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3.64 AVERAGE
3.64 AVERAGE
If Wes Anderson ever wrote a twee middle-grade book, this would be it.
Archer Helmsley's famous explorer grandparents have been missing his entire life, but they are really missing now -- adrift on an iceberg, in fact. Despite his house being full of testaments to adventure courtesy of its former owners (the missing grandparents), Archer leads a very sheltered life thanks to his mother. That is, until he meets Oliver Glub, his shy neighbour, and the mysterious new girl across the garden, Adelaide Belmont, who's wooden leg is said to be courtesy of an alligator attack. The three of them decide to prepare themselves for an adventure, on the sly of course, to find and rescue Archer's grandparents from Antarctica.
For kids who want to go on an adventure, but not too much adventure, this book hits just the right note.
Archer Helmsley's famous explorer grandparents have been missing his entire life, but they are really missing now -- adrift on an iceberg, in fact. Despite his house being full of testaments to adventure courtesy of its former owners (the missing grandparents), Archer leads a very sheltered life thanks to his mother. That is, until he meets Oliver Glub, his shy neighbour, and the mysterious new girl across the garden, Adelaide Belmont, who's wooden leg is said to be courtesy of an alligator attack. The three of them decide to prepare themselves for an adventure, on the sly of course, to find and rescue Archer's grandparents from Antarctica.
For kids who want to go on an adventure, but not too much adventure, this book hits just the right note.
The children really enjoyed this one. It felt kind of meh to me. It was good but not that great.
2/5 this was really bad.
This book is about them going to find archers grandparents but just around the 75% corner they actually left,untill then all they did was talk about it and fantasize.And there wasn't even an aventure!Just a failed attempt and after that the grandparents come home.Also very plotless and boring.Atleast the museum part was pretty fun
This book is about them going to find archers grandparents but just around the 75% corner they actually left,untill then all they did was talk about it and fantasize.And there wasn't even an aventure!Just a failed attempt and after that the grandparents come home.Also very plotless and boring.Atleast the museum part was pretty fun
This is a fun and quirky middle-grade story that had me hooked from beginning to end. The cover illustration caught my eye (always a plus for me), and the protagonists are endearing and relatable. I liked the dynamic between Archer, Oliver, and Adelaide, and I also enjoyed certain aspects of Adelaide's character--I mean c'mon, a ballerina with a mysterious wooden leg? Bonus points for a quirky female protagonist! Their adventure was entertaining, it was carried along at a steady pace, and overrall I'd say it was a fantastic read! I gave it four stars instead of five because it didn't *quite* have that level of depth that digs at your heart and leaves you pondering its messages for days on end (which is important if you want readers to remember and be impacted).
If you're looking for a fun, middle grade novel, I would recommend going for this one. There's humor, adventure, and it also discusses more serious themes to go along with it. The writing style was very reminiscent of the books I read as a child, like A Series of Unfortunate Events. It was whimsical and brought back a lot of memories of my favorite children's books, like Roald Dahl. My favorite part about this book would have to be the illustrations. It's amazing that being a debut novel, the author managed to write and illustrate this book. The illustrations were wonderfully depicted and outshined my enjoyment of the story.
Read full review at: Marvelous Eden of Books
Read full review at: Marvelous Eden of Books
adventurous
relaxing
fast-paced
adventurous
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes