October Giveaway

It's another giveaway for More Middle-Grade Madness! For those who don't know, middle-grade is a publishing industry term that means, generally, ages 9-12 (abbreviated MG). It doesn't mean "written for middle schoolers (grades 5-8)," as many people assume. Any of the books below would be wonderful for a third grader who's a good reader and would be interesting all the way up to a 6th, 7th, or even 8th grader, depending. (Everyone seems to love Rick Riordan, so these age designations are somewhat arbitrary.) Pick your favorite of these, enter, and win! To find out more about each book, click the title and read my review.

HOUSE OF SECRETS
by Chris Columbus & Ned Vizzini
MG fantasy adventure (#1 in the House of Secrets series)
A new house takes 3 siblings on a wild adventure

IF YOU'RE READING THIS, IT'S TOO LATE
by Pseudonymous Bosch
MG fantasy / mystery (#2 in the Secrets series)
Cass & Max-Ernst try to unveil the mystery behind the Terces Society

THE RED PYRAMID
by Rick Riordan
MG fantasy adventure (#1 in the Kane Chronicles series)
2 siblings try to save their dad from Egyptian gods

INKSPELL
by Cornelia Funke
MG fantasy (#2 in the Inkheart Series)
Meggie and her friends get trapped inside Inkworld















GIVEAWAY RULES:
1. U.S. entrants only, please.
2. Be sure to note the book you want to win AND WHY.
3. Giveaway prizes will be brand-new books delivered to you via Amazon.com. They will be paperback editions unless the book is still available only in hardcover (or choose a Kindle ebook edition of you wish).
4.  This giveaway ends 12:01 AM OCTOBER 14.
5. There's a new giveaway every month! CLICK HERE to receive a brief email every time a new giveaway is posted on the blog. 

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Review: INKSPELL by Cornelia Funke

Title: Inkspell
Author: Cornelia Funke (translated from the German by Anthea Bell)
Pub info: Chicken House / Scholastic, 2005; 635 pp
Genre / Audience: fantasy / ages 9+
Caveats for Younger Readers: a fair bit of death by swordpoint, but not too graphic; book will be too long for some

Goodreads summary:

The captivating sequel to Inkheart, the critically acclaimed, international bestseller by Cornelia Funke, an author who is emerging as a truly modern classic writer for children.

Although a year has passed, not a day goes by without Meggie thinking of Inkheart, the book whose characters became real. But for Dustfinger, the fire-eater brought into being from words, the need to return to the tale has become desperate. When he finds a crooked storyteller with the ability to read him back, Dustfinger leaves behind his young apprentice Farid and plunges into the medieval world of his past. Distraught, Farid goes in search of Meggie, and before long, both are caught inside the book, too. But the story is threatening to evolve in ways neither of them could ever have imagined.

My impressions:
The marvelous characters that Cornelia Funke brought to life in Inkheart continue to captivate the reader of Inkspell. This book does a very handy thing that other authors/publishers should take note of: It provides a cheat sheet in the front to reintroduce the characters. Since it had been several years since I'd read the first book in the series, I found this indispensable.

My only complaint with the book is its length. Despite Harry Potter--those doorstop tomes we wordy writers always like to bring up--it's a lot to ask of, say, a fourth grader to wade through 635 pages. At times I was thoroughly engrossed in the story; at other times, I was frustrated and wanted it to move along more quickly. Part of this was just my own bias. Sometimes a marvelous book that you've been looking forward to for months--in my case, Lauren Oliver's Rooms--arrives in your mailbox and you just want to put down Inkspell and have at it. But even discounting that bias, I would say that shaving 100 pages off of this book wouldn't have been a bad idea.

Still, that said, the story is marvelous, the world building complex and fantastical, and anyone who loved Inkheart will be pleased with Inkspell. Caution: It does end on a doozy of a cliffhanger, but no worries; Funke has completed the series and you can pick up a copy of Inkdeath to complete the story. 

About Cornelia:
Cornelia Caroline Funke is a multiple award-winning German author of fantasy/adventure children's and YA fiction. Praised as the "German J. K. Rowling," she has written 24 books and is best known for her Inkheart trilogy. She is also the author of Dragon Rider  and a new YA series, Mirrorworld. She currently lives in Los Angeles, California.

Online: 
Cornelia maintains a fun, interactive website here, in English (also available in German and Spanish). Her Facebook page is a mixture of German and English postings, and she also has a Twitter account at this link. Read a preview of Inkspell here.
 
 
Want to win a free copy of this book? The first Monday of each month features a giveaway of any of the titles I've reviewed the previous month. Pick your fave, enter, and win! Next giveaway: October 6.  SIGN UP HERE TO RECEIVE A BRIEF EMAIL WHENEVER A NEW GIVEAWAY BEGINS.

To follow my progress as I bulldoze my way through a stack of 51 to-be-reads this year, search for the tag 2014 TBR Shelf. Read all the reviews here. 

TBR 2014: Book No. 27

Years ago I read Cornelia Funke's Inkheart (Scholastic, 2004), and loved it. For some reason, it took me awhile to pick up the second book in the series, Inkspell (Scholastic, 2005), and several more years to read it. But here I am, ready to go!

"Funke delivers more than enough action, romance, tragedy, villainy, and emotion to keep readers turning the pages."  --Kirkus

Coming along for a fantasy romp?

That's right: I've committed to reading all the books on my TBR Shelf this year--and blogging them! Click here to read the reviews I've posted so far.