The Book of Time

Starred review from November 19, 2007
In Sanderson’s (Elantris
) children’s debut, an over-the-top fantasy/adventure, librarians are evil because they control all the information in Hushland (America). They distort some facts and fabricate the rest. Alcatraz, meanwhile, is the name of the protagonist, who has been raised in a series of foster homes. As the novel opens, on his 13th birthday, he is quickly initiated into the true nature of librarians by his heretofore unmet grandfather, Leavenworth Smedry. Before long, Sanderson brings on talking dinosaurs (it’s a librarian distortion that they’re extinct), a parallel world, visiting villains and more. The madcap plot can seem chaotic, with action pulling Alcatraz toward new characters at a breakneck speed, but Sanderson unexpectedly draws everything together in an extravagantly silly climax. Readers whose sense of humor runs toward the subversive will be instantly captivated: not only does the author poke fun at librarians, he lampoons books (including this one) in frequent passages directly addressed to readers: “You are saying to yourself, 'The story just lost me. It degenerated into pure silliness…. I’m going to go read a book about a boy whose dog gets killed by his mother. Twice.’” Like Lemony Snicket and superhero comics rolled into one (and then revved up on steroids), this nutty novel isn’t for everyone, but it’s also sure to win passionate fans. Ages 9-up.

Sam's father has been mysteriously missing for 10 days, and in his search for clues to his disappearance Sam discovers an ancient stone that sends him careening through time on a series of adventures. Holter Graham skillfully employs a wide range of voices to keep the many plot elements sorted out. In addition to the earnest voices of Sam, his aged grandparents, and his extended family, Graham uses diverse accents for a series of time-travel episodes extending from ancient Egypt to France during WWI. A subplot involving Sam's judo tournament brings an entirely new set of voices to narrate the lengthy descriptions of the traditional matches. This story has a stunning cliff-hanger ending and is the first of a series. R.H.H. (c) AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine