Review: if you are patient, you will be rewarded with an engaging adventure
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 06 1, 2013
This book has an intriguing premise, great ideas and even creatures that are named with an eye to how they look and behave: a wild boar-like creature called a Hogznort. With twelve elves, all possessing special powers to manipulate the natural world, a fantastical world, and jumping right into the action - this is not a book for the faint of heart. BUT, if you are patient, you will be rewarded with an engaging adventure: where elves feel more like the children in your class, full of their own personalities but still `developing'.There are some issues with the writing: an overuse of the comma is distracting to the flow of the reading, and is particularly frustrating when one would hope a children's book would be grammatically polished and correct. I'm no grammar nazi, and often miss the infrequent mistakes: when it reaches the level that it distracts me repeatedly - that is disturbing and could have been sorted by a good editor. Delving right into the adventure with only a short introduction can be difficult to follow. The quick introduction to the elves, twelve in all that form this little band, is overwhelming at first, but their names and their personalities start to become evident and it does get less muddled in your head. That being said - kids (I've started to read it to a little group of kiddos here in the complex) LOVE the story...once they understand it's an adventure with magic.So - what we have here is a really clever book with wonderful ideas and imagery - with a few issues. I will say that NONE of the kids I showed the cover art to were in the least interested - and that is something to consider. But, since cover art is also, like a book, wholly subjective I cannot and did not allow the lack of interest generated by the cover influence my review. Will this keep your kids engaged? Most definitely. It will stretch their comprehension and memory as well with the 12 important characters. It is well worth the time invested to read and has some very unique and clever characters.I received an eBook from the author for purpose of honest review and inclusion in the Children Read week at I am, Indeed. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.