The Amulet of Samarkand

Posted on July 23, 2020July 28, 2020 by Aahnix Bathurst

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This review was written for Be The Star You Are! Charity and published on The Reading Tub.

The Amulet of Samarkand begins a terrific trilogy by master story-teller Jonathon Stroud. While the adventures, heists, and subterfuges are nothing to sneeze at, Stroud’s world-building kept this book fresh in my mind years after I finished it. Stroud sets his world in modern-day England, but this world has been shaped by magic over the millennia, making some fundamental differences. One poignant difference is that America never revolted against England, and England is poised to become the next hub of magical power and activity.

The book traces the story of Nathaniel, a talented but young and inexperienced magician, as he accidentally becomes intertwined in a plot to overtake the magical government. Rife with humans, spirits, and strife, Nathaniel works in an uneasy truce with an ancient djinni (magical spirit) that he summed named Bartimaeus, to survive while preventing a violent coup. The adventure is high stakes, and the cards seem stacked against the two. Twelve-year-old Nathaniel would not stand a chance against his enemies without his quick mind and powerful servant-turned-friend Bartimaeus.

A delightful voice for the book comes from the irascible Bartimaeus, who tells many chapters of this story with a sense for sarcasm and wry wit. Not the smartest spirit, nor the strongest, Bartimaeus leverages his resourcefulness and luck to narrowly escape the tightest situations. With 5,000 years of experience to rely on, he often compares His new master Nathaniel to his old master, Ptolemy. Stroud uses this tell two stories in one book; an outline of his time with Ptolemy accompanies the riveting story of Nathaniel.

An excellent gift for any middle schooler or early high schooler, this book deserves five stars of five stars. Fans of fiction and fantasy will head straight to the library to read the other three books in the series after reading this first book.

If you liked The Amulet of Samarkand, you may enjoy P.B. Kerr’s Children of the Lamp series (two middle-school children discover that they are Genies, and have adventures), T.A. Barron’s The Lost Years of Merlin (the ultimate prequels to any King Arthur books), or Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s Game series (in a dystopian future, young children are recruited to the military to eliminate an alien threat).

Recommended Titles:
Children of the Lamp, P.B. Kerr
The Lost Years of Merlin, T.A. Barron
Ender’s Game, Orson Scott Card

featured book cover

This review was written for Be The Star You Are! Charity and published on The Reading Tub.

Recommended Titles:
Children of the Lamp, P.B. Kerr
The Lost Years of Merlin, T.A. Barron
Ender’s Game, Orson Scott Card

Fish in a Tree

Posted on July 23, 2020July 28, 2020 by Aahnix Bathurst

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This review was written for Be The Star You Are! Charity and published on The Reading Tub.

Ally Nickerson has dyslexia, which means that reading is so difficult, it often feels impossible for her. Fish in a Tree follows Ally’s increasing confidence and friendships as her new teacher Mr. Daniels helps her and her other classmates, some of whom also learn and behave differently. Ally learns many lessons about friendship, self-confidence, and support in her year with Mr. Daniels.

Each child character in Fish in a Tree is incredibly well developed for a novel aimed at middle-grade readers. Allies, antagonists, alike are given a personality, backstory, and chances for growth. We learn with Ally about her classmates as they change from acquaintances to friends. Hunt uses Ally and her friend to explore racial differences, economic class differences, and different learning disabilities, among others. She does this expertly while defining her characters by their vibrant personalities, not by defining them by their differences. Few authors can boast of this accomplishment.

Fish in a Tree is a must-read for anyone who reads at or above middle-grade level. Lynda Mullaly Hunt has given the world a chance to see through the eyes of child with different learning needs, something rarely encountered. A wonderful gift for parents, teachers, children, and yourself.

If you liked Fish in a Tree, you might like Kate DiCamillo’s The Tale of Despereaux, Ingrid Law’s Savvy (both focus on protagonists that are seen as different), Andrew Clements’ Frindle (focuses on teachers and students), Sharon Creech’s Ruby Holler (left a similar feeling in my heart at the end), or of course Rick Riordan’s Heroes of Olympus series (features a protagonist who has ADD and dyslexia).

Recommended Titles:
The Tale of Despereaux, Kate DiCamillo
Savvy, Ingrid Law
Frindle, Andrew Clements
Heroes of Olympus, Rick Riordan
Ruby Holler, Sharon Creech

featured book cover

This review was written for Be The Star You Are! Charity and published on The Reading Tub.

Recommended Titles:
The Tale of Despereaux, Kate DiCamillo
Savvy, Ingrid Law
Frindle, Andrew Clements
Heroes of Olympus, Rick Riordan
Ruby Holler, Sharon Creech

In the Footsteps of Crazy Horse

Posted on July 23, 2020July 28, 2020 by Aahnix Bathurst

This review was written for Be The Star You Are! Charity and published on The Reading Tub.

Jimmy Mclean is Lakota, but his mixed ancestry means that kids at his school tease him for looking different. One summer, his grandfather Nyles takes him on a road trip through the upper Midwest. The two trace the steps that Crazy Horse walked over a century before. Along the way they stop and explore historic sites.

The story of Jimmy acts as a frame; the story of Crazy Horse is told as Nyles narrates what Crazy Horse did at each location. Although Crazy Horse is the clear protagonist in these stories, Nyles acknowledges the bravery and humanity on both sides of the conflict, and successfully conveys the feelings of hopelessness and heartbreak at the conclusion of Crazy Horse’s life.

As a Citizen Potawatomi with mixed ancestry, I understood Jimmy’s frustration at not visually belonging a certain group, and wish that Joseph Marshall addressed the issue further. Nyles resolves this conflict by noting that Crazy Horse also had lighter hair and a lighter complexion. After hearing about this fact and Crazy Horse’s troubles, Jimmy has the self-confidence to face his bullies at school. This lesson—that your appearance doesn’t define who you are—is well received, but this book would have been more powerful if it had more deeply explored Jimmy’s thoughts as he came to this conclusion in is mind and his heart.

In the Footsteps of Crazy Horse packages a short overview of Crazy Horse’s life in a story well suited to young middle schoolers while giving lessons of confidence and courage. Worth reading, the underdeveloped characters and underdeveloped environment make In the Footsteps of Crazy Horse a book best checked out from the library.

If you liked this book, you may like books from Kenneth Thomasma (written to a similar reading level, with strong Native American Protagonists), Clyde Bulla’s Squanto (a short biography of Squanto for young readers), or Tony Hillerman’s The Boy Who Made Dragonfly (a Native American story about the creation of dragonflies).

Recommended Titles:
Amee-Nah, Kenneth Thomasma
Squanto, Clyde Bulla
The Boy Who Made Dragonfly, Tony Hillerman

This review was written for Be The Star You Are! Charity and published on The Reading Tub.

Recommended Titles:
Amee-Nah, Kenneth Thomasma
Squanto, Clyde Bulla
The Boy Who Made Dragonfly, Tony Hillerman

Eragon

Posted on July 22, 2020July 28, 2020 by Aahnix Bathurst

Eragon is a wonderful high-fantasy adventure involving intelligent dragons, revenge, magic, mad kings, adventure, and family. The book begins with an evil Shade attempting to ambush group of elves with a valuable package, but the real story begins in the next chapter with Eragon: an independent sixteen-year-old boy who seems to never stop asking questions. On an ordinary hunting trip in a mountain range where superstitions abound, Eragon comes across a strangely smooth stone. This discovery quickly leads him racing across the continent with an unexpectedly talented village story-teller by his side, both pursued by (and sometimes pursuing) the forces of the deranged despot.

Paolini’s first book does have some issues with the writing quality, but the story is fantastic. While many readers complain that it is a retelling of a popular hero’s journey story that shall remain unnamed in this review, I think Paolini extracts the best elements and makes this story his own.

This is a rather thick book, and the three sequels are no thinner. However, every page is worth reading. Paolini spends many of these words world-building, a craft sadly neglected in many shorter volumes. This world-building makes it a delight to read, and I easily found myself slipping into its pages time and time and time again. Having first read this book near its release, I re-read it many times, losing count after thirty, until the final book came out.

This book (and the rest of the series) is a perfect gift for anyone who can read at or above a middle school level. I own Eragon in English and in French and can attest to its usefulness when practicing another language. Paolini begins an epic story while keeping the reading level accessible to young and very young adults.

If you like Eragon, you will probably enjoy Carole Wilkinson’s Dragon Keeper series (a young hero saving the last of the dragons in ancient China), Anne McCaffrey’s Dragonriders of Pern series (older heroes on an alien planet working with dragons to save their world), Rick Riordan’s Heroes of Olympus Series (young heroes saving the world from the wrath of beings from Greek myths), and Angie Sage’s Septimus Heap series (a delightful romp into a well-built world with magic, dragons, ghosts, and adventure, probably my most read series next to Eragon).

Recommended Titles:
Dragon Keeper, Carole Wilkinson
Dragonriders of Pern, Anne McCaffery
Heroes of Olympus, Rick Riordan
Septimus Heap, Angie Sage