When K first saw the cover, she thought it was a bit creepy and certainly not like any other junior fiction book she had read before. But after she delved into it, she said that the plot was really gripping, though a ‘little dark’.
Here’s the blurb from the publisher:
The American classic – soon to be a major motion picture from Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment, starring Cate Blanchett, Jack Black and Kyle MacLachlan.
Lewis Barnavelt doesn’t have time on his side…
When Lewis Barnavelt, an orphan, comes to stay with his uncle Jonathan, he expects to meet an ordinary person. But he is wrong. Uncle Jonathan and his next-door neighbour, Mrs Zimmermann, are both witches! Lewis couldn’t be happier. What’s not to like about seeing his uncle practise spells and eating Mrs Zimmermann’s delicious cookies?
At first, watching magic is enough. Then Lewis experiments with magic himself and unknowingly resurrects the former owner of the house: a woman named Selenna Izard. It seems that evil Selenna and her husband built a timepiece into the walls – a clock that could obliterate humankind.
As the clock can be heard ticking away in the house all the time, sometimes louder, sometimes quieter, sometimes faster, sometimes slower, it is up to the Barnavelts to find where it is hidden in the walls – and stop it. A true race against time…
I picked it up and read it too, and I must say that I enjoyed the wry humour, and chuckled out loud at various lines.
However, it does cover some dark themes – the boys try to ‘raise the dead’ at the cemetery on a dare, and there are some dramatic scenes designed to scare. But nothing too Stephen King, and most kids 10 and up should have no issues dealing with the content – mine reported no nightmares, at least!
Books that are adapted for the silver screen always have exciting plots and great characterisation – in this case, I think Jack Black is certainly aptly cast for this role, given his talent for Kung-fu Panda-esque humour. Cate Blanchett seems a tad too young to play the extremely wrinkly Mrs Z, but I think she will deliver her role well.
If you wish to purchase it, this book is available at all good bookstores.
GIVEAWAY TIME!
Book distributors Pansing are generously sponsoring a giveaway of one book to two loyal readers of this blog!
To enter, simply complete the following:
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2. Leave a comment on this Facebook post with your email address (or PM your email address to me) and tag one friend who might be interested in this too. The giveaway ends on 2359 hrs on 28 Sept 2018, and the winners will be contacted via email.
The usual terms and conditions apply.
[The winners are Huifen Huang and Cynthia Lau! Congrats!]
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