Synopsis:
John Stephens' aptly-titled new fantasy trilogy begins auspiciously with a nimble, fast-paced tale of three siblings. Kate, Michael, and Emma have suffered through ten years of odious orphanage "care"; now they have slipped into the care of the eccentric, disturbingly mysterious Dr. Pym. While exploring their new home, the children discover a magical green book. With that discovery, a decade of tedium dissolves into cascades of dangerous time travel adventures and struggles with a beautiful witch and decidedly less attractive zombielike Screechers.
The Emerald Atlas was a thrilling book! Imagine riding a roller coaster that goes through time. I'm inpsired by Kate, Emma, and Michael's hard will to find their parents and to not forget them. In the slow moments the author could have written more detail. He seemed to have been bored. For example, when the children had been examining the house...slow and boring. But when the action hit I could feel myself there in the book running from wolves and freeing the prisoners. This book I will remember for a while. I hope I can get to the next book of Kate, Michael and Emma very soon.
Would I recommend this book? yes, I would recommend this book for those who seek action and excitement. But to those who like slow books and blah, blah, no I wouldn't. Clearly I'm a person of action and adventure and if you are too, then you'll agree with me that The Emerald Atlas is an amazing book that will be hard to put down.
Rating: 7.5/10
Author: John Stephens
Published: April 5, 2011
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers
Genre: Middle School Fantasy
* Uncorrected ARC courtesy of Shelf Awareness
Ryan was not compensated for his review. His thoughts on this book were in no way influenced by the author or publicist.They are his personal reflections based solely on HIS experience while reading this novel.
© 2011, Staci of Life in the Thumb. All Rights Reserved. If you reading this on a site other than, Life in the Thumb or Staci's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.
Ryan,
ReplyDeleteI want to thank you for doing a great review of this book. I love your enthusiasm for reading!
Mrs.T
This sounds AWESOME!!! Thanks Ryan for the awesome review! :):):):):):):):):):):)
ReplyDeleteCongrats on your first time review! Sounds like a fun read, especially with the action parts. Makes up for the slow ones. I look forward to more reviews form you in the future :)
ReplyDeleteGreat review! I love that bit: "Clearly I'm a person of action and adventure" Can't wait for more Ryan Reviews!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Ryan! And Staci! I love a book review written by a student!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great, detailed review!
ReplyDeleteMy nine year old son read this one and really enjoyed it. We are waiting for book two...
Great review, Ryan! I will have to mention this book to my daughter because she loves stories with lots of action.
ReplyDeleteThis does sound good and right up my alley. Thank you, Ryan, for a great review!
ReplyDeleteThis was a great review. I'm going to pass Ryan's recommendation on to my seventh-grade granddaughter. She also loves books with lots of action. I look forward to more suggestions from Ryan.
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful review, Ryan! I look forward to more of your reviews. I'm sure you make Staci's day a little brighter.
ReplyDeleteI have this waiting for me to read and while I love action too, I usually just skim the boring especially in fantasy when descriptions often bog me down ad nauseum. Thanks for the heads up on this one.
ReplyDeleteVery nice. I love seeing kids excited about reading! They are lucky to have you steer them in the right direction, Staci!
ReplyDeleteGreat review Ryan :) It is so fun to see boys read since so many don't
ReplyDeleteGreat review, Ryan!! Thanks.
ReplyDeleteI have NEVER read a review by a young person and that's such a great idea. It's one thing to hear what an adult thinks but one written by a "reader" is great and so well done.
ReplyDeletePatti
Thanks for the awesome review Ryan! I have this on my bookshelf and will be pick it up when I am looking for an adventurous read.
ReplyDeleteGreat review Ryan. I saw this one on Amazon and it sounds great. I hope you keep terrorizing Staci - it's good for her. Lol.
ReplyDeleteGreat review and I have this book in my TBR pile. Will have to move it up and read it sooner than later.
ReplyDeleteThanks for all your positive comments and ill make sure I write more reviews for everyone!
ReplyDeleteLoved your review, Ryan! You seem to have a great sense for writing reviews that people will want to read and make them want to check out the book too!
ReplyDeleteGreat review by Ryan! You are a good kid, and I am very impressed by your review!
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