Brief synopsis (no spoilers): What if your favorite characters came to life? Billy’s spending the summer in a lakeside cabin that belongs to the mysterious Dr. Libris. But something strange is going on. Besides the security cameras everywhere, there’s Dr. Libris’s private bookcase. Whenever Billy opens the books inside, he can hear sounds coming from the island in the middle of the lake. The clash of swords. The twang of arrows. Sometimes he can even feel the ground shaking. It’s almost as if the stories he’s reading are coming to life! But that’s impossible . . . isn’t it? (Amazon)
Category: Kids (8-13 ish) Though is does have many literary references that kept me, as a student of literature, entertained. It's like Disney movies, you can see them on one level or understand the humor and other messages behind the story if you look for it.
Why I chose this book: I have enjoyed another book by this author.
My personal opinion:
The Good: Imagine Hercules as part of Robin Hood's Merry Men and the the Musketeers as part of the Sheriff of Notingham's crew. Then imagine them all on their way to an arrow shooting contest at Pollyanna's Sunday ice cream social. Oh, and Tom Sawyer is hanging around too. It's just a typical day on the Island of Dr. Libris. Gabersteain is amazing in his ability to weave together literary stories from throughout history and make them all "come to life" together at on the same page/at the same time. I also love that he tells you all the books he references in the appendix and encourages the reader to read them too.
The Bad: It wasn't quite up to the standards I was expecting after reading Gabenstein's other book "Mr. Lemoncell's Library," but it's still worth a read. The ending in particular is a bit cheesy, or should I say peanut buttery.
I was disappointed in the part that Dr. Libris played. He plays the behind the scenes evil scientist throughout the whole book, but the first time we actually see him the action is quite lame and I feel like the author coped out of using this character to his full extent.
Warnings (language, violence, "adult" situations, death, etc.): None, however it does talk a little bit about Billy's parents getting a divorce, which could affect some younger kids.
Movie rating equivalent: PG
Protagonist description: Billy is a typical pre-teen who is dealing with the potential divorce of his parents and the idea of spending a summer at some log cabin with no tv or video games. He also deals with other typical stuff like being picked on by a bully and befriending the nerd. He is able to think quick on his feet and that's what saves him a few times.
Point of view of story: First person
Book length: Very short
Story flow: Fast
Grammar and spelling issues: None.
Character connection (no spoilers): None
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