The Keeper of the Isis Light
A young keeper confronts loneliness and prejudice on a distant planet.
The Keeper of the Isis Light, a young adult science fiction novel by Monica Hughes, first appeared in 1980 through Hamish Hamilton. It opens the Isis series—also collected as The Isis Trilogy—which takes place on the fictional planet Isis, orbiting the star Ra in the constellation Indus. Two decades after its debut, the book received the 2000 Phoenix Award from the Children's Literature Association, given to the best English-language children's book that missed a major award upon original release. The first U.S. edition came from Atheneum Books under its Argo Books imprint in 1981. WorldCat records show early translations into Danish, German, and Swedish, along with a 2002 French edition.
The story follows Olwen, a young human woman living alone on Isis as the keeper of a navigation beacon. With her parents dead, her sole companion is Guardian, a robotic DaCoP (Data Collector and Processor). On her 16th birthday (her 10th on Isis), Guardian informs her that settlers are arriving from Earth to Cascade Valley. Distressed that they might spoil her perfect world, Olwen is told she must wear a protective suit against their viruses and bacteria. A young settler, Mark London, falls in love with her, and Olwen asks Guardian to let her see Mark without the suit. Guardian refuses.
One day, Mark overhears Guardian discussing Olwen’s blood samples with Dr. MacDonald. Fearing she is in danger, he climbs toward her home. When he sees Olwen without her suit, he is so shocked that he falls from Lighthouse Mesa. Guardian later reveals the truth: Olwen’s parents died, and Guardian, following her mother’s wish, genetically altered Olwen so that the ultraviolet rays of Isis’s sun would not harm her, enabling her to climb the planet’s heights. Realizing Mark fell because of her appearance, Olwen tries to comfort herself with her pet, a dragon-like native animal named Hobbit. When settlers shoot Hobbit, Olwen chases the hunters back to their village in rage. The settlers are disgusted by her looks. She refuses to wear the suit again and vows never to descend into Cascade Valley. During a solar storm, she rescues a young settler boy, Jody, leaving the settlers unsure how to react. The story ends with Olwen choosing to live in isolation with Guardian, leaving the valley behind.
Quick Facts
- Author
- Monica Hughes
- Country
- England
- Language
- English
- Series
- Isis trilogy
- Genre
- Young-adult science fiction
- Publisher
- Hamish Hamilton
- Pub Date
- 1980
- Media Type
- Print (hardcover, paperback)
- Pages
- 136 (first edition)
- Isbn
- 978-0-241-10405-7
- Oclc
- 472738189
- Congress
- PZ7.H87364 Ke 1980
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The novel follows Olwen, a young human woman living alone on the planet Isis as the keeper of a navigation beacon. Her only companion is a robotic DaCoP called Guardian. On her 16th birthday (10th on Isis), Guardian tells her that settlers are coming from Earth, distressing Olwen, who fears they will ruin her perfect world. Guardian insists she wear a protective suit to shield her from settlers' viruses and bacteria. A young settler, Mark London, falls in love with Olwen, but when he sees her without the suit, he suffers an accident and falls from Lighthouse Mesa, shocked by her appearance. Guardian later reveals he genetically altered Olwen to survive Isis' ultraviolet rays after her parents died. Olwen, rejected by the settlers, rescues a young boy during a solar storm but ultimately decides to live in isolation with Guardian.
Reader's Guide
The Keeper of the Isis Light is significant for its exploration of loneliness and prejudice, themes the author Monica Hughes discussed upon accepting the Phoenix Award. Hughes stated she set out to explore whether a human raised in isolation would feel lonely, inspired by a newspaper article about a boy in a plastic bubble. She expressed the answer in the book's final lines, where Olwen pities Guardian, who claims he cannot be lonely, leading Hughes to conclude that pain, including loneliness, is essential to the human condition. Only after a school visit did Hughes realize the book also addresses prejudice and its damage to both recipient and instigator. The novel's rise from obscurity to win the Phoenix Award—named for the mythical bird reborn from ashes—underscores its lasting impact.
Did You Know?
- The novel won the 2000 Phoenix Award, given to a children's book that did not win a major award when first published twenty years earlier.
- The theme of loneliness was inspired by a 1974 Edmonton Journal article about a boy living in a plastic bubble.
- The author only recognized the theme of prejudice after a school visit with third-grade children.
- WorldCat reports early Danish, German, and Swedish-language editions, plus a 2002 French-language edition.
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