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elanalewis's review against another edition
5.0
This story is about Mallory and her twin little brothers Jared and Simon who move to their aunt's country estate with their mother when their parents divorce. They discover a field guide in the house which unlocks a magical world around them and send them through a series of enchanted events.
I loved this series! The pace was perfect, the tone appropriate, the characters absolutely believable and realistic (a trait which I feel is critical in enabling a younger reader to relate to the story), and the language was lively and age-appropriate. The interactions between the mother and the children were as realistic as if they were sitting in the room next to you. The story, while not as creative as Fablehaven, included well known mythical characters (goblins, fairies, unicorns, trolls, etc) and didn't become heavy with overcomplicated mythical/magical elements. While I enjoyed Fablehaven, my biggest beef with it were the characters that did not act real enough (the main female character, for instance, dies, and no one bothers to inform the parents). And the magic was so intertwined and complex it was difficult to keep them and their magical abilities straight.
Another thing about this series that must be mentioned. I love the size, texture and illustrations/artistic additions to the book! There were just enough illustrations to paint the right picture at the right time for effect. And the book size is 4x6 inches, just enough for an adult to cradle the book in their hands and a child to caress and hide in their favorite backpack. I love books like that. Simon & Schuster thought of everything. There is an eye-catching colored glossy picture at the beginning, a treasure-looking map of the story area, and roughly 3-4 half/whole page black/white illustrations per chapter.
The length of the book is also age-appropriate. As an adult reader, I read all five books in one setting. A child does not have to invest too much time and attention to get a satisfying reading reward. I'm not surprised at all that these books were made into a movie. I have not seen the movie yet.
I read this series just immediately after reading the Lemony Snicket series. I liked these books much better. At the very least I wasn't inclined to smack all the adults in The Spiderwick Chronicles. The Spiderwick adult/children relationship is far superior to Lemony Snickets as I felt the Snicket's adult reductions to stupid/disrespectful/mean caricatures is not a good message to be sending children.
I loved this series! The pace was perfect, the tone appropriate, the characters absolutely believable and realistic (a trait which I feel is critical in enabling a younger reader to relate to the story), and the language was lively and age-appropriate. The interactions between the mother and the children were as realistic as if they were sitting in the room next to you. The story, while not as creative as Fablehaven, included well known mythical characters (goblins, fairies, unicorns, trolls, etc) and didn't become heavy with overcomplicated mythical/magical elements. While I enjoyed Fablehaven, my biggest beef with it were the characters that did not act real enough (the main female character, for instance, dies, and no one bothers to inform the parents). And the magic was so intertwined and complex it was difficult to keep them and their magical abilities straight.
Another thing about this series that must be mentioned. I love the size, texture and illustrations/artistic additions to the book! There were just enough illustrations to paint the right picture at the right time for effect. And the book size is 4x6 inches, just enough for an adult to cradle the book in their hands and a child to caress and hide in their favorite backpack. I love books like that. Simon & Schuster thought of everything. There is an eye-catching colored glossy picture at the beginning, a treasure-looking map of the story area, and roughly 3-4 half/whole page black/white illustrations per chapter.
The length of the book is also age-appropriate. As an adult reader, I read all five books in one setting. A child does not have to invest too much time and attention to get a satisfying reading reward. I'm not surprised at all that these books were made into a movie. I have not seen the movie yet.
I read this series just immediately after reading the Lemony Snicket series. I liked these books much better. At the very least I wasn't inclined to smack all the adults in The Spiderwick Chronicles. The Spiderwick adult/children relationship is far superior to Lemony Snickets as I felt the Snicket's adult reductions to stupid/disrespectful/mean caricatures is not a good message to be sending children.
boothanew's review against another edition
4.0
Dwarves!! This is one of my favorite in the series, I love anything about Dwarves.
justareadingmama_charly's review against another edition
4.0
I think these would be easier to rate as a single installment, but I'm enjoying the series and am excited for the final book.
As a read aloud, my five year old is loving it and is so excited for the next book.
As a read aloud, my five year old is loving it and is so excited for the next book.
tanja_alina_berg's review against another edition
4.0
Mallory is snatched by some goblins and her brothers go after and try to rescue her. They meet the king who has a dream of conquering the world and re-creating it in metal. Towards the end of the book Mulgarath shows up - he's got his hands on "the Fieldguide" - and destroy the goblins. The ending is a real cliff-hanger.
peaceteacher's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
roooley's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
4.0
Another great continuation! Fair warning that this one does end with somewhat of a cliffhanger, so have the next book ready!
bnoru's review against another edition
5.0
Souvent on se dit qu'on connaît certaines histoires pas cœur. Hé bien ce n'est pas le cas avec les histoires des enfants Grace ! J'avais presque oublié l'intrigue de ce quatrième tome. Bien sûr je me rapellais de certains personnages introduits ici mais c'est tout. Comme quoi ça fait du bien de relire de temps en temps, pour être sûr de se souvenir de tout !
Ce quatrième livre est plus mâture que les précédents, notamment à cause de sa fin qui ne présage rien de bon pour la suite et fin des Chroniques !
J'ai bien aimé le passage dans la carrière, les décors sont bien décrits et on s'imagine bien les animaux et l'arbre en métaux et pierres sculptés par les nains.
J'ai hâte de lire la suite et en même temps je suis un peu réticent car ce sera le dernier tome...
Ce quatrième livre est plus mâture que les précédents, notamment à cause de sa fin qui ne présage rien de bon pour la suite et fin des Chroniques !
J'ai bien aimé le passage dans la carrière, les décors sont bien décrits et on s'imagine bien les animaux et l'arbre en métaux et pierres sculptés par les nains.
J'ai hâte de lire la suite et en même temps je suis un peu réticent car ce sera le dernier tome...