Paperback: 477 pages
Author: Clive Barker
Reading Level: Ages 13 and up
Series: Yes (The Books of Abarat)
Published: HarperCollins, October 2002
Language: English
Buy: Amazon
From Amazon:
A journey beyond imagination is about to unfold....
It beings in the most boring place in the world: Chickentown, USA. There lives Candy Quackenbush, her heart bursting for some clue as to what her future might hold.
When the answer comes, it's not the one she expects.
Welcome to Abarat, a cast archipelago where ever island is a different hour of the day. Candy has a place in this extraordinary land: She is here to help save the Abarat from the dark forces that are stirring at its heart-forces older than Time itself, and more evil than anything Candy has ever encountered. She's a strange heroine, she knows. But this a strange world.
And in the Abarat, all things are possible.
Goodreads Profile
This review is going to be a little short. I finished this book like a week ago, right when all my tests an papers were starting to pick up so forgive me. My memory's faded a bit. :(
I wasn't sure I'd like this book very much when I first started it. I'm not much a description person and this book has like a billion descriptions but Candy's in a completely new world with really strange and unusual creatures! So, of course, the book needed them. But like I said, I'm not a description person. Even though I moved reallyyyy sloooow through those parts, I still have a great mental image of what this world looks like! It was mostly the beginning that was like this so once you get past Chickentown ( the name just sounds boring right?! I was rooting for Candy to get out of there as soon as possible! ) and the first bit of being in Abarat, it picks right back up!
Unless you love descriptions ( like my best friend ) then you'll love that part.
Did you know this was originally practically a picture book!? I wish I had that one, too. If you don't have the one with pictures, never fear! Clive Barker has pictures up on his website. I found myself scrolling through the pictures for ages just wanting to stare at them.
Anyway, other than that, I really liked this book! I loved the side characters. They were all so interesting and funny looking! I think Jimothi and Malingo were my favorite. Actually, I liked them all! I even liked the backstory to the villain. Like it was suppose to give you some sort of understanding and maybe some sympathy but at the same time, you're still like oh my gosh this dude is psychooooo.
Candy really grew on me. At first, I was super confused how old she was and a bit clueless on what she looked like. Not to mention, she didn't really come off as anything that would stick out to me at the beginning. Once she was in Abarat and away from terrible little Chickentown, I knew I'd like her. There was one part when she was running away from some little creatures and she was tempted to turn around and tell them to shut up. I think that was one of my favorite Candy part of the book.
There's some moments where the book is a little dark. The author actually writes horror movies! But I didn't think they were anything that would scare someone away from a book. The villains were creepy, Candy's home life was horrid, and the way some creatures were treated was cruel. Then again, I'm always up for a good scary movie!
Everyone seems to be comparing this book to Alice in Wonderland, Dr. Seuss, and the Wizard of Oz. I guess I can see that. It's definitely a quirky, interesting new world like most of those books. I'd recommend this book to people who loved new worlds, a bit of a darker side, or little quirky things.
I'm probably not going to get the second book until I'm home for the summer, ( sad face ) but I'm super excited to get it! I can't wait to see how everything's tied together with each other.
Thanks for reading. :)
A journey beyond imagination is about to unfold....
It beings in the most boring place in the world: Chickentown, USA. There lives Candy Quackenbush, her heart bursting for some clue as to what her future might hold.
When the answer comes, it's not the one she expects.
Welcome to Abarat, a cast archipelago where ever island is a different hour of the day. Candy has a place in this extraordinary land: She is here to help save the Abarat from the dark forces that are stirring at its heart-forces older than Time itself, and more evil than anything Candy has ever encountered. She's a strange heroine, she knows. But this a strange world.
And in the Abarat, all things are possible.
Goodreads Profile
This review is going to be a little short. I finished this book like a week ago, right when all my tests an papers were starting to pick up so forgive me. My memory's faded a bit. :(
I wasn't sure I'd like this book very much when I first started it. I'm not much a description person and this book has like a billion descriptions but Candy's in a completely new world with really strange and unusual creatures! So, of course, the book needed them. But like I said, I'm not a description person. Even though I moved reallyyyy sloooow through those parts, I still have a great mental image of what this world looks like! It was mostly the beginning that was like this so once you get past Chickentown ( the name just sounds boring right?! I was rooting for Candy to get out of there as soon as possible! ) and the first bit of being in Abarat, it picks right back up!
Unless you love descriptions ( like my best friend ) then you'll love that part.
Did you know this was originally practically a picture book!? I wish I had that one, too. If you don't have the one with pictures, never fear! Clive Barker has pictures up on his website. I found myself scrolling through the pictures for ages just wanting to stare at them.
Anyway, other than that, I really liked this book! I loved the side characters. They were all so interesting and funny looking! I think Jimothi and Malingo were my favorite. Actually, I liked them all! I even liked the backstory to the villain. Like it was suppose to give you some sort of understanding and maybe some sympathy but at the same time, you're still like oh my gosh this dude is psychooooo.
Candy really grew on me. At first, I was super confused how old she was and a bit clueless on what she looked like. Not to mention, she didn't really come off as anything that would stick out to me at the beginning. Once she was in Abarat and away from terrible little Chickentown, I knew I'd like her. There was one part when she was running away from some little creatures and she was tempted to turn around and tell them to shut up. I think that was one of my favorite Candy part of the book.
There's some moments where the book is a little dark. The author actually writes horror movies! But I didn't think they were anything that would scare someone away from a book. The villains were creepy, Candy's home life was horrid, and the way some creatures were treated was cruel. Then again, I'm always up for a good scary movie!
Everyone seems to be comparing this book to Alice in Wonderland, Dr. Seuss, and the Wizard of Oz. I guess I can see that. It's definitely a quirky, interesting new world like most of those books. I'd recommend this book to people who loved new worlds, a bit of a darker side, or little quirky things.
I'm probably not going to get the second book until I'm home for the summer, ( sad face ) but I'm super excited to get it! I can't wait to see how everything's tied together with each other.
Thanks for reading. :)
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