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inkhearted 's review for:
Charlie Bone Lúc Nửa Đêm
by Jenny Nimmo
The trouble with Charlie Bone is he's much more like Charlie Bucket than Harry Potter and let's be honest--Jenny Nimmo is enthusiastically trying to channel some of Rowling's magic, so this is a bit of a problem. As I've said before, the heroes of these series tend to fall into two camps: the Horatio Alger throwback (orphan/survivor with grit who eventually is rewarded for his selfless acts) and the preternaturally mature and intelligent youngster who makes the adults around him look like bumbling morons. Even though he is not an orphan, Charlie Bone falls unmistakably in the former category. His father is gone. His family is dysfuntional. It's likely he's getting lunch money stolen from him at lunch on a fairly regular basis. He discovers a magical predisposition and ends up getting packed off to a school for similarly gifted kids. Sound familiar?
Unfortunately, Charlie never feels as fully fleshed-out as the boy he was undoubtedly modeled after. The characters feel gimmicky and not particularly relatable. Charlie's primary magical talent is somewhat interesting, but he doesn't get to use it to much purpose in the course of the book. Of the many Harry Potter wannabes out there, there are some that are at least entertaining if not particularly original. This series unfortunately, just feels like a watered down replica.
Unfortunately, Charlie never feels as fully fleshed-out as the boy he was undoubtedly modeled after. The characters feel gimmicky and not particularly relatable. Charlie's primary magical talent is somewhat interesting, but he doesn't get to use it to much purpose in the course of the book. Of the many Harry Potter wannabes out there, there are some that are at least entertaining if not particularly original. This series unfortunately, just feels like a watered down replica.