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Adventures in Cartooning by James Sturm
Amulet 1: The Stonekeeper by Kazu Kibuishi
Aya of Yop City by Marguerite Abouet and Clement Oubrerie
Bad Matter by Alexandra Duncan
The Curious Garden by Peter Brown
Civil War on Sunday (Magic Tree House #21) by Mary Pope Osborne
A Country Mouse in the Town House by Henrietta
Diary of a Fly by Doreen Cronin and Harry Bliss
Dingoes at Dinnertime (Magic Tree House #20) by Mary Pope Osborne
Dragon of the Red Dawn (Magic Tree House #37) by Mary Pope Osborne
Gossamer by Lois Lowry
Horrible Harry and the Ant Invasion by Suzy Kline
Hurry Freedom by Jerry Stanley
I'm Not Going to Chase the Cat Today! by Jessica Harper
Inside Time by Tim Sullivan
Inside a Zoo in the City by Alyssa Satin Capucilli
Katie Loves the Kittens by John Himmelman
Killing Mr. Griffin by Lois Duncan
The Last Surgeon by Michael Palmer
Lost Worlds: Adventures in the Tropical Rainforest by Bruce M. Beehler
Loudmouth George and the New Neighbors by Nancy Carlson
Mermaid by Robert Reed
Monsters Don't Eat Broccoli by Barbara Jean Hicks and Sue Hendra
Never Blood Enough by Joe Haldeman
The Nine Lives of Aristotle by Dick King Smith
The Order of Things by Barbara Ann Kipfer
Owly Volume 3: Flying Lessons by Andy Runton
Pigsty by Mark Teague
Poppleton by Cynthia Rylant

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The Stonekeeper (Amulet #1): 05/09/10

cover art

I read the second book in the Amulet graphic novel series for the Cybils. Intrigued by where the series was going, I went back and read the first book, Amulet: The Stonekeeper by Kazu Kibuishi.

It starts off with an accident and a family tragedy, leaving Emily, Navin and their mother to make a new life for themselves. They are forced to move into an ancestral home in the forest far removed from the city. On the first night there the mother is kidnapped and the children must venture into an alternate world to rescue her.

Both Amulet books are heavy on action – lots of running, chasing, hiding and so forth. Usually I complain about alternate worlds taking too long to introduced or world building getting in the way of story telling. Here I'm going to sound fickle and wish for more of both: introductions and world building. I didn't notice the lack of this in the second book because I had assumed the work had been done in this volume. It wasn't.

Like a typical modern, hour long, Doctor Who the explanations and explorations that one used to see in the multipart series are gone, replaced instead by many scenes of running. Here it's a chase to rescue the mother. In the second book, they are either running away from the bad guys or they are racing to find a cure for their ailing mother. The characters (and readers) need a moment to catch their breath.

That being said, I am still enjoying the series and plan to read the third in the series when it's released. I love the artwork and I'm intrigued by this alternate world. I just want a little more time to get to know it.

Comments (2)


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Comment #1: Friday, May, 14, 2010 at 22:40:54

Jessica

Great review, I've seen this series but haven't picked it up as of yet. Thanks for stopping by BookSake on the blog hop!



Comment #2: Saturday, May 15, 2010 at 21:58:24

Pussreboots

I have enjoyed the first two books in the Amulet series. I know the third one is out or coming out soon. I plan to read it.



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