Kidzworld's Official Blog

This week was all about the fantasy books. Dragon Rider by Cornelia Funke and The Wizard of Rondo by Emily Rodda each offer a great assortment of fantastical creatures–everything from dragons, brownies and humunculus’s to dots, talking pigs and terlamaines.

Dragon Rider is a fantastic adventure novel by one of today’s most popular young adult authors–Cornelia Funke, author of the Inkheart Trilogy. Dragon Rider follows a dragon named Firedrake, a brownie named Sorrell and a human boy named Ben on their quest to find a legendary Himalayan mountain range known as the Rim of Heaven. But trouble is hot on their trail. An evil, manmade dragon named Nettlebrand wants nothing more than to locate the Rim of Heaven and eat all the dragons who reside there. Somehow Firedrake must find the legendary mountain range without leading Nettlebrand to the world’s only dragon sancturary.

The Wizard of Rondo is the sequel to The Key to Rondo by Emily Rodda. The first novel in the series was a little easier to follow and had a more magical feel. The Wizard of Rondo is more like a murder mystery. When cousins Leo and Mimi return to the world of Rondo, they find their friends have deemed themselves a Quest Team. They recieve a letter from a distraught resident in the Hobnob and set out on their first investigation. Wizard Bing has disappeared, and his apprentice, who has been transformed into a giant mushroom, is now in custody of Officer Begood. Someone his behind these mysterious events and it’s up to the Quest Team, along with Leo and Mimi, to uncover the culprit.

There’s nothing better than a good series. And this week I reviewed installments in two different wonderful series’: The Key to Rondo by Emily Rodda and Catching Fire (book two of The Hunger Games) by Suzanne Collins.

The Key to Rondo has that perfect blend of magic and reality. It was exciting and fast-paced with a wide variety of magical and relatable characters. The story follows Leo Langlander and his impulsive cousin Mimi as they discover the secret about a family heirloom–a music box depicting magic land. They soon discover that there’s a whole lot more to the music box than just nice paintings and a pretty tune. It’s actually a gateway into the world of Rondo. After an evil blue queen steals Mimi’s dog, Leo and Mimi follow her into the music box and discover the life and strife inside of Rondo.

What can I say about Catching Fire? Amazing. Intense. Gripping. I didn’t think Suzanne Collins could outdo her first novel, The Hunger Games, but she certainly did. After surviving the Hunger Games–a brutal televised fight-to-the-death–Katniss is just trying to live a normal life. But the stunt she pulled in the arena that kept both her and her District 12 partner Peeta alive is coming back to haunt her. Her survival instinct may have unintentionally sparked a rebellion against the Capital, and President Snow is furious. He’ll do anything to prove that he is in control, even if it means threatening the lives of Katniss and all her family and friends.

Both of these books are fantastic reads. The Key to Rondo appeals to a younger audience (9-12 year olds) and Catching Fire will suit a teenage audience. Happy reading!

The Hole in the Sky is the debut novel by Barbara A. Mahler. This young-adult fantasy story is the first in trilogy.

The novel follows Kaela and her cousin Shawn as they travel to a magical world by way of “the hole in the sky.” In Muratenland, Kaela learns about the royal family’s strife: their baby has been kidnapped by Gulig, an evil man who seeks control of the land. Kaela must break the family curse and rescue the baby before Gulig causes him any harm.

This week was all about the spooky, the terrifying and the ghostly. I’ve read tons of books about ghosts, and most aren’t worth remembering. It’s a typical topic, making it hard for authors to put a new spin on it. The Haunting of Derek Stone #4: The Ghost Road by Tony Abbott and Rebel Stone and the Ghost Whisperers by Walter Rouzer were just that–typical. The Ghost Road was decent, assuming you start by reading the other books in the series. It was high-action, but in my opinion it’s a story that is more interesting for boys than girls.

Rebel Stone and the Ghost Whisperers mixed ghosts and aliens, which I’ve never seen before. But the writing sounded amateur. The constant flaws and overuse of metaphors made it hard to read.

Malice, on the other hand, was fantastic. While it wasn’t about ghosts, it was definitely spooky. The story was about a comic book called Malice. Kids who perform a ritual and summon Tall Jake (like Bloody Mary), are stolen from their homes and brought to the dangerous world of Malice–the world inside the comic book. The writing is easy to follow, the characters are relatable and the concept of part-novel, part-comic book is very unique.

Wow, what a wonderful week of books! The two sequels to The Book of Time by Guillaume Prevost are even better than the first. In The Gate of Days, Sam finally rescues his father from his six month lockdown in the dungeons of dracula’s castle. But his trip through time left him in a coma. In The Circle of Gold, Sam knows that in order to wake his dad up from his coma, his must once again travel back in time and save his mother from dying. But evil forces are at work. Sam’s crush, Alicia, is kidnapped and trapped somewhere in history. Before Sam can even think of altering the past, he needs to deal with more pressing issues…like getting Alicia back!

Last but absolutely, 100% not least — The Hunger Games. Wow. That pretty much sums it up. Suzanne Collins is unbelievable. When I first learned the plot of this book — a sci-fi novel about mandatory competition forcing teenagers to fight to the death — I really wasn’t interested in reading it. But boy, am I glad I did. I was reassured by Stephenie Meyer’s quote on the cover calling the book “amazing.” And she was definitely right. The Hunger Games was risky, edgy, barbaric, and so gripping I just couldn’t put it down. Could this series become the next Twilight? Quite possibly.

As a book reviewer, I read over 100 books each year. I come across many decent novels and many good novels. But only once in a blue moon do I find a story that really blows me away. This year, The Legend of Vinny Whiskers by Gregory Kemp was that story.

It follows a set of characters you rarely see in young-adult fiction, or any fiction for that matter–black-tailed prairie dogs. Some people immediately dismiss a story that is writing solely about animals, unless of course it’s a children’s picture book. But The Legend of Vinny Whiskers isn’t silly or unrealistic. It’s mature, deep and adventureous–great for kids and adults alike. It’s the story of an underdog proving that he’s strong, courageous and capable.

It’s a fabulous accomplishment for a debut novel. The Legend of Vinny Whiskers is the kind of story you’ll remember forever, the kind you’ll want your kids to read one day.

Unfortunately the book isn’t sold in stores. But it is available at most online book retailers. Trust me when I say that this is the type of book you can purchase in blind faith. It won’t disappoint you.

Maggie Stiefvator, the author of The Books of Faerie (Lament and Ballad) delivers another novel for teens. But unlike the others, this story is about a star-crossed romance between a human and a werewolf.

Shiver is very well written with strong emotions and dynamic characters. But the novel lacked a little something; it just needed a little bit more. But no problem! Stiefvater has a sequel in the works called Linger, which is expected to hit bookstores in the fall of 2010.

Michelle Zink’s debut novel Prophecy of the Sisters is a historical fiction book for teens. It follows Lia, a twin, who’s one half of an evil ancient prophecy. A dark spirit is trying to break free into the human world, and it’s up to Lia to stop her sister Alice from helping him cross over. This novel has something for lovers of fantasy and historical fiction.

In 2010, Michelle Zink’s second novel, Indigo Sky, will be released.