Death and destruction reign in this first novel that reads like a shooter video game written by a hip-hop aficionado. A prologue sets up the scenario with the escape of the evil eNoli from the Marvelous World. Louis L. Proof, a regular all-American kid living in suburban New Jersey, is dragged from his everyday life to battle these invaders from the world of Midlandia. From the start, the action is fast, the suspense constant and the story always entertaining. It doesn’t hurt that the young characters—Louis, his cousin Angela and his wise-cracking friend Brandon—are likable and well-developed, as are their Midlandian allies. The evil invaders don’t fare so well, being both cartoonish and predictable. Narrative techniques include an omniscient narrator, bold-faced comments and pep talks, letters and flashbacks. A complex mix of fantasy and science fiction will appeal strongly to adventure fans, gamers and reluctant readers. The combination of ambitious narrative, some overly explicit violent episodes and a few vulgarities will require maturity on the part of readers. (Fantasy. 11-13)
Pub Date: May 22, 2007
ISBN: 978-1-4169-3958-0
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2007
BOOK REVIEW
A mild case of middle-volume-itis afflicts the third episode in this increasingly popular fantasy series, as Flanagan alternates short chapters to weave a double-stranded tale that advances the main story only an inch or two while filling out the page count with incidental adventures and repetitive explanations. In the odd-numbered chapters, Will and Evanlyn, enslaved by Skandian (Viking) captors in the previous volume, manage to escape into the snowy northern mountains, but only after Will acquires an addiction to warmweed, a brain-numbing narcotic. In the even-numbered ones, Will’s Ranger mentor Halt and talented knight-in-training Horace set out through Gallica (France) on a rescue mission, and are themselves temporarily imprisoned by a cruel robber baron. The author hasn’t expended much effort to develop original cultures or characters, but—repeated side comments and references to past events aside—his fluent writing, engaging protagonists and credibly choreographed fight scenes will keep readers involved. (Fantasy. 11-13)
Pub Date: June 1, 2007
ISBN: 978-0-399-24456-8
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2007
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
PLB 0-531-33203-9 A silly, but ultimately satisfying story of wish-fulfillment, in which Sonenklar (My Own Worst Enemy, p. 727, etc.) perfectly captures a middle grader’s obsession with fantasy heroes. Small for his age, often bullied, new kid Howard is thrilled when he wins a contest to attend a taping of his favorite TV show, “Mighty Boy.” Even though he knows that Mighty Boy is played by an actor, Howard is nevertheless shocked to find that the actor has none of the hero’s qualities. When the two boys get lost in the woods, Howard’s camping skills, learned from his father entirely offstage, save the day. Sonenklar is deft in limning Howard’s preoccupation with Mighty Boy: he dreams about him at night, daydreams during class, and, even in the presence of the (and initially not very nice) boy, can’t quite grasp the idea that none of it is real. The dangerous way Howard deals with the bully when he returns to school (he smacks a beehive so that the bees attack his tormentor) lacks any sort of warning; otherwise this is a funny and enjoyable novel. (Fiction. 8-12)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-531-30203-2
Page Count: 118
Publisher: Orchard
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1999
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