The Rise and Fall of Mount Majestic
Persimmony Smudge, 10, is leading a life as dull as her name on the Island at the Center of Everything. But one day she goes out to find another magic pot (having broken the first one) and soon finds herself in the midst of a dangerous adventure. Twelve-year-old King Lucas, who loves pepper, disdains his subjects, and has a talent for rudeness, sends Persimmony, along with Worvil the Worrier and Guafnoggle the Jester, to see if there’s really a sleeping giant under Mount Majestic and, if so, to make sure he is absolutely, positively not awakened. First-time novelist Trafton uses delicious descriptions and flight-of-fancy words to put Persimmony on the path of a hero’s journey, and the story is filled with characters who make an impression. If the book gets a bit long in places, Helquist’s pencil illustrations (though at times rather sketchlike) neatly break up the text. In this tale, which would lend itself well to reading aloud, Trafton offers a fresh take on a very familiar genre. Grades 3-6. --Ilene Cooper--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.