The Mysterious Benedict Society & the Perilous Journey

If I remember correctly, Lisa got me started on this series. I love it. Like The Penderwicks, it's a throwback to classic stories, but it is undeniably contemporary. It's so gosh-darn enjoyable that it's easy to forgive its minor flaws. I like how the tasks and mysteries that the children solve are, in truth, solvable. The solutions are logical, and the reader can try to work it out with the characters. It's a nice balance- being neither so easy that the reader is wondering when the characters will figure it out, nor so hard that it answer seems to come from left field.

I wonder if, given the popularity of The Penderwicks and this series, if we might see a return to more innocent children's stories, at least in some books. I suppose stories about the grim realities of childhood are here to stay, but it would be nice to have some good, old-fashioned, home-before-supper adventures, too.

Nim's Island by Wendy Orr

Again, I have no idea why this was on my to-read list. It appeared with many others at the library with my name on it, so I figure I read about it somewhere. Perhaps because the movie came out this month. I haven't seen the movie, but it's getting bad reviews, so I'll probably wait for the rental. It could be a contender for Pages & Popcorn because it's fairy short (125 pages) and easy to read.

I enjoyed the Swiss-Family-Robinson-like setting and the adventurous plot once I let go of all my grown-up logic and needs for literary quality. Wendy Orr reportedly began writing this story as a nine-year-old, and it retains that childlike sense of adventure, even if it is a tad predictable and nonsensical. I can see imaginative kids internalizing the settings and using it for their own creative play.

Barkbelly by Cat Weatherill

I’m pretty sure I read about this one over at Pixie Stix. She has it tagged “Quirky and Hard to Define.” That it is. I enjoyed it, though. It would make a great read aloud- the epic quest for self-identification is moderately episodic, keeps you wondering what will happen next, and has great character names like Candy Pie and Farmer Muckledown. I like it so much that I immediately picked up the companion, Snowbone, but it was too much of a good thing. I think I only got through the first chapter before realizing that I was done with the adventure. At least for a while. So often I come back to Cathie Mercier’s comment about sequels: is there really more story to tell, or do you just want more? In this case, I think, yes, there is more story there, but I don’t need any more just yet.

This story seems very un-American to me (and indeed, the author is British), and I’m trying to decide why. Part of it is the landscape; American concepts of and attitudes towards wilderness are so different from European ones. This book in particular really channels England’s long history of fantastical creatures living alongside humans. We don’t have that a part of our cultural history. Hmmm… I’m going to have to think about this some more.

I’m fascinated by covers and how they change from country to country and over time to appeal to new readers. This one is so much more appealing. I’m not sure if it’s the UK cover, or the new paperback one.

Dragon Slippers by Jessica Day George

I read about this on a blog somewhere and it made it onto my “to read” list, but I don’t remember where I saw it written up. Probably on someone’s Best of 2007 list. It’s a nice variant on the Capable Girl theme, and, again, the cover doesn’t do it justice. It has a lot of humor to it, starting with the aunt who gives the main character, Creel, to the dragon so that a knight can rescue, and then marry, her, saving the entire family from financial ruin. The dragon society that George creates is rich, and I loved the passages about Creel’s embroidery and dress-making skills. I can see this one being a hit with the 9-11 crowd, while they’re waiting for the next Inkworld.

The Land of the Silver Apples by Nancy Farmer

I was very excited when I saw this on the bookstore shelves, because I really enjoyed the first one, and I'm a huge admirer of Nancy Farmer in general.

I enjoyed the adventure, and certainly the kids who liked Sea of Trolls will love this one, too. However, I was disappointed in the mythology and folklore allusions in this one. Perhaps it's just that the world of hobgoblins and elves is more well-trodden than the realms of Nordic mythology that Farmer introduced us to in the first book. The story is good, even great (and addresses some of my earlier issues with the character of Lucy), but the novel lacks the depth and innovation of Sea of Trolls.

All of that being said, I will be eager to see what happens to Pega and Thorgil next, which, I now see from the flap copy, we will learn be able from The Islands of the Blesseds in 2009. Why does it seem so arrogant and pushy to have the publication date for the final book so soon? It feels like they're flaunting it in my face, "Ha, ha, the final book is done, but we're going to make you wait two years before we let you see it!"

Sheesh. Think of the effect on a fifth grader. Are they still going to be interested when they're in the seventh grade?

The Faceless Fiend by Howard Whitehouse

This is actually the second in the series about Emmaline and Rubberbones. I completely missed the first.

I enjoyed this one in spite of myself. It takes a very long time for the action to really get anywhere, but once it did, it was quite exciting. The characters are engaging and funny, and I expect we'll be hearing more about their future adventures.

Here's the basic plot. In the first book, Emmaline and the Princess Purnah escaped from a horrible school (with the help of Rubberbones, a boy who cannot be injured). Princess Purnah comes from a tiny, fictitious, and "backward" country somewhere in eastern Europe. The Faceless Fiend of the title has been hired by the Russians to kidnap Purnah and thereby gain control of her kingdom, in order to invade Europe. The madcap adventures follow as the kids try not to get captured by the Fiend.

My only real complaint about this story is that it is so very quaint. The setting is supposedly Victorian England, although perhaps an alternative one because of Rubberbones' mysterious qualities, the presence of Sherlock Holmes, and Purnah's kingdom. Although the views of Purnah's savage country are no doubt accurate for the time, to me the depiction was too much of a throwback to colonial views of non-white countries. Is it acceptable to use the allusion of an uncivilized and violent, albeit fictional, country for humorous purposes?

It reminds me of other books (Nancy Farmer's Sea of Trolls and John Flanagan's Ranger's Apprentice series, to name two), in which main characters learn to appreciate the culture and society (however unlike their own) of their enemies, to the point where they can become allies. I think this is a more desirable approach for the 21st century. Now, to be fair, those two books are very different in style from The Faceless Fiend, Purnah and her fellow citizens are not the enemy, and only the bad guys want to take over her country.

I think I wouldn't be so concerned if the book was set in an alternate world. It could have many of the same characteristics of Victorian England (as in Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy or Philip Reeve's Larklight), but wouldn't be burdened by the actual social history of imperialism.