Another Peter Pan Adventure

Peter and the Shadow Thieves
by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson
Genre: Middle-Grade Fantasy 
*Sequel to Peter and the Starcatchers

"Peter leaves the relative safety of Mollusk Island-along with his trusted companion, Tinker Bell-for the cold, damp, dangerous, streets of London. On a difficult journey across the sea, he and Tink discover the mysterious and deadly Lord Ombra, who is intent on recovering the missing starstuff-celestial dust that contains unimaginable powers. In London, Peter attempts to track down the indomitable Molly, hoping that together they can combat Ombra's determined forces.

"But London is not Mollusk Island; Peter is not the boy he used to be; and Lord Ombra-the Shadow Master-is unlike anything Peter, or the world, has ever seen."

Another adventure awaits! The action in this novel was less intense than the first one, and I didn't like it as much, perhaps because it took place in dirty, foggy London. The plot seemed more rushed and somehow less fluid. Peter also annoyed me at times because it seemed like as soon as he came to London and met up with Molly, he became clueless and had to ask her everything. But he made up for it at the end. Molly also bothered me at times, but not as much because she had a better reason for acting like that. I also had an unanswered question at the end about the starstuff and its affects on a certain character, and it is not cleared up in the third and final book.

However, there is still a lot of action and slightly more character development in Peter, although there could have been even more. I liked the circle ending, and the main antagonist is definitely creepy and creative. I enjoyed how Barry and Pearson continued adding and weaving elements of the original story to their own version. That made it even more fun to read.

I give this book a 3.5 and recommend it for ages 9 and up because of the creepy evil-shadow character.

What I learned: Sometimes one must put and fight for something greater even than family bonds.

Ridley Pearson's website: http://ridleypearson.com/
Dave Barry's website: http://www.davebarry.com/

You thought You Knew the Story of Peter Pan...

Peter and the Starcatchers by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson
Genre: Middle-Grade Fantasy 
*First novel of a trilogy/quartet

"In an evocative and fast-paced adventure on the high seas and on a faraway island, an orphan boy named Peter and his mysterious new friend, Molly, overcome bands of pirates and thieves in their quest to keep a fantastical secret safe and save the world from evil.

"Aboard the Never Land is a trunk that holds the 'greatest treasure on earth'-but is it gold, jewels, or something far more mysterious and dangerous?

"Roiling waves and raging storms; skullduggery and pirate treachery provide the backdrop for battles at sea. Bone-crushing breakers eventually land our characters on Mollusk Island-where the action really heats up."

If you haven't read this novel yet, or even if you have, please, please pick it up! I don't care if you are nine years old or forty-five; it is a book worth reading. This tale has everything a good story should have: suspense, convincing/conniving evil characters, life-like protagonists, magic, and plenty of plot twists. It even has beautiful illustrations. It is super easy to read (it's meant for a younger audience, after all), and took me two days to read it this second time.

I love that this story is basically the back-story of Peter Pan's life and that it explains how he got to Never Land, why he can fly, and all of that crucial, mysterious information that the original story just doesn't clear up completely. And even though it is meant for a younger audience, I still enjoyed this story. It had plenty of good, innocent humor and enough action to keep me on my toes, but then again, I might still be a kid at heart.

The only major qualm I have about this book is that my copy had a lot of little errors, like misplaced quotes, missing words, and the like. I'm sure not every copy is like that, but it did annoy me slightly. I'm reading the sequel now, and it doesn't have any mistakes.

I also wish that the narrator could have given us more insights into Peter's mind, since he is the main character, but I still felt like I knew him. The book does jump around from different characters quite frequently (at the end of every chapter), so that could be a bit overwhelming. But it is still a masterfully written novel, which makes sense, since its authors are the famous Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson (who's written the Kingdom Keepers series).

I give this book a 3.5 and recommend it for ages 8 and up.

What I learned: When people use something powerful with good motives, they usually end up using it for evil. Plenty of pirate/ship words, including: aft, dory, yardarm. Oh, and pirates often go around ships barefoot.

Dave Barry's website: http://www.davebarry.com/
Ridley Pearson's website: http://ridleypearson.com/


 So, who's going to pick this book up now? Or if you have already read it, what did you think?

A Review: Pirates!

                                          

Pirates! by Celia Rees

Genre: YA Historical Fiction, Adventure

 "Thrown together by chance, ambitious for adventure by nature, Minerva Sharpe and Nancy Kington defy the expectations of everyone around them and take to the high seas on the pirate ship Deliverance." 

This novel was interesting and a lot of fun to read. There's always something going on, and the characters are very likeable. Although, I liked Minerva better than Nancy, even though the story was told from Nancy's point of view. In my opinion, the main protagonist should be the 'strongest' character; the one who changes the most and directs the story. It would have been interesting to read some of this daring, pirate tale from Minerva's p.o.v, but I still enjoyed hearing from Nancy. 

This story has some great imagery, and seemed (as far as I could tell) fairly accurate about slave plantations and early life in England as a woman, which I found highly interesting. I wish the ending was a bit more specific, but it was still a satisfying ending. 

This was an excellently written novel and highly enjoyable to read, and my complaints about it aren't major. I give it a 3.5 out of 5 and recommend it for older middle-schoolers and up. 

What I learned: Men who go on the account (become pirates) were usually plain old sailors at first, and pirates have their own rules that can't be broken. I also learned the importance of a good, true friend who sticks to you no matter what. 

*By the way, I believe this novel is based on a true story. Thus, you must most definitely read it!