Mimi and the Jackalope

Abstract

“Mimi and the Jackalope” is a midgrade portal fantasy set in West Texas during the early years of the Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) campaigns in the Middle East. In this story, a young girl—Mimi—is raised by her older half-sister, a veteran of OIF/OEF. Mimi has difficulty understanding the way her sister’s PTSD manifests and seeks escape by having imaginary adventures in the rugged environment of West Texas. During one of these adventures, Mimi encounters a mythical Jackalope that is entirely real. She follows this Jackalope to a world populated by elves, fairies, dragons, and other fantastic beings. As she explores, she realizes that the citizens of this world are on the brink of their own war. Mimi ultimately must find a way to communicate with her older sister in order to protect the fairy world she has come to love. “Mimi and the Jackalope” is a portal fantasy, but it is also a war story. It is not a story about fighting wars, but a story about the human cost of fighting wars. This story pre-supposes (and argues) that war has a lasting traumatic effect not only on the fighters, but also on all the friends and relatives of the dead, wounded, and witnesses. Even though this story deals with mature themes such as war, PTSD, substance dependency, death, and child neglect, these themes are handled in an age-appropriate way that is suitable for midgrade readers.