"One spring morning, a stranger came to the village. In exchange for bread and fish and blackberry wine, he told of his travels. And he spoke of a land far away where people owned their own land....."

In the time when The Seal Children is set life moved at a different pace. When people traveled it was on foot or by horse, and distances took weeks to cover. A stranger coming to the village would have brought news of the wider world, and messages from friends and relatives far away.

• Think about where the stranger has come from, why he is traveling through the village and where he is going. Write the strangers' story. What he feels about the village he has come to.
• Think about how his stories about the outside world affect the villagers. Write a dialogue between the villagers as they discuss their plans and the strangers' words. This could be done as prose or as a short play.