The Borrowers Avenged by Mary Norton.
Title: The Borrowers Avenged.
Author: Mary Norton.
Genre: Fiction, fantasy, children's lit, YA, adventure.
Country: U.K.
Language: English.
Publication Date: November, 1982.
Summary: When telepathiccocktail waitress Sookie Stackhouse sees a naked man on the side of the road, she doesn't just drive on by. Turns out the poor thing hasn't a clue who he is, but Sookie does. It's Eric the Viking vampire boss - but now he's a kinder, gentler Eric. And a scared Eric, because whoever took his memory now wants his life.
My rating: 7.5/10
♥ "She comes through now and again, this Mrs. Witless, with a broom and a duster. But not often - she's frightened of the ghosts."
"They always are, human beans," remarked Homily. "I can't think why."
"She calls them fairies," said Pod.
"Fairies! What nonsense! As if there were such things!"
Arrietty cleared her throat: she felt her voice might tremble. "I would be," she said.
"Be what?"
"Frightened of ghosts." (Her voice did tremble.)
"Oh, Arrietty," exclaimed Homily irritably, "it's nice you can read and that, but you read too much of all that human stuff. Ghosts is air. Ghosts can't hurt you. Besides, they keep human beans away. My mother lived in a house once where there was a headless maiden. Real good times they had with her, as children, running through her and out the other side - kind of fizzy it felt, she said, and a bit cold. It's human beans that can't abide them, for some reason. Never occurs to them that ghosts is too self-centered to take a blind bit of notice of human beans..."
"Let alone borrowers," said Pod.
♥ "Now, Homily," said Pod, "let's get this straight once and for all: I don't want you depending too much on that larder. A bit here, a bit there - well, that's all right. That's how we managed at Firbank. But remember when we lived in the boot? We had to use our..." He hesitated. "Our..."
"Imagination?" suggested Arrietty.
"That's it. We got to use our imagination, and get back to our old ways, as far as we can. Suppose those Witlesses moved out sudden like? Suppose Mrs. Witless took ill? Suppose I got caught, stranded on one of those shelves? Or Arrietty here - once she's learned to borrow? It's hard work, my girl, and dangerous work. Borrowers only borrow the things they can't live without. Not for the fun of it. Not out of greediness. And not our of laziness, neither. Borrowing for borrowers - and well you know it, Homily - is their only means of..." Again he hesitated, seeking the word.
"Subsistence?" murmured Arrietty tentatively.
"Survival," said Pod firmly. He looked round at them all as though happy to have found the word for himself.