Review: The Field Guide by Tony Diterlizzi and Holly Black

April 21st, 2010 | 2.5-3 Treasure Chests, A-C, Action & Adventure, D-F, Fantasy, Guest Review, YA Genre

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by First Mate Keira, guest reviewer

Title: The Field Guide (Book 1: The Spiderwick Chronicles)
Author: Tony Diterlizzi and Holly Black
Format: Hardcover
# of pages: 107
Grade Reading Level: Ages 9-12

Summary: The Grace children are moving into their crazy aunt’s ramshackle house. It’s so rundown it’s practically falling apart. Of the three, Jared is having the most trouble coping with their parent’s divorce and their father leaving them. When strange and malicious things happen to Mallory and Simon, their mother blames Jared, but he didn’t do it! So… who did?

Why I Started the Book:

I asked the librarian at the reference desk for some series recommendations for kids that were similar to Harry Potter, Artemis Fowl, and Percy Jackson. The Spiderwick Chronicles was one of the series mentioned. The books are shorter and read for a younger age than expected. I would think 3^rd and 4^th graders, maybe even 5^th graders, would find these enjoyable and also more in their reading range.

Likes:

The world building going on is truly on a phenomenal and epic scale. So much is given in such a short span of time. It’s great!
The Grace children are a really great group of kids. Jared and Simon are twin boys, age 9. Mallory is the older sister at age 13. She picks on them but also protects them.
The pen and ink drawings are truly a delight. There are plenty of them, making reading a breeze. I can get through a book in just under an hour.

Dislikes:

The book reads like a partial story instead of a full story because of how short it is. I would prefer if the multiple books were combined in threes to make the reading experience more novel-like.

Buy: The Field Guide (The Spiderwick Chronicles, Book 1), The Spiderwick Chronicles (Boxed Set; Books 1-5)

Book Rating: 3 Treasure Chests
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Keira runs a book review blog for readers by readers on romance novels entitled Love Romance Passion. She’s been reading romance since she was in her teens and began blogging about romance so she could share her passion for her favorite genre. She loves reading paranormal, Regency, historical America, and highlander most of all and completely adores blind and wounded heroes.