Enter a Glossy Web

June 15, 2016
This debut fantasy tests the theory that a great opening and closing number will cause an audience to forgive almost anything.The novel ends with a spectacular battle, including a sword fight with skeleton bones. And the dialogue in the opening chapters is endlessly entertaining. Early on, George learns why Aunt Henrietta's nickname is Chicken: "Chicken is long for Hen, which is short for Henrietta." But the chapters in between are a standard-issue if ramblingly lengthy fantasy story, with characters searching for magical pieces of a talisman that will save the world from destruction. A few moments are gloriously odd, though, such as a scene in which a character reaches down a depressed dragon's throat to ignite his pilot light. And the protagonist, George (she hates to be called Georgina), is always engaging. She's as unfailingly polite as Alice was in Wonderland. The characters are just eccentric enough to keep people reading through the pedestrian chapters. (The human ones also seem to be just as white as the people in Carroll's novels.) Hector, the dragon, is a highlight. He sticks up for his home world by saying, "We're very cultured, you know. We have public-access television and ballets." This trilogy opener may not be consistently inventive, but there are enough peculiar, oddball moments to keep readers surprised from beginning to end. (Fantasy. 9-14)

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August 1, 2016

Gr 4-6-Twelve-year-old George (short for Georgina) feels right at home with her zany aunt and uncle, despite missing her lost brother. However, she's soon swept up in an adventure to stop an apocalyptic meteor shower by re-forming the mythical Council of Seven from Uncle Constantine's bedtime stories. Along the way she meets two orphaned boys who pledge to help her. Through muddy puddles and the zooming highway of flying doors ("the Door Way") that connect ingeniously crafted little worlds, the friends are perfectly set up for a specific challenge at each stop. A bit too linear and simplistic in structure for more sophisticated readers, this is an ideal entry point for those new to speculative fiction. The protagonists build courage and learn hearty lessons such as the value of leaving a place better than you found it. A cantankerous magical tablet who serves as a map and doomsday clock shines out from among other amusing characters, lending a refreshingly modern feel to the tale. There is an unfortunate comment about children playing cowboys and Indians in a heavenlike world encountered along the way. The book also presents yet another all-white fantasy world. VERDICT An additional purchase for younger middle grade readers who can handle moderately high page counts.-Erin Reilly-Sanders, University of Wisconsin-Madison, WI

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

maddyp18 - This book was the best fantasy story I've read in a while! Georgina (she prefers George), is twelve years old. George's little brother Daniel is lost, and after a several weeks of searching for him, George's parents drop her off at her Aunt and Uncle's house. Aunt Henrietta and Uncle Constantine are fun, kind, and thoughtful adults. George soon becomes close to these relatives, and she enjoys her stay with them. But then Uncle Constantine goes away on a business trip, and, when Uncle Constantine sends George a letter telling her that he needs help, George is puzzled. The not said to find the "eldest of the els". A few minutes later, Aunt Henrietta is kidnapped before George's eyes. With Aunt Henrietta's last piece of advice in mind, to go left, George does, and she finds two orphans, Caleb and Mikal. They join her in her mission to find uncle Constantine, and the group leaves at once. The group learn that a story Uncle Constantine told George was true, and that in order to save the world, they have to get 3 keys and and 3 objects from the world of Astria. They are given Cavendish, the talking map to aid them, and they become the Snaffleharp company. Their adventures take them to many different worlds, and lots of danger, enchantment, and nice monsters. If the snaffleharp company fails to locate the 3 objects, the world will end. Is this group of kids and a talking map ready to take on the pressure of saving the worlds? I loved this book so much! George is such a brave, thoughtful, smart, responsible girl. I think the message in this story is to always believe in yourself, even if other people doubt you. This book is a adventurous exciting story, and the Characters are always moving, and always learning something new. This is a book that both boys and girls with love! I hope you enjoy this book!