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3.95 AVERAGE
3.95 AVERAGE
I'm not really a fan of the original Alice in Wonderland, but I have read other things by this author that I quite enjoyed (e.g. Farworld). So, when I heard this author speak about this book specifically, and he really captured my imagination, I decided to give it a chance. I'm glad I did. It didn't blow me away, but it was entertaining and I really liked the characters of Celia and Tyrus. I felt like both were really well fleshed out and totally relatable.
This book has some of the same whimsicality of the original Alice books, but the characters are far more likeable and relatable and the story line just seems a little more grounded in reality. While this may not appeal to some readers, it does appeal to me. I read a lot of fantasy and I love world-building and immersing myself in fantastical things. But, silly and nonsensical just annoys me. Somehow, despite the original source material, Savage manages to weave a tale that perfectly balances logic and imagination. If you're a fan of middle grade adventures, fractured fairy tales, Carroll's original work, or Savage as an author, I definitely recommend this book to you!
Disclaimer: I received a free electronic copy from the publisher through Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
This book has some of the same whimsicality of the original Alice books, but the characters are far more likeable and relatable and the story line just seems a little more grounded in reality. While this may not appeal to some readers, it does appeal to me. I read a lot of fantasy and I love world-building and immersing myself in fantastical things. But, silly and nonsensical just annoys me. Somehow, despite the original source material, Savage manages to weave a tale that perfectly balances logic and imagination. If you're a fan of middle grade adventures, fractured fairy tales, Carroll's original work, or Savage as an author, I definitely recommend this book to you!
Disclaimer: I received a free electronic copy from the publisher through Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for letting me have the chance to read and review this ARC. This is an amazing and wonderful story written by J. Scott Savage. I've read and enjoyed a few of his other books and I love this one so much!
Also to note here, I didn't think it was possible because of how much I have always disliked, rather strongly, Alice in Wonderland for as long as I can remember, but I have found a version of an Alice in Wonderland story that I like. I enjoyed this story so much, I don't feel like I hate Alice in Wonderland as much now and there were so many great aspects to this story. I can't recommend this story enough. I wish I'd had these books when I was younger, but hey, at least I get to read them now and I can share them with my kids as well.
I learned quite a bit from this story about dyslexia and things that I didn't even realize so this was a good eye-opener to some things and a good story to give me a different perspective into Alice In Wonderland stories that I didn't know I needed.
This story starts with Celia, who's sitting at the library doing homework and playing Minecraft on her phone etc. while her mom, who is the librarian is working and after her Mom assigns her books for her daily reading, which she doesn't like because of her dyslexia issues, Celia notices a boy her age sneaking around in the library.
Celia decides to follow the boy to try to find out what he's doing and catches him messing with the library books and calls him out on it. The boy introduces himself, his name is Tyrus, and we find out along with Celia that he's helping to shelve the returned library books because he loves books and the library so much!
Celia and Tyrus return to the front desk area and start talking and find out they're both new to the area and will both be new to the school that starts soon there so they start talking to each other about being friends and getting to know one another.
As Celia and Tyrus are talking, Celia's mother comes over and asks who he is, they talk with her for a minute and Celia decides to ask her mother if they can help shelve the library books since Tyrus likes doing it so much and her Mom gets all excited and sends them off to shelve library books.
While Celia and Tyrus are shelving the library books, they hear someone calling for help and follow the voice and end up in the office in the back where there's a chest that they have to figure out a puzzle to open it and then they go through the chest and come out the other side, falling down or is it up into Wonderland, where the adventure and fun really begins.
As Celia and Tyrus find themselves in Wonderland and meet various characters and find themselves at the Mad Hatter's tea party, you get a taste of the wonderful whimsy that comes with Wonderland and the character's personalities and stories and such. There is good and bad, both, in Wonderland, of course, and they meet the Queen of Hearts at the castle and while Tyrus is terrified of her, Celia feels like they could be friends until the Queen asks for their help with the chest that Charles Dodgson left behind because he had said that whoever came after him would know how to open the chest and save Wonderland from the haunted monstrosity that is terrorizing everyone.
When Celia says she's not the Alice, that she doesn't know how to open the chest or help, the Queen seems to lose it and through them in the dungeon and then the King pardons them and sends them on their way to find the key to come back to open the chest. They are also traveling with a companion, Sylvan, a rabbit, who was sent to get Celia to help save Wonderland.
As they travel through Wonderland, meeting others, solving puzzles and figuring things out for themselves about everything going on, the haunted monstrosity and themselves, they learn all sorts of things, have lots of fun and grow while having their adventure through Wonderland.
They learn how logic and imagination together make things better and how the two solve problems better together than apart or alone. They learn how to embrace and love themselves and who they are and to not discount themselves or their unique talents. They help others as they go on their quest to find the key to open the chest to save Wonderland and in helping others, help themselves.
This is a wonderful, whimsical, magical tale of a lovely Wonderland with great characters and a lot of good morals, lessons and things to learn and share for yourself, your kids, your family or whoever. I love these kinds of uplifting, feel good, fantastic, magical tales that you can simply enjoy or you can glean a lot of info, morals, and lessons from it as well.
Also, one of the things I enjoy looking at myself as well as with my kids or others is the reading guide they put in the back of these books that help you discuss things and further learn, research, enjoy and expound on the topics in the book as well.
Make sure you put this one on your list, preorder it and get ready for a new favorite awesome book! You don't want to miss this one!
Also to note here, I didn't think it was possible because of how much I have always disliked, rather strongly, Alice in Wonderland for as long as I can remember, but I have found a version of an Alice in Wonderland story that I like. I enjoyed this story so much, I don't feel like I hate Alice in Wonderland as much now and there were so many great aspects to this story. I can't recommend this story enough. I wish I'd had these books when I was younger, but hey, at least I get to read them now and I can share them with my kids as well.
I learned quite a bit from this story about dyslexia and things that I didn't even realize so this was a good eye-opener to some things and a good story to give me a different perspective into Alice In Wonderland stories that I didn't know I needed.
This story starts with Celia, who's sitting at the library doing homework and playing Minecraft on her phone etc. while her mom, who is the librarian is working and after her Mom assigns her books for her daily reading, which she doesn't like because of her dyslexia issues, Celia notices a boy her age sneaking around in the library.
Celia decides to follow the boy to try to find out what he's doing and catches him messing with the library books and calls him out on it. The boy introduces himself, his name is Tyrus, and we find out along with Celia that he's helping to shelve the returned library books because he loves books and the library so much!
Celia and Tyrus return to the front desk area and start talking and find out they're both new to the area and will both be new to the school that starts soon there so they start talking to each other about being friends and getting to know one another.
As Celia and Tyrus are talking, Celia's mother comes over and asks who he is, they talk with her for a minute and Celia decides to ask her mother if they can help shelve the library books since Tyrus likes doing it so much and her Mom gets all excited and sends them off to shelve library books.
While Celia and Tyrus are shelving the library books, they hear someone calling for help and follow the voice and end up in the office in the back where there's a chest that they have to figure out a puzzle to open it and then they go through the chest and come out the other side, falling down or is it up into Wonderland, where the adventure and fun really begins.
As Celia and Tyrus find themselves in Wonderland and meet various characters and find themselves at the Mad Hatter's tea party, you get a taste of the wonderful whimsy that comes with Wonderland and the character's personalities and stories and such. There is good and bad, both, in Wonderland, of course, and they meet the Queen of Hearts at the castle and while Tyrus is terrified of her, Celia feels like they could be friends until the Queen asks for their help with the chest that Charles Dodgson left behind because he had said that whoever came after him would know how to open the chest and save Wonderland from the haunted monstrosity that is terrorizing everyone.
When Celia says she's not the Alice, that she doesn't know how to open the chest or help, the Queen seems to lose it and through them in the dungeon and then the King pardons them and sends them on their way to find the key to come back to open the chest. They are also traveling with a companion, Sylvan, a rabbit, who was sent to get Celia to help save Wonderland.
As they travel through Wonderland, meeting others, solving puzzles and figuring things out for themselves about everything going on, the haunted monstrosity and themselves, they learn all sorts of things, have lots of fun and grow while having their adventure through Wonderland.
They learn how logic and imagination together make things better and how the two solve problems better together than apart or alone. They learn how to embrace and love themselves and who they are and to not discount themselves or their unique talents. They help others as they go on their quest to find the key to open the chest to save Wonderland and in helping others, help themselves.
This is a wonderful, whimsical, magical tale of a lovely Wonderland with great characters and a lot of good morals, lessons and things to learn and share for yourself, your kids, your family or whoever. I love these kinds of uplifting, feel good, fantastic, magical tales that you can simply enjoy or you can glean a lot of info, morals, and lessons from it as well.
Also, one of the things I enjoy looking at myself as well as with my kids or others is the reading guide they put in the back of these books that help you discuss things and further learn, research, enjoy and expound on the topics in the book as well.
Make sure you put this one on your list, preorder it and get ready for a new favorite awesome book! You don't want to miss this one!
Celia is the great-great-great-grandniece of Lewis Carroll. Her mom is a librarian, and they move across the country so her mom can start a new job. Celia has to spend her summer days at her mom’s library, where she meets Tyrus, another new student to the area. After they meet, they find a box in Celia’s mom’s office. They use Tyrus’s imagination and Celia’s logic to open the secret box, which holds Lewis Carroll’s lost diaries. These diaries hold the secrets to opening a portal into Wonderland, which is in dire need of help to get rid of the monsters that have taken over. Celia and Tyrus have to use their unique skills to help save Wonderland.
Celia and Tyrus were both bullied at their previous schools for being different. Celia is dyslexic, and has always felt left out because she can’t learn like her other classmates. Tyrus buries himself in his books, which his classmates never understood. They were both bullied, but through their adventure in Wonderland, they learn that their differences are what make them strong and unique.
I loved the puzzles in this book. The word puzzles were written in the style of Lewis Carroll’s writing, yet they were original. I wasn’t a big fan of Alice in Wonderland, but I loved this story. The puzzles had the same quirky style of Carroll, but without the strange and confusing parts.
One thing that I didn’t like about this story was that it switched between narrative perspectives. The chapters where Celia and Tyrus were in the real world had a first-person narrative from Celia’s perspective. The chapters in Wonderland, which took up most of the book, were narrated by a third-person narrator. There were only one or two chapters that didn’t include Celia, so they could have been changed to be either all first-person or all third-person. I read an advanced copy of this book and this narration style could have been changed in the final copy, so I didn’t hold it against the book in my rating.
This was a fun story! I hope there will be a sequel.
Thank you Shadow Mountain for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Celia and Tyrus were both bullied at their previous schools for being different. Celia is dyslexic, and has always felt left out because she can’t learn like her other classmates. Tyrus buries himself in his books, which his classmates never understood. They were both bullied, but through their adventure in Wonderland, they learn that their differences are what make them strong and unique.
I loved the puzzles in this book. The word puzzles were written in the style of Lewis Carroll’s writing, yet they were original. I wasn’t a big fan of Alice in Wonderland, but I loved this story. The puzzles had the same quirky style of Carroll, but without the strange and confusing parts.
One thing that I didn’t like about this story was that it switched between narrative perspectives. The chapters where Celia and Tyrus were in the real world had a first-person narrative from Celia’s perspective. The chapters in Wonderland, which took up most of the book, were narrated by a third-person narrator. There were only one or two chapters that didn’t include Celia, so they could have been changed to be either all first-person or all third-person. I read an advanced copy of this book and this narration style could have been changed in the final copy, so I didn’t hold it against the book in my rating.
This was a fun story! I hope there will be a sequel.
Thank you Shadow Mountain for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This book is the PERFECT Alice in Wonderland inspired middle grade novel I've had the pleasure to read. I heard the author talk about it at a conference in February, and I've been anxiously waiting to read it ever since. It did not disappoint.
Celia is such a relatable main character, and she has dyslexia. I absolutely loved the portrayal of her struggle with words and the little tricks she uses to help. I worked tutoring elementary school aged kids in reading and math for three years and came across a few who were dyslexic. I wish I'd been able to read this book with them.
Besides the lovable main character, the story was so charming. It felt very true to Lewis Carroll's world and was chock-full of word play, riddles, and quirky characters. Plus there were really fun text features that were very engaging. I found myself giggling multiple times throughout the book.
Add to all this a great plot and supporting cast of characters and this book is an all around winner. I can't wait to share it with my kids.
*A huge thank you to Shadow Mountain Publishing and NetGalley for an advanced review copy of this wonderful book.*
Celia is such a relatable main character, and she has dyslexia. I absolutely loved the portrayal of her struggle with words and the little tricks she uses to help. I worked tutoring elementary school aged kids in reading and math for three years and came across a few who were dyslexic. I wish I'd been able to read this book with them.
Besides the lovable main character, the story was so charming. It felt very true to Lewis Carroll's world and was chock-full of word play, riddles, and quirky characters. Plus there were really fun text features that were very engaging. I found myself giggling multiple times throughout the book.
Add to all this a great plot and supporting cast of characters and this book is an all around winner. I can't wait to share it with my kids.
*A huge thank you to Shadow Mountain Publishing and NetGalley for an advanced review copy of this wonderful book.*
I've never been a fan of Alice in Wonderland. I've never read it...tried once and couldn't get very far. But this book was unique and I found that I really enjoyed reading it. I really enjoyed the beginning as Celia and Tyrus meet. I laughed out loud at some of their interactions. This was an enjoyable book and I appreciate being given the opportunity to read it. Thank you to Net Galley and Shadow Mountain for the opportunity to read it.
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
"There are no mistakes," said the cat. "Only opportunities waiting to be discovered. Except for whoever thought calf's-foot jelly should be eaten. That was undoubtedly a mistake of the worst kind."
Well that was just a bucket of fun! I have to admit I didn't enjoy reading Alice in Wonderland (I know, don't come for me), but my problem with it was never Wonderland, it was Alice herself. So revisiting Wonderland with two new heroes was just the best. I loved following Celia and Tyrus, seeing them find who they really were, and becoming friends along the way.
Everything about Wonderland was just as wacky and whimsical as it should be, with some extra twists that kept me engaged the whole time. It felt like something from my childhood - an adventure with some extra education thrown in - and I can't recommend it enough for kiddos who love Wonderland in all its weirdness.
Four stars from me!
**I received a copy of this book from the publisher. A positive review was not required. All opinions are my own.**
Well that was just a bucket of fun! I have to admit I didn't enjoy reading Alice in Wonderland (I know, don't come for me), but my problem with it was never Wonderland, it was Alice herself. So revisiting Wonderland with two new heroes was just the best. I loved following Celia and Tyrus, seeing them find who they really were, and becoming friends along the way.
Everything about Wonderland was just as wacky and whimsical as it should be, with some extra twists that kept me engaged the whole time. It felt like something from my childhood - an adventure with some extra education thrown in - and I can't recommend it enough for kiddos who love Wonderland in all its weirdness.
Four stars from me!
**I received a copy of this book from the publisher. A positive review was not required. All opinions are my own.**
The Lost Wonderland Diaries by J. Scott Savage is a love letter to Alice in Wonderland.
Celia, a newcomer to town fears going to school and having people she find out she’s different, being dyslexic she has a hard time with words but numbers she handles alright. At the library her mom just took a job at she meets book loving Tyrus. Also new to town and suffered bullying in his previous school. The two don’t quite hit it off from the start, but as they hang out in the librarian’s office they come across a box containing the four missing journals of Charles Dodgson aka Lewis Carroll. The two get sucked into a vortex and find themselves inside Wonderland.
Dodgson stories of Wonderland are based on a real world he traveled to but the Wonderland he’d gone to and the Wonderland Celia and Tyrus experience are very different. Something has changed Wonderland into an almost nightmarish landscape and Celia and Tyrus have to rely on each other and Sylvan, their bunny guide who brought them looking for The Alice to save Wonderland.
Throughout Celia and Tyrus come across puzzles and riddles and very familiar characters in unfamiliar ways and they need to discover and answer one of the most important questions, “Who are you?”, to make it through
***
This was a fun story. A bit darker than the Alice of Carroll’s but a wonderful ode to it. I loved the clues that tied to the original story and the take on the different characters. I also just enjoyed Celia and Tyrus. They were just two kids working with what they had, trying to do their best. It was a fun quick read.
***
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher I was able to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Celia, a newcomer to town fears going to school and having people she find out she’s different, being dyslexic she has a hard time with words but numbers she handles alright. At the library her mom just took a job at she meets book loving Tyrus. Also new to town and suffered bullying in his previous school. The two don’t quite hit it off from the start, but as they hang out in the librarian’s office they come across a box containing the four missing journals of Charles Dodgson aka Lewis Carroll. The two get sucked into a vortex and find themselves inside Wonderland.
Dodgson stories of Wonderland are based on a real world he traveled to but the Wonderland he’d gone to and the Wonderland Celia and Tyrus experience are very different. Something has changed Wonderland into an almost nightmarish landscape and Celia and Tyrus have to rely on each other and Sylvan, their bunny guide who brought them looking for The Alice to save Wonderland.
Throughout Celia and Tyrus come across puzzles and riddles and very familiar characters in unfamiliar ways and they need to discover and answer one of the most important questions, “Who are you?”, to make it through
***
This was a fun story. A bit darker than the Alice of Carroll’s but a wonderful ode to it. I loved the clues that tied to the original story and the take on the different characters. I also just enjoyed Celia and Tyrus. They were just two kids working with what they had, trying to do their best. It was a fun quick read.
***
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher I was able to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Plot:
Celia’s mother moved them from Grand Forks North Dakota to San Jose California as her mother was offered the head librarian position. Celia takes this as another sign her mother loves books more than her; her dyslexic daughter who prefers math over novels. Forced to spend the last few days of summer vacation in the library, Celia was hunting a lost child when she ran into a boy whose bag was bulging with books: Tyrus. Tyrus Weller was another new 8th grader who would be starting Bernal Middle that September along with Celia. Thinking they would be fast friends, Tyrus immediately opens up to Celia about being bullied at his last school and how books became his place to hide, and his only friend. Celia replies with her own bullying at her old school, where kids thought she was dumb because of her dyslexia. However, there was no way logic-loving Celia would be friends with book-nerd Tyrus. Going back onto her hunt with Tyrus tagging along, landed them in her mother’s new office with the lost diaries of Charles Dodgson, who is more known for his pen name of Lewis Carroll. Solving one of his puzzles to access a diary, a storm pulls the children into a purple sea full of numbers, with a crocodile threatening to eat them if they do not solve his math riddles correctly. Celia and Tyrus were in Wonderland, but not the one that Lewis Carroll described Alice to be in. Something was wrong, and with the quirky characters fearing a monster, the White Rabbit’s family sent their youngest, Sylvan, to find The Alice who was supposed to save them. Tyrus, living his best life, and Celia hoping this to be a nightmare, must work together if they want to save Wonderland and return home.
Thoughts:
J. Scott Savage took the classic tale of Alice in Wonderland and gave it a new twist. In this Lewis Carroll actually visited the magical land and wrote about what he saw in the only way people would believe him: a fictional novel. With 150 years passing since Carroll stepped into the land, a lot of things have changed which is what Celia and Tyrus discovered. Title appropriate as it is a diary that was assumed to be lost that brought our characters to Wondlernad, Savage keeps the story fast pace and moving with new surprises around every turn. Bringing back classic acts from Wonderland, and making up some of his own, Savage really hits the nail on the head to attract a middle-grade audience to this story. Both Celia and Tyrus were quirky in their opposite ways: Tyrus the book lover, Celia the logic girl; but each experiences bullying in their past that makes them ashamed of who they are: Tyrus for being a nerd and Celia for her dyslexia. Savage includes a nice message of self-acceptance and being proud of the things that make you unique with the story, that really ties this novel about these kids trying to save Wonderland together. Overall, Savage gave us an old story with a new twist that involves logic and irrational thinking, two opposites that become fast friends, and a land that needs saving.
Celia’s mother moved them from Grand Forks North Dakota to San Jose California as her mother was offered the head librarian position. Celia takes this as another sign her mother loves books more than her; her dyslexic daughter who prefers math over novels. Forced to spend the last few days of summer vacation in the library, Celia was hunting a lost child when she ran into a boy whose bag was bulging with books: Tyrus. Tyrus Weller was another new 8th grader who would be starting Bernal Middle that September along with Celia. Thinking they would be fast friends, Tyrus immediately opens up to Celia about being bullied at his last school and how books became his place to hide, and his only friend. Celia replies with her own bullying at her old school, where kids thought she was dumb because of her dyslexia. However, there was no way logic-loving Celia would be friends with book-nerd Tyrus. Going back onto her hunt with Tyrus tagging along, landed them in her mother’s new office with the lost diaries of Charles Dodgson, who is more known for his pen name of Lewis Carroll. Solving one of his puzzles to access a diary, a storm pulls the children into a purple sea full of numbers, with a crocodile threatening to eat them if they do not solve his math riddles correctly. Celia and Tyrus were in Wonderland, but not the one that Lewis Carroll described Alice to be in. Something was wrong, and with the quirky characters fearing a monster, the White Rabbit’s family sent their youngest, Sylvan, to find The Alice who was supposed to save them. Tyrus, living his best life, and Celia hoping this to be a nightmare, must work together if they want to save Wonderland and return home.
Thoughts:
J. Scott Savage took the classic tale of Alice in Wonderland and gave it a new twist. In this Lewis Carroll actually visited the magical land and wrote about what he saw in the only way people would believe him: a fictional novel. With 150 years passing since Carroll stepped into the land, a lot of things have changed which is what Celia and Tyrus discovered. Title appropriate as it is a diary that was assumed to be lost that brought our characters to Wondlernad, Savage keeps the story fast pace and moving with new surprises around every turn. Bringing back classic acts from Wonderland, and making up some of his own, Savage really hits the nail on the head to attract a middle-grade audience to this story. Both Celia and Tyrus were quirky in their opposite ways: Tyrus the book lover, Celia the logic girl; but each experiences bullying in their past that makes them ashamed of who they are: Tyrus for being a nerd and Celia for her dyslexia. Savage includes a nice message of self-acceptance and being proud of the things that make you unique with the story, that really ties this novel about these kids trying to save Wonderland together. Overall, Savage gave us an old story with a new twist that involves logic and irrational thinking, two opposites that become fast friends, and a land that needs saving.
This was good. It was a clever link to the original story but got a little confusing at times