Retrieved November 21, 2018.
  14. ^ "2017 ALA Awards". Locus Online. January 23, 2017. Archived from the original on February 8, 2023. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
  15. ^ Duckett, Katharine (January 23, 2017). "Seanan McGuire's Every Heart a Doorway Wins the Alex Award!". Tor.com. Archived from the original on December 5, 2022. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
  16. ^ "2017 British Fantasy Awards Winners". Locus Online. October 2, 2017. Archived from the original on November 3, 2023. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
  17. ^ "2017 Hugo Awards". The Hugo Awards. December 31, 2016. Archived from the original on August 10, 2017. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  18. ^ "Awards: Hugo Winners; Ned Kelly Shortlists". Shelf Awareness. August 14, 2017. Archived from the original on September 27, 2023. Retrieved April 9, 2024.
  19. ^ "2017 Hugo Awards". World Science Fiction Society. December 31, 2016. Archived from the original on August 12, 2017. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  20. ^ "2017 Hugo and Campbell Awards Winners". Locus Online. August 11, 2017. Archived from the original on October 16, 2017. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
  21. ^ "2017 Locus Awards Winners". Locus Online. June 24, 2017. Archived from the original on January 2, 2018. Retrieved June 25, 2017.
  22. ^ "2017 World Fantasy Award Finalists". Locus Online. July 26, 2017. Archived from the original on September 30, 2017. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
  23. ^ "2018 Geffen Awards Winners". Locus Online. October 1, 2018. Archived from the original on February 6, 2023. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
  24. ^ "TV: Wayward Children". Shelf Awareness. March 22, 2019. Archived from the original on March 26, 2023. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
  25. ^ Kroll, Justin (July 29, 2021). "Paramount Pictures Lands Rights To Bestselling Book Series 'Wayward Children'". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on October 21, 2023. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
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