Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
This book is a fun, quick read, which owes much to Harry Potter, Lemony Snicket, Narnia and Lord of the Rings. If you like all those books, then you will probably enjoy this one too.
http://librarianosnark.blogspot.com/2012/11/review-emerald-atlas.html
I don't know what happened to all my reading mojo. Just haven't been able to finish a book lately. This one, I listened to in the car, and I have to say, okay. Jim Dale, undeniably awesome as a narrator. Great voice, great voices, great emotion. But his voice just falls right in the "Tune this out" range for me. I just can't pay great attention to books he reads. Which is tragical, because this book was really enjoyable! I just missed...well, probably a lot of it.
Kate, Michael and Emma were abandoned by their parents ten years ago. Kate remembers them, just a little. None of the children knows their last name, though, and instead, they've been given an initial: P. They haven't been great orphans, moving from orphanage to orphanage, refusing to be adopted, refusing to behave in any way that would get them adopted. Now, they're at Dr. Pym's. It's dusty, dirty, and creepy; they're the only children there (what kind of orphanage only has three children?!), and in the basement, they find a book. A green book that, when they slide a photo between it's pages, transports all three of them to a different time, a different place. Literally, it takes them to the moment the picture was taken.
The past is a cruel one, and a magical one. There's a Countess who's holding all of the town's children hostage, threatening their lives, searching for something that she believes is in Cambridge Falls. Kate, Michael, and Emma, of course, become deeply entangled in all of this, and it becomes their mission--their duty--to save the children.
Like I said, I really enjoyed the parts of the book I paid attention to. I liked the P kids, each with their own, very distinct personality, each determined and devoted, each with their own faults and merits. And the world building is pretty fantastic, too.
Kate, Michael and Emma were abandoned by their parents ten years ago. Kate remembers them, just a little. None of the children knows their last name, though, and instead, they've been given an initial: P. They haven't been great orphans, moving from orphanage to orphanage, refusing to be adopted, refusing to behave in any way that would get them adopted. Now, they're at Dr. Pym's. It's dusty, dirty, and creepy; they're the only children there (what kind of orphanage only has three children?!), and in the basement, they find a book. A green book that, when they slide a photo between it's pages, transports all three of them to a different time, a different place. Literally, it takes them to the moment the picture was taken.
The past is a cruel one, and a magical one. There's a Countess who's holding all of the town's children hostage, threatening their lives, searching for something that she believes is in Cambridge Falls. Kate, Michael, and Emma, of course, become deeply entangled in all of this, and it becomes their mission--their duty--to save the children.
Like I said, I really enjoyed the parts of the book I paid attention to. I liked the P kids, each with their own, very distinct personality, each determined and devoted, each with their own faults and merits. And the world building is pretty fantastic, too.
Dieses Buch kann man kaum mit einem anderen Wort beschreiben als: perfekt!
"Das Buch Emerald" hat alles, was ein gutes Buch braucht. Starke, klar gezeichnete Charaktere, einen fiesen Bösewicht, eine tolle Kulisse und viel Magie (aber auch nicht zu viel.)
Ich konnte mich gut mit Kate identifizieren, aber auch die Handlungen ihrer Geschwister Michael und Emma waren sehr gut nachzuvollziehen. Die Kulisse ist schön und gleichzeitig düster genug beschrieben, dass man direkt Angst bekommen könnte. Der Autor hat auf jeden Fall die perfekte Balance zwischen Magie und kalter, harter Realität, zwischen dem kleinen Glück und dem großen Verlust geschaffen.
Einzige Anmerkung: Ich habe bis zum Schluss nicht sagen können, in welcher Zeit das Buch spielt. Es hätte heute spielen können, aber genauso gut in den Fünfzigern oder noch früher. Es ist nicht wirklich ein Manko, aber die Frage hat mich doch während der Lektüre immer wieder abgelenkt.
"Das Buch Emerald" hat alles, was ein gutes Buch braucht. Starke, klar gezeichnete Charaktere, einen fiesen Bösewicht, eine tolle Kulisse und viel Magie (aber auch nicht zu viel.)
Ich konnte mich gut mit Kate identifizieren, aber auch die Handlungen ihrer Geschwister Michael und Emma waren sehr gut nachzuvollziehen. Die Kulisse ist schön und gleichzeitig düster genug beschrieben, dass man direkt Angst bekommen könnte. Der Autor hat auf jeden Fall die perfekte Balance zwischen Magie und kalter, harter Realität, zwischen dem kleinen Glück und dem großen Verlust geschaffen.
Einzige Anmerkung: Ich habe bis zum Schluss nicht sagen können, in welcher Zeit das Buch spielt. Es hätte heute spielen können, aber genauso gut in den Fünfzigern oder noch früher. Es ist nicht wirklich ein Manko, aber die Frage hat mich doch während der Lektüre immer wieder abgelenkt.
Good children's fantasy book. Check out the audio read by Jim Dale. (Narrator for Harry Potter.)
Adventure after adventure that I found to be tedious.
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Amazing, beautiful. If you love orphan stories ... sibling stories ... adventure stories. Just read this book. Not kidding.