Posted by Ruth
Categories: Adventure, Award Winner, Fiction, Older Readers, Review
Tags:Lloyd Alexander, Westmark trilogy
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Being a printer’s apprentice could hardly be called dangerous work, but with the Chief Minister Cabbarus laying down laws left and right, Theo soon finds himself running for his life. For the sake of concealment, he falls in with the fraudulent Count Las Bombas, and through twists and turns, they are joined by Mickle, an orphan girl with a talented voice. Their journeys sweep them all over Westmark, involving a group of revolutionaries, a daring rescue mission, and an uncovered plot of the evil Cabbarus aspiring to take over the throne.
Overall, I don’t know that I can recommend this one as much as Lloyd Alexander’s Prydain Chronicles. This is supposed to be a book for children, but there were a couple of things that bothered me—moral issues of what is right and what is wrong often set Theo to wondering, but the other characters seem to shrug off his concerns. Also, there was a very small amount of swearing, which was completely unnecessary. Aside from these things, I was able to enjoy the story, and I may look into reading the second and third of the trilogy, but I can’t rank Westmark as one of Lloyd Alexander’s bests.
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Posted by Ruth
Categories: Adventure, Animals, Fiction, Funny, Horses, Incredibook!, Older Readers, Review
Tags:Donkeys, Lloyd Alexander
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Carlo has been working for his uncle for many years, but his somewhat incompetent nature finally forces Uncle Evariste to discharge him and send him far away with a small purse of money. Carlo is not altogether discouraged, as this provides him with the perfect opportunity to go treasure-hunting with an old, old map he discovered. Baksheesh, the most lazy camel puller who ever existed; and Shira, a young woman bent on facing her past, join him on this topsy-turvy quest through dangers and adventures Carlo never dreamed of.
Loved it! I am extremely fond of first-person style in books when it’s done well, and this one takes full advantage of it. When I wasn’t grinning, I was laughing. Sadly, though, this is Lloyd Alexander’s last book ever, due to his recent death in May of this year. But I think The Golden Dream of Carlo Chuchio is a fitting end to complete his writings. Well worth reading!
(1 votes, average: 5 out of 5)
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Posted by Ruth
Categories: Adventure, Animals, Cats, Fantasy, Fiction, Older Readers, Review
Tags:Donkeys, Lloyd Alexander, Pigs
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Lidi is a skilled magician with fast-moving hands and long copper curls. She travels with her guardian/canvas master Jericho giving performances throughout the country. Lidi’s greatest hope is to find Ferramondo, one of the greatest magicians, to learn the one trick that no one else knows. The rope trick. On her journey, she is joined by a young girl named Daniella, who becomes the Added Attraction; and Julian, a mysterious young man who seems to have more to his story than he tells at first. Through it all, Lidi is constantly on the lookout for clues to Ferramondo’s whereabouts.
I’m afraid I didn’t do this book justice in my summary. It’s really very interesting, with sub-plots and all. I enjoy reading it very much. The ending takes an unusual twist that you probably won’t be expecting, but is still satisfactory.
(8 votes, average: 3.5 out of 5)
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Posted by Rebekah
Categories: Adventure, Easy Read, Fantasy, Fiction, Funny, Older Readers, Quick Read, Review
Tags:Lloyd Alexander, Prydain
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This is a collection of short stories about Prydain. It’s very helpful for learning a little bit of the “background” history of Prydain, including the story behind Dyrnwyrn and how Orddu, Orgoch and Orwen found Dalben. There’s a fun story with Doli and several others.
I enjoyed this one. It’s a quick read, and there’s not a lot to it, but you could consider it a “nutritional supplement” for the Prydain Chronicles. I would recommend that you read the Chronicles first, then this one, not that it gives anything away, but it might make more sense. It’s a nice mix of six stories, (that’s a tongue-twister!) and it works great for a “quickie” while I’m waiting for something or other. Enjoy!
(4 votes, average: 4 out of 5)
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Posted by Rebekah
Categories: Adventure, Fiction, Funny, Older Readers, Review
Tags:Lloyd Alexander
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In this newest Vesper Holly book, Vesper, Brinnie and their guest, nick-named “The Weed,” are off in search of the ancient city of Troy. Strangely, everything seems to be going as planned. Little do they know that Dr. Helvitius is very close by…
Let me see. How to describe this book. Well, it’s a Vesper Holly. What more can I say? Brinnie is hilarious as usual and Dr. Helvitius is still unpredictable. Danger, narrow escapes, explosions…Oh! One minor detail: Vesper gets married.
(1 votes, average: 1 out of 5)
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