Thanks to barnesandnoble.com for the image.

THE SPIDERWICK CHRONICLES, BOOK 2: THE SEEING STONE

SIMON & SCHUSTER BOOKS FOR YOUNG READERS
AUTHORS: Tony DiTerlizzi (illustrator) and Holly Black (writer)
ISBN: 0-689-85937-6; hardback
114 pp., Text with B&W illos., $9.95

In The Spiderwick Chronicles, Book One of Five: The Field Guide, we were introduced to Jared Grace, his twin brother, Simon, and older sister, Mallory.  With their mother, Helen, the Grace children had just moved into a dilapidated Victorian mansion filled mystery and secrets.  One of those mysteries was a secret room, a library where Jared found a strange book, “Arthur Spiderwick’s Field Guide to the Fantastical World Around You.”  The library is also where Jared met the diminutive faerie creature, a brownie named Thimbletack, who warns Jared to get rid of the troublesome book.

In Book 2, The Seeing Stone, the Graces get a rude welcome to that baffling and fantastic world around them.  Jared discovers a strange eye piece constructed of multiple magnifying lens, just as a band of goblins attack and spirit Simon away.  Using “the seeing stone,” which he inserts into the eye piece, Jared can see the goblins and better see the world around them.  He and Mallory search the surrounding forest for Simon where they discover incredible new creatures including a monstrous troll, a wounded beast, and a helpful (hob)goblin!?

THE LOWDOWN:  As the second chapter in a serial fantasy, The Spiderwick Chronicles, Book Two of Five: The Seeing Stone doesn’t suffer from a “sophomore slump.”  The Field Guide introduced readers to the world of The Spiderwick Chronicles by steeping the narrative in a sense of wonder wrapped in an almost impenetrable mystery.  The Seeing Stone picks up the pace by dashing off into the woods surrounding Spiderwick manor.  Here, the Graces take on constant peril and daring adventures.  From the treacherous encounter with the troll in the stream to the death and gravity-defying rescue of Simon, The Seeing Stone is an old-fashioned children’s fantasy that moves at modern action movie speed.

POSSIBLE AUDIENCE:  The Spiderwick Chronicles has the same mood, atmosphere, and pace of the Harry Potter books without the storytelling chops, but is still quite good.

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