Book Review: The Field Guide by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi (Spiderwick Chronicles Book 1)

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Good introduction to a fantasy story

Cons: A bit too fast of a read

The Bottom Line:

Starting a series

By laying all the groundwork

Fast and slow at once

The Beginning of a Serial for Kids

When I saw the fantasy movie The Spiderwick Chronicles in theaters a year ago, I fully intended to read the books.  Thanks to a recent trip to the library, I finally got The Field Guide, the first in the five book serial.  It's a good, imaginative start, but it could have been better.

The Grace Family has been going through some hard times.  The parents have divorced.  Jared has taken it harder than his siblings and started getting into trouble.  It's why a fresh start is what he needs, even if he doesn't want it.

They have moved to the estate of a distant relative.  No one has lived in it for a long time, and it is in disrepair.  That might explain the strange sounds that Jared, his twin Simon, and their older sister Mallory hear in the walls the first night, right?  Exploring a little more, the trio discover an old manuscript.  Does it hold the key to all the strange things happening?

Now I'm going to be honest right up front.  I am not the target audience.  The book is aimed at middle to late elementary school kids.  Most of my reservations probably won't bother them in the slightest.

For starters, the book is a quick read.  It's just barely over 100 pages.  The book is small, the print is large, and there are numerous wonderful illustrations by Tony DiTerlizzi throughout.  It took me less than an hour to polish this book off.  Considering the list price is $11, I'm glad I got it from the library.

Because the story is spread out over five books of this size, the story here is pretty simple and straightforward.  In fact, based on the movie, I'd call what we have here the set up.  Don't misunderstand, there is some action here and stuff is definitely happening.  There's even a resolution.  But it's very light.

The characters are also a tad on the weak side.  They fall into broad types with very little true defining characteristics.  Again, I have to look at the target audience.  For those just graduating to chapter books, this is perfect.  It's only from an adult eye that I find the flaws.

This makes it sound like I didn't enjoy the book.  That's not true.  Knowing where the story goes certainly helps.

In fact, I already have the next two books out of the library.  The Field Guide isn't a perfect introduction, but it is enough of a beginning to get kids hooked on the story.