Finally, my first review! Alright, this book was the first book I read after HP7, so I knew it couldn't beat that. But this is a great book. Some things that I like about it are...
1) the author created a fantasy masterpiece, but it is written as a biography-a nifty touch that adds to the splendor.
2) The characters all have cool names (I know, not much to go by, but...)
3)The action scenes are actiony - there are a lot of them, too!
This book centers around 15 yr old Conor Broekhart (see, I told you the names were cool!), a boy who was born IN a balloon. He lives in the Saltee islands, off Ireland, in the 1890s. He and his french tutor have always dreamed of creating a flying machine. But in a turn of events (you know, the oh-my-god-did-that-just-really-happen kind) he is left convicted of a terrible crime and sent to prison by the evil Hugo Bonvilain (another cool name.).
1) the author created a fantasy masterpiece, but it is written as a biography-a nifty touch that adds to the splendor.
2) The characters all have cool names (I know, not much to go by, but...)
3)The action scenes are actiony - there are a lot of them, too!
This book centers around 15 yr old Conor Broekhart (see, I told you the names were cool!), a boy who was born IN a balloon. He lives in the Saltee islands, off Ireland, in the 1890s. He and his french tutor have always dreamed of creating a flying machine. But in a turn of events (you know, the oh-my-god-did-that-just-really-happen kind) he is left convicted of a terrible crime and sent to prison by the evil Hugo Bonvilain (another cool name.).
This book has a great beginning, ok middle and fantastic end, so I heartily recommend it. I would say this is without a doubt the best book of 2008 so far. The author, Eoin Colfer (say "Owen") is the author of, among others, one of my personal favorites, the Artemis Fowl series. But I enjoyed this book twice as much as I did any of those. So even if you're not a Fowl fan, grab this one!
Grade: A-
Age Group: I don't think you will enjoy this as much if you are not in middle school (there are some slow parts in the middle, and some violent parts), so confirm w/ your parents if 10 or younger.
