On the Way Home (1973)—“In the tradition of George MacDonald and C.S. Lewis,” On the Way Home began as a multi-part, chapter book-style bedtime story for Stoddard’s nine-year-old son before growing into a deeply moody novel for young people. The story focuses on the difficult journey of Boy and his companion Bear through a land of villains, including “the loathsome Monkey King, an incarnation of evil whose hatred blasts all within his reach.” It is a coming-of-age story that hints at the author’s troubled childhood and calls up courage for the voyager to persevere. “Like an eerie echo from an ancient time, it reverberates in the mind long after the tale is told.”