I’ve decided to give the blog a bit of structure, and to kick that off I’ll be spotlighting a middle grade book here every Monday–a marvelous plan, don’t you think? I love to read middle grades, and love to share them! First up is my beach week read, Urchin of the Riding Stars, first in McAllister’s Mistmantle series.
An adventurous tale that’s kinda like a shorter, snappier Redwall, I thoroughly enjoyed it! The bad guy was sufficiently creepy and bad guy-ish, as was his lady fair. The challenges young Urchin faces in a world where the weak struggle to find their champion resonated. And the food made me suddenly wish I could sample some walnut bread, black-currant cordial, or oatcakes and cheese–and the cheese in my fridge doesn’t count!
This would, though. Mmmm…
Perhaps what I loved best about the book was the total immersion in the animal world, with squirrels who whisk in and out tower windows ’cause hallways and stairs are just too slow, sweet little trundling toddler hedgehogs, and playful otters who can’t fathom preferring anything to fish. I also loved the concept of the night of the Riding Stars as an omen of change, and felt that while the book didn’t tie together–just at the end–quite as well as I’d like, it sets up a lovely story and nudges us nicely toward the second book. In fact, I’ve added ‘Urchin and the Heartstone’ to my bedside reading pile. But, it is an animal book after all, so I thought it would be fun if we consulted one of the Rookery’s many creatures for an animal’s input. This is what Apricot, the cat, had to say.
 “Not enough cats. And too many squirrels running around night and day, without anyone even chasing them. Doesn’t anyone in this book know how to take a proper nap? I would take some of that fish, though.”
Ah, well. Guess you can’t please everyone! What are you reading lately?
Suzanne Warr