Hey everyone! Rock Chick Fairy here. The year is almost up, but I have a last minute addition to my favorite middle grade books!
I give you.... THE LOW ROAD by DANIEL KIRK!
When Matt and his family move to their family's new development, they don't realize that they've inadvertently stumbled into the middle of massive upheaval in the Fairy world. With the elves' territory disintegrating, and dark factions looking to seize control, apprentice mage Tuava-Li must defend her territory.
A Rock Chick Fairy Book Review
Awesome adventure book with the elves!
This was such a great opportunity for me to get back on the saddle for reading middle grade books. I love it because not only does it have lots of good characters, it's full of action and adventure!
The story starts with a bloody break-of-tradition scene which caused elves and um.. other supernatural folk to run away and hide from their original home. Many years later, Matt, the main character, discovers a long sought after relic .. in a.. hmm.. painful way. He's curious enough and brave enough to enter (although not really intentionally), the world of elves, treachery and magic.
Somehow, I feel like Matt isn't the only main character. There's also Tuava-Li who protects the elves' interests and keeps them out of harms way WITHOUT HURTING OTHER PEOPLE. I totally rooted for her because she always, always sides with what she thinks is good.
There are many other characters, but one elf in particular got my hackles rising.. and that's Macta! Ohmy! I swear, I was totally pissed at his character. He's one mean villain, I tell you that. There's also Jardaine with that blasted snake! They made me really root for the good characters. I guess that's also added brownie points for the author because he doesn't only know how to make good main characters, he could also make effective villains!
Anyhoo with the villains set on getting what their hearts desire and the main characters just wanting everything to be alright, all of them find themselves tangled in a big dilemma!
The elves' homeland is falling apart! How would they be able to repair it as well as the inner war that seems to be eating them?
This book follows the characters into a world of complications, fun discoveries, tricks and tricksters, victims and culprits. There were so many mysteries and so many lies. I wanted to uncover them all right away, but this book will make you wait in a very good way. It will drag you into a grand adventure!
The ending promises great things for the next one too!
If you like reading about elves, trolls and fairy folk, then this one's for you! I highly recommend this to young people and to the young at heart. :)
All in all, I give this 5 fairy wings!
P.S. I just want to add that the artwork in this book is superb! There are pictures of characters and they are all good! They're so nice to look at. I daresay that they made reading this book more interesting. :)
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
( ACCORDING TO SCHOLASTIC )
Daniel Kirk is the author and illustrator of more than 21 popular books for children, including picture books Cat Power; Dogs Rule!; Hush, Little Alien; Library Mouse; Lunchroom Lizard; and Snow Dude. He has collaborated with well-known illustrators, such as Margaret Wise Brown, Kevin Lewis, and Robert Louis Stevenson on titles such as The Diggers, Dinosaur Dinosaur, My Truck is Stuck, and Block City. His more recent work includes Elf Realm, a series of young-adult fantasy. Daniel remarks that his "writing and illustrating emphasize[s] imagination, whimsy, and play" and that "publishers tend to think of [him] as the guy who paints cars and trucks really well." Daniel is also fond of poetry and song and has published a few books that come with CDs.
Daniel grew up in the Midwest in the 1950's and 1960's in a family of artists: his parents where puppeteers who wrote and performed their own versions of Mother Goose, Aesop, and Grimm's fairy tales. Even as a very young child, Daniel loved to draw, paint, and play with modeling clay. He read a lot growing up, and was especially fond of the outrageous humor of Dr. Seuss and books with photographs of dogs and skunks dressed up in clothes.
A student of fine art and education at Ohio State University, Daniel graduated in 1974 and taught art and photography for a few years before moving to New York to become a professional artist. His illustrations appeared on the covers of Newsweek, Business Week, Sports Illustrated, New York Magazine, and many other publications. After the birth of his first child, Daniel became interesting in writing and illustrating books for children.
Daniel likes to experiment with different media and techniques in his finished artwork. He has tried using watercolors, colored pencils, photo collage, three-dimensional sculpture, and other expressive mediums.
Daniel lives in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, with his wife, author-illustrator Julia Gordon, and their three teenage children. For more information about Daniel,
visit www.danielkirk.com.
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