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Inkling by Kenneth Oppel

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trs24's review

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adventurous lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

4.0

jesforeverlostinbooks's review

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4.0

I’ve been on a middle grade kick and this story of a family struggling with grief and a magical moment with ink and heartwarming. A fun unique story for the whole family and the audio was great too!

erchla's review against another edition

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3.0

I liked this one, but felt like it dragged a bit and could have been shorter. My 7 year old daughter LOVED it though and said her rating would be five enthusiastic stars!

Adorable and funny middle grade novel about a boy who befriends a sentient splotch of ink! And how the "Inkling" helps to heal the boy's family. Ethan, 6th grader, is doing a graphic novel group project for school but having trouble with his part, drawing the pictures. He's especially chagrined about his lack of artistic talent because his father is a highly successful graphic novelist, who created a popular superhero series but lately hasn't been able to come up with anything new. One night some of the ink oozes out of Mr. Rylance's sketchbook--it literally pulls itself out of the book, and rolls around the house, absorbing ink from printed books and "feeding" itself on words and pictures, becoming bigger and more agile at rearranging itself into various shapes. When Ethan discovers it, they are able to communicate (Inkling can very cleverly form words, since he is after all, ink) and Inkling is friendly and pet-like, and becomes Ethan's secret friend. The crux of the story is how Ethan's family's loss--the death of his mother--has caused a rift between him and his father and dried up his father's creativity; his younger sister, who has Down Syndrome, has apparently been able to heal better and she adorably calls Inkling "Lucy" when it forms into the shape of a puppy for her to play with. When Inkling wants to help Ethan by drawing his project for him, Ethan lets him, and things get complicated--is what Ethan is doing cheating? What will happen when Ethan's dad finds out about Inkling, will he want Inkling to draw for *him*? And then there's the nosy girl from school whose dad is Ethan's father's publisher, who is demanding fresh new graphic novel work from the grieving artist... This is just a really cute story that has some good messages underneath the action and humor of a magical motivated splot of ink. 2020 Buckeye Children's Book Award nominee, grades 3-5

jenennap29's review

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4.0

Such a cool concept for a story! There’s a lot of heart in the depths of this story that makes it an easy, but enjoyable read.

molliebrarian's review

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adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

Didn't hate it but didn't super like it either. I think my tweens will enjoy it at least, and there are some good discussions to be had from it. I didn't care for the ending.

kimily's review against another edition

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5.0

It has been a very long time since I've read a chapter book as compelling, yet as fun, as Inkling. The characters breathe, and the story is thoughtful, touching, and funny. This is the first novel I've read by Kenneth Oppel, and I wonder how he hasn't been on my radar before, because he has some serious chops. I look forward to reading more of his work.

This book was provided to me free of charge. My review is given voluntarily.