Well it’s been a long time coming….my first review in a
long, long, LOONNNGGGGG time. But it’s here! And with things getting settled
(once again) I intend on many more to come.
I’m really excited about this book because it’s a new movie. Personally I really like to read the book
before watching the movie. Only because I like to compare and contrast
details; I find details in a book to be
important because I’m better able to see the story in my head (sort of like
watching a movie in my head…a really, really long movie :] ). Some like to watch the movie first. Sometimes
I like to watch the movie, but either way, for this book I’ve decided to read
the book first.
(Summery)
Plot:
4 stars:
I really enjoyed following Hugo around on his mini
adventures. The story starts with Hugo stealing a little wind-up mouse from a
toy store. For a few chapters after that we see what happened to Hugo to get
him to the toy story and then the story fast forwards back to where we left off
at the beginning.
Hugo and his father
had found a wonderful machine that was in the shape of a man writing. The
machine was found by the two clockmakers, sadly in a rusty and broken state.
Making the best of it however, father and son begin working on it to bring it
back to its full glory, hoping to finally see what the automan is supposed to
write.
Unfortunately, before they could finish their long hard
work, Hugo’s father dies in a tragic accident at work, leaving Hugo to fix the
machine by himself.
Unsure of his ability to match his father’s talent at gears,
Hugo clings to the only clue to fixing the mysterious man, his father’s
notebook.
Characters:
5 stars:
The characters were so enjoyable to learn about. They were very mysterious and every time I thought i figured one of them out they ended up surprising me. My favorite character to learn about were George Melies. His character is just so interesting. His life is so dramatic, mysterious and historic like it's hard not to get wrapped up in it.
Family Friendly:
5 stars:
I would feel absolutely safe about reading this with my younger siblings. The most suspenseful piece in this book is young Hugo being chased my a cop and being put in jail. Something to take note of is that Hugo's uncle is a alcoholic and abandons Hugo and at the end of the story is found dead because he drowned.
I also watched the movie and LOVED it! I encourage all to watch it. I had just as much fun watching it as I did reading it.
Let me know what you think? Have you read the book? Watched the movie? Read a book that reminds you of The Invention of Hugo Cabret?
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I
just recently received the above book in the mail from the Tyndale House Publishers. These books by G.P. Taylor are easy and fun to read. The Doppleganger Chronicles are all graphic novels.
My thoughts on The Great Mogul Diamond:
Plot: The plot was pretty simple, but considering that this book was intended for Young Adults and below it was really good. I like that every book is a mystery. I’ve found that there aren’t a whole lot of children’s books or YA books that are very good when it comes to mystery. I think G.P. Taylor really did a great job with this.
Characters: There are three main characters throughout the series: Saskia, Sadie and Erik. This trio acts as junior detectives to save their friend Muzz Eliot the famous writer who is being blackmailed so that she will have to steal a rare diamond. You can see the characters develop as you read through the series, not necessarily in one book alone. Sometimes I find that frustrating but for some reason, which I can’t think of at the moment, it’s nice to see them grow as I read each book. I also like that in each book a few new, long term characters are introduced. I saw a parallel to characters in the book and people in history. I won’t tell you who, but maybe you can figure it out on your own.
Length: I read the book in less than one day. However, I got a lot from the book. The adventure was well plotted and simple, the characters were very interactive with each other, and I didn’t feel lost. I think that the length was perfect for a graphic novel. And I’m so excited about the next one.
Lessons: This book had a lot of small, “bit size” (if you will) lessons in it. I think that I’ll let this one be something you figure out by yourself. Most of the time when I see a lot of different little lessons like this it’s just because that’s how I see it. But you might think of it in a completely different way.
Overall: Overall I really liked the book. I hope my siblings will find an interest in them soon. I give this book 4 ½ stars.
Last Words: There is one thing that I heard one mother say negatively about the book and it that the girls in the book, Saskia and Sadie have a bit of an attitude and are constantly in trouble. To this I would say, “Thank goodness they are portrayed as human beings rather than aliens.” Besides they always get in trouble when they do bad thing. And I know my siblings will see this and do one of two things. One, they will either disregard it without a thought…or two, they will start acting it out and then it will be addressed as to where it came from. As long as you talk to your children about the book I don’t see any reason why they shouldn’t be able to read it.
If you’ve read this book, let me know what you think! And if you haven’t, let me know what you think about my review. I love comments!
Posted in
Fiction,
Graphic Novels
I usually wait to post reviews on Saturday (new rule) but I just couldn't wait with this one.
Let me just say that I loved this book. It's a graphic novel that I'm not afraid to hand down to my siblings. I will be keeping this book for my collection. This is the second book in the series. I read this one first because I wanted to know if I could just pick up anywhere in the series and understand what's going on. And you can! I think this takes a lot of effort and will add to your series. And because I liked this one so much, I'm going to go back and read the others.
Plot: 5 Stars
I love a good mystery. (Note that I said good.) It's so hard to find a really good mystery. This might be because I hold every mystery themed book up to the standard of Aurthur Connan Doyle's The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. They are literary works or art, in my opinion. But for a child who likes Nancy Drew (Which, by the way, I'm also in love with) or the Hardy Boys or Encyclopedia Brown (For you newer generations) this really is a great read. The plot is well written and will leave you wondering, "Who done it?". Like I said before, you can also just pick this book up and not feel like you have to read the first in the series.
Characters: 5 Stars
The main characters are Erik Ganger and Sadie and Saskia Dopple. It's funny, the word "Doppleganger" means to have an identical copy of themselves. And the two sisters are twins. But "doppleganger" doesn't mean twins. Just to have seen an identical copy of ones self with having anyway to see your reflection. I wonder how this plays into the story. Some people think that to see a doppleganger means death. Anyway, the two sisters and the boy were "abandoned" by their parents at this school. Maybe this is why their characters are drawn together.
Action: 4 Stars
There was a ton of action in this book! And all was clean. Maybe a little suspenseful, but clean. I'm totally okay with giving this to my 8 year old sister and letting her read it. I can't say this about everything, almost nothing.
Romance: 5 Stars
There was none. Which made it all the better.
Length: 4 Stars
The length was perfect. Everything flowed nicely into each other, and I can't wait to go read the first and buy the last when it comes out.
Overall: 5 Stars
I loved this audio book. It was great and I'm so glad my first experience with audio books was a good one. I can't wait to share it with my family.
Tyndale House Publishers has provided you with a complimentary copy of this book.
Posted in
Graphic Novels
