The Thieving Collectors of Fine Children's Books

January 15, 2021
In this metafictional romp, a boy is trapped inside his favorite book. In the near future, the ubiquitous alternative reality goggles invented by one Edmund R. Pribble have rendered children's literature obsolete--except to 10-year-old Oliver Nelson, who copes with poverty and grief by hiding in a nigh-abandoned library and stealing his favorite volumes. But when Mr. and Mrs. Pribble discover that the last extant copy of an obscure book resides only in Oliver's memory, they use the goggles to force him into the story, intending to steal it from his mind. This kicks off a delightfully gruesome over-the-top race to derail the original plot while still aiding the deliberately shallow, clich�d protagonists as they complete their ridiculously derivative, trope-laden quest, eventually dragging the snarky Had-He-But-Known-style narrator, miscellaneous background characters, and even possibly the Author himself into the effort. While the main actors in the endangered narrative completely lack personality, archetypically nice Oliver and the cartoonishly evil Pribbles are all likable in their ways. Short chapters with deadpan titles and manufactured cliffhangers add to the fun, but an unexpected twist ending and an affecting (if self-styled "mildly sappy") epilogue highlight the complex relationship between authors and readers and the power of stories to change lives. All major characters are White; there is diversity of skin tone in both the real and fictional worlds. Exactly the sort of thing you'll like if you like this sort of thing. (Fantasy. 8-12)

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January 1, 2021
Grades 5-7 With an eye on his likely audience ("His little life had been a series of Roald Dahl tragedies and Lemony Snicket misfortunes"), Perry pits an impoverished young bookworm against a pair of evil book collectors. Oliver Nelson only discovers that the beloved fantasy novel he stole from the local library and lost is the last copy extant when merciless bibliomanes Edmund and Sophelia Pribble, fabulously wealthy inventors of "alternative reality" goggles addictive enough to have turned an entire generation of children away from reading, use their technology to trap him in his vivid recollections of the storyline and then ruthlessly hoover it from his mind. Joining two young protagonists in the novel's world and a comical avian narrator with low self-esteem, Oliver faces giant spiders and like challenges while dying repeatedly, sometimes in explicitly gory fashion, on the way to a "Dark and Twisted End" that--spoiler alert!--is plenty twisted but not terribly dark. A fortunate event, all in all, for fans of tongue-in-cheek tales with metafictive elements.

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February 1, 2021

Gr 3-7-Oliver Nelson is a mostly good if pessimistic kid with a secret: He's a book thief. This wouldn't be a problem-after all, no one visits the local public library anymore-except the Pribbles, two wealthy inventors and book collectors, have taken a sudden interest in one of the books Oliver stole, and his attempt to return it ends in disaster when the book is instead tossed into a garbage truck. Soon, Oliver is sucked into the Pribbles' latest invention, a virtual reality device that will allow them to take the book's plot straight out of his head. Now Oliver must assist the main characters on their quest-all while avoiding giants, bats, eels, and, of course, the Pribbles-in order to escape. This is a fast-paced, funny tale set in the not too distant future that features an amusing cast of characters. Oliver is perhaps a bit too insightful for the average 10-year-old, but his quick wit and humor are sure to captivate readers. Primary characters present as white. VERDICT Much in the style of a classic Roald Dahl, this adventure story has a pleasing tongue-in-cheek style. Recommended purchase.-Kaitlin Frick, Darien Lib., CT

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