Fantasy & Contemporary Realistic Fiction - Review #1

DeTerlizzi, Tony and Holly Black. 2003. The Spiderwick Chronicles: The Field Guide. New York: Scholastic ISBN 0439597404

Plot Summary-

"Go away, close the book, put it down, do not look." so says the back cover of the book, but it is too late, you are already hooked.

After their parents' divorce, the Grace Children, older sister, Mallory, and twin brothers, Jared and Simon, are moving, with their mother, into Aunt Lucinda's old, run down, Victorian mansion. This transition does not go smoothly, however. The children hear noises within the walls and when strange things begin happening, it is Jared who discovers the cause of their troubles and finds the solution.

Critical Analysis-

Characters-

Children will find much to identify with in the book's characters. Mallory is the typical bossy big sister and Simon the quiet academic type. Jared is the sibling seemingly on the outside, trying to find his place.

Setting-

Aunt Lucinda's old Victorian mansion is the perfect setting for the strange happenings and unsolved mysteries. Readers expect it to have the obligatory secret passages, hidden rooms, dusty, worn out furnishings and rickety staircases that lead to damp and dark attics. The mansion does not disappoint and since the mansion has many unused and unexplored rooms, the reader has much material with which to imagine future adventures. Also, there is a map at the beginning of the book showing the mansion's relative position to the surrounding areas. Since these areas are not mentioned in the story, we know there will be further adventures.

Theme-

As Jared and his siblings move to begin a new life, the theme of change and adjusting to it is explored. Jared's adjustment is specifically chronicled and even though he is far from completing his journey, we get glimpses of his success.

The first sparks of self-confidence ignite as he chooses to perform the difficult tasks his siblings can not do. Being the only one small enough, Jared is the one who rides in the dumbwaiter looking for the "creature" making the noise in the wall. This leads to his discovery of the secret room with no doors or windows. Jared takes the initiative to collect clues and solve the mystery. He presents the evidence showing that they have a boggart in the house and tries to convince his mother and siblings to believe his conclusions. We know that Jared will make the adjustment to his new life and will be the better for it.

Style-

This short novel is set in contemporary time and the language and vocabulary is appropriate to such.

The authors do a fine job of explaining enough about the fantasy elements to keep the reader interested. The books in the mansion's secret library have titles like A Historie of Scottish Dwarves and A Compendium of Brownie Visitations from Around the World. Jared finds an old book, Arthur Spiderwick's Field Guide to the Fantastic World Around You. It explains the difference between a Brownie and a Boggart and serves as Jared and the reader's guide to understanding the strange happenings in the mansion.

The authors begin the story with two letters. The first letter is from one of the authors giving the creative basis for the book. The other letter is from the Grade children themselves begging for their story to be told. While fictional, both of these letters draw the reader into the story, already it is easy to believe the story is true. Along with these letters, the map at the front of the book and the "authentic reproduction" of the first mysterious note further add to the book's believability.

Reviews-

Publishers Weekly – “Appealing characters, well-measured suspense and an inviting package will lure readers on to The Seeing Stone [Spiderwick Chronicles #2].”

Children’s Literature- “Detailed illustrations help bring the strange world of Spiderwick alive. Short paragraphs and "cliffhanger" chapters make the book especially unintimidating and intriguing for young readers.”

Kirkus Reviews- “Cleverly marketed as too dangerous to read, handsomely designed, and extravagantly illustrated this packs quite a punch.”

Connections-

*Read the other books in the Spiderwick Chronicles series.

• Spiderwick Chronicles #2 Seeing Stone ISBN 9781416950189
• Spiderwick Chronicles #3 Lucinda’s Secret ISBN 9780689859380
• Spiderwick Chronicles #4 Ironwood Tree ISBN 9781416950202
• Spiderwick Chronicles #5 Wrath of Mulgrath ISBN 9781416950219

*Read Arthur Spiderwick's Field Guide to the Fantastical World Around You ISBN 9781416960959

*Read the books in the next series called Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles

• Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles #1 Nixie's Song ISBN 9780689871313
• Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles #2 Giant Problem ISBN 780689871320

*Choose a chapter to perform as a reader's theater.

*Design a poster for the book that will make someone else want to read it.

*In the book, Jared supplied the boggart with a new house. Design a different house in which the boggart would want to live.

*In the book, Mallory's hobby was fencing. Learn more about this sport. Try these books.

• Velez, Carlos. 2008 En Garde! A Girl's Introduction to the World of Fencing. Photos by Alex J. Ripa. Wish Publishing ISBN 1930546890
• Nadi, Aldo. 2005. Nadi on Fencing. Dover Publications ISBN 0486443752