Kidzworld's Official Blog

The next season of Sam & Max adventure games starts this week, and in the Kidzworld gaming news post I mentioned that the company that makes Sam & Max, Telltale, has a ton of hilarious adventure games you can play.

• Tales of Monkey Island - actually sequels to a much older series of also hilarious adventure games involving pirates.
• Sam & Max – Dog and rabbit team up as freelance police. Regular police have a hard enough job, as it is.
• Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Adventures – Great British humour, based on the claymation series of the same name. The dog, Gromit, never talks, but he gets more laughs than anybody on facial expressions alone.
• Bone – Based on Jeff Smith’s series of graphic novels.
• Strong Bad’s Cool Game for Attractive People – Strong Bad, from the online series called “Homestar Runner,” faces problems in the everyday life of a… Mexican wrestler-type guy?

This week I read two young adult novels: Superior Saturday (book 6 in the Keys to the Kingdom series) by Garth Nix, and The Viper’s Nest (book 7 in The 39 Clues series) by Peter Lerangis.

I have to be honest. I didn’t like Superior Saturday. Which is unusual because I love science fiction and fantasy books. But this novel really confused me. I haven’t read the first five books, which are all based on the days of the week (and if you look a little deeper, the seven deadly sins):

1. Mister Monday (Sloth)
2. Grim Tuesday (Greed)
3. Drowned Wednesday (Gluttony)
4. Sir Thursday (Wrath)
5. Lady Friday (Lust)
6. Superior Saturday (Envy)
7. Lord Sunday (Pride)

So that might have been my downfall. By book 6, authors expect you to have some background knowledge of the plot and characters. So coming into the story with fresh eyes was not the best idea. The series follows 12 year old Arthur as he attempts to gather all seven Keys to the Kingdom–keys, which were left by the Architect, to a mortal heir. But Arthur is growing more and more immortal all the time. In this book, he must find the Sixth Key before his mortality runs out, and return home to stop a nuclear bomb from hitting his city. Those are some big orders to fill for anyone, let alone a 12 year old.

As a long time fan of The 39 Clues series, I really enjoyed The Viper’s Nest. I’m not going to give you too much info on it (the books are so short, I don’t want to ruin any surprises!). But I will say that Dan and Amy travel to South Africa following a clue left by their relative Irina Spasky before she gave her life for theirs. And Dane really steps up to the plate this book, using his awesome decoding abilities. That’s all I’ll say. Definitely check it out.

Just because vampire books are popular doesn’t mean they’re good. That’s what I learned from Blood Sinister by Celia Rees. This book was more like a modern-day Dracula than the girl-can’t-resist-the-mysterious-and-handsome-vampire type of books like Twilight and Vampire Diaries. It follows a teenager named Ellen who is fatally ill. Too pass the time, she reads her great-grandmother’s and learns that vampires exist. Soon, in her dreams, Ellen becomes her great-grandmother, living her life, fearing her fears. And the vampires quickly become all too real.

The second book I read this week was Raiders’ Ransom by Emily Diamond. I was shocked to discover that this was Emily Diamond’s first book; Raiders’ Ransom read like it was written by a seasoned author. It really is a fabulous adventure story,  not too mention the striking cover art. The story follows two characters: Lilly and Zeph. About 150 years in the future there has been a “Collapse” or some sort of apocolyptic disaster. And many lands have returned to the olden-days way of life — no technology, no cars, travel by boat. Even the old societal pressures, like marrying for money or status instead of love, have returned. When the only two important people in Lilly’s life are gone, she decides to take action. The Prime Minister’s daughter has been kidnapped by raiders, the same raiders that killed her granny. Disguised as a boy, Lilly sails to London in hopes of trading a treasure for the girls release. In London, she meets Zeph — son of the raider’s boss. As a war brews, the two sides become intertwined and true emotions and values are revealed.

There’s nothing like non-stop, adrenaline-pumping, bite-your-nails-to-the-bone action. This week I read Act of Dedemption by C.C. Cole and Amulet#1: Stonekeeper by Kazu Kibuishi. While both were action-packed, the books were as different as they come.

Act of Redemption targets an older teen and adult audience. It tells the story of a city being taken over by demons from Hell, and a teenage girl named Shevata, whose stength and fearlessness are a match for the most ruthless demons. I’ll warn you…it’s violent and gory, definitely not for kids. But it is an absorbing read. If it peaks your interest, check out an interview with C.C. Cole to learn more about the author.

Amulet#1: The Stonekeeper has the kind of action that’s appropriate for young adults. It’s a graphic novel with clear, vivid pictures and a fun storyline. Emily, Navin and their mother move into an old, haunted-looking mansion that their great-grandfather Silas used to live in – that is, before he disappeared. On their first night, they hear a sound coming from the basement. When their mother goes to investigate, a massive, slimy monster steals her away. Emily and Navin chase them into another world where Emily learns that she has been chosen as the next Stonekeeper.

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.