On his eleventh birthday, Will Stanton is drawn into an ancient battle between Light and Dark. It is Christmas-time in the Stanton family house: presents, carol singing, good cheer. But for eleven-year-old Will Stanton, something sinister has begun. On Midwinter Day, Will wakes to a different world: silent, covered in snow and ancient forest, a world of another time where evil lurks. He is not the ordinary boy he always thought he was. He is the last of the Old Ones, and the power to resist the Dark lies within him. Over the twelve days of Midwinter, Will must learn who he is and seek the six magical Signs needed by the Light. Around him, the familiar lanes, farms and churches of rural Buckinghamshire become part of an ancient battle. The Dark is Rising is a classic children’s fantasy set in a snowbound English village, where Christmas traditions, folklore and ancient magic all reside. Susan Cooper’s novel turns Midwinter into a time of danger and wonder, as Will learns that growing up may mean remembering a power older than himself.
