by Michael Molloy ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 2001
A novelist for adults tries for a younger audience with a condescending, thinly disguised pastiche of classic and recent fantasies. Two children, doughty Abby and Spike, an amnesiac foundling who (of course) turns out to be a prince, help rescue their captive parents, plus a group of kidnapped children who are being forced to mind magic Dust (“Snow Dust”) from a subterranean Antarctic land. Along the way, the pair meet Captain Starlight, the Ancient Mariner himself, with his oversized albatross companion Benbow, an irascible librarian with a staff of elves, monsters, and ancient machines that respond only to the good of heart, and a positive array of witches. There’s bluff Sea Witches; pompous but well-meaning Light Witches; and fetid, bat-cloaked Night Witches plotting to exterminate their rivals with a mixture of Fairy—er, Snow Dust and toxic sludge. The author leaves no doubt about whom to hiss and whom to root for as, along the way, the good guys Save A Whale and participate in a performance of Peter Pan in which a traitor is unmasked by his refusal to clap for Tinker Bell. Attempts to inject wonder, surprise, and humor into the tale fall as flat as the climactic battle, in which the chief bad guy stands by wringing his hands as Abby heals an immense serpent with Kindness, then vanishes (sequels, anyone?), leaving his evil cohorts to blow up at the least whiff of Snow Dust. Wyatt supplies pen-and-ink sprays of twinkling stars, and Jules Verne–like spot illustrations, some of which recur. There’s not much here for fans of J.M. Barrie, Joan Aiken, Pullman’s His Dark Materials, and the like beyond a sense of déjà vu. (Fiction. 11-13)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-439-29659-5
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Chicken House/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2001
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by Trenton Lee Stewart & illustrated by Carson Ellis ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2007
Low in physical violence, while being rich in moral and ethical issues, as well as in appealingly complex characters and...
Pub Date: March 1, 2007
ISBN: 0-316-05777-0
Page Count: 496
Publisher: Megan Tingley/Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2007
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BOOK TO SCREEN
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BOOK TO SCREEN
by Brandon Mull ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 12, 2007
Four fifth-graders are recruited by a scheming magician in this hefty bonbon from the author of the Fablehaven tales. At first, Nate, Summer, Trevor and Pigeon think they have it good. Having asked them to help her recover a hidden treasure that (she says) belongs to her, Belinda White, friendly proprietor of a sweets shop that has just opened in their small town, provides some uncommon candies—like Moon Rocks, that give them the ability to jump like grasshoppers, and literally electrifying Shock Bits. When she begins asking them to commit certain burglaries, though, their exhilaration turns to unease, and rightly so; Mrs. White is actually after a draft from the Fountain of Youth that will make her the world’s most powerful magician. And, as it turns out, she isn’t the only magician who’s come to town—not even the only one whose magic is tied to sweets. Filling out the supporting cast with the requisite trio of bullies, plus magical minions of various (and sometimes gross) abilities, Mull trots his twist-laden plot forward to a well set-up climax. Leaving the door open an inch for sequels, he dishes up a crowd-pleaser as delicious—if not so weird—as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory . (Fantasy. 10-13)
Pub Date: Sept. 12, 2007
ISBN: 978-1-59038-783-2
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Shadow Mountain
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2007
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by Brandon Mull ; illustrated by Brandon Dorman
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