Three siblings (twin boys and their older sister) move to a relative's old house with their mom and discover their great-great-uncle's book about goblins, dwarves, brownies, elves, etc. - and these creatures live in the land but are invisible to the naked human eye! They make mischief around the house and the area, and soon the siblings find themselves drawn into a battle in this world because of the book's existence and their possession of it. It's a fun little mystery book with cool fantasy elements and it does a good job setting up the characters and premise at an incredibly fast speed without feeling rushed. The ending shows a lot of promise for the future of the series. My only complaint is that it ended way too soon. Just when it was about to get into the meat and bones of the fantasy side of things, it abruptly cuts off. I enjoyed what little I was given though and I plan on reading the rest of the series.

The art (in most library books the illustrations don't fit with the story, and look painfully like commissions; i.e Septimus Heap. These ones fit because the illustrator was a co-author. And they happen to be very good illustrations). With their evocative gothic-style pencil drawings and color illustrations, rhyming riddles, supernatural lore and well-drawn characters, these books read like old-fashioned ripping yarns." The books wallow in their dusty Olde Worlde charm: Faeries! Dumbwaiters! Attics! But then, reading has an old-fashioned charm too." Plezant kinderboek dat echte monsters niet uit de weg gaat: ik vond dit, ook al is het dus echt wel geschreven voor een jong publiek, echt goed meevallen. The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray on June 24, 2008, in the United States. [3] It was re-released on DVD and Blu-ray on September 12, 2017, in the United States.Und ich mochte auch, dass Jared nicht wirklich ein "gutes" Kind ist? Er hat schwer mit seiner Wut zu kämpfen und wird als Problemkind abgeschrieben. Während des Buches lässt sich das natürlich mit der ganzen Feen-Sache wegerklären, aber wir lernen auch, dass er schon vorher mit aggressivem Verhalten aufgefallen ist, und ich bin einfach Fan von Hauptfiguren, die nicht goody-little-two-shoes sind. Vor allem, wenn es sich um Kinder handelt. Los personajes nos causan empatía y la historia nos lleva poco a poco a lo que parece ser un gran misterio. Las ilustraciones son de mis favoritas. Hay tantos detalles muy cuidados y me encanta la forma en la que acompañan a la narración. The plot is simple because this is focused toward children, but well detailed and clever. The writing is also really excellent and engaging. Although targeted at a younger audience, this can easily be enjoyed by adults. My sister and I read this first book together and plan to continue reading the series in the coming days/weeks. I hope that the remainder of the series holds the same charm as this first installment. Simon, Jared and Mallory Grace move in to a creepy Victorian house with their mother after their parents divorce and the three kids get themselves in trouble. After moving in, they discover that something isn't quite right with the house. It's haunted, but not by ghosts. It's haunted by fairies and other classic fantasy creatures from another world. Bij de derde voorleesbeurt uit dit boek, begon mijn zoon "Dit doet me denken aan een film... en dan gebeurt dit, en daarna dat..." waarop mijn dochter "Ja, en dan dat!".

The film was nominated by the Visual Effects Society in the category of "Outstanding Animated Character in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture" but it lost to The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, another film from Paramount Pictures. [17] The film was also nominated for two Saturn Awards for Best Fantasy Film and Freddie Highmore for Best Performance by a Younger Actor. [18] Box office [ edit ] We're excited to share these books with our six and seven year old niece and nephew, who we think will really enjoy the story and humor.Maar goed, dit boek. Ik had het gekozen als afwisseling met Harry Potter (expliciete vraag van mijn dochter), en dit zei me heel vaag iets, dus nam ik het maar mee uit de bib. Mij was het dus helemaal onbekend, ook de film nooit gezien, wat leidde tot de grappige situatie dat mijn kinderen mij niets mochten verklappen terwijl ik hen voorlas. It might sound sad to do this, if books are supposed to be new experiences from the author's unique perspective. But there are some books that you might as well change, and this just seemed to be one of them. Mermaids - Stubborn, yet loyal and true to their word, mermaids have amazing voices that can hypnotize giants and humans. They are not easy to strike a deal with, as they frequently want something in return and usually take people as hostages to ensure the deal is kept. They seem to be able to do some magic as well, as they owned a cap able to make humans breathe underwater (similarly to the caps worn by merfolk in fairy tales to walk on the shore). Ty Burr (February 14, 2008). "A creepy-crawly and digitized faerie tale". The Boston Globe . Retrieved March 5, 2008. The most special effect is probably Highmore, who gets to sharpen up his American accent and who makes each twin, bookish Simon and bad-boy Jared, a functioning individual. Here are some subtle reasons this series is (at least a little better) than the average library book: