Samuel Blink and the Runaway Troll

September 1, 2008
Gr 5-8-This book is just as delightful as "Samuel Blink and the Forbidden Forest" (Putnam, 2007). It continues the story of Samuel and Martha, along with their Norwegian aunt and uncle and the trolls who live in the neighboring forest. The siblings are starting school, which is not an easy thing when you only speak English. Samuel has enough problems without the arrival of Troll-Son, who is hiding from the Betterer, an adult troll who uses various torture techniques to make the trolls more human. Meanwhile, Martha is becoming friendly with Cornelia, who has motives other than friendship for spending time with her. When the worlds of the trolls and the humans fully connect, there is no guessing what will happen. Enthusiastically portrayed with all of their quirks, the characters are engaging. Fast pacing adds to the readability of the book, and the combination of fantasy and broad humor is very well done."Tasha Saecker, Menasha Public Library, WI"

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