Adventure

this second book in the series was just fun and entertaining as the first. ( )

The unique design, vivid picture, and split opening of this cover make perfect sense when one is already familiar with the book. It's a shame I mistakenly thought this was a horror book and so have avoided reading it for years.

[Back to the Divide] is a sequel, and one of the things I liked best was that from the first page the story made sense to me even though I'd never heard of the first book. Occasionally, I could see where I might have gotten and extra 'umph' out of a scene if I'd known the relationships between characters already, but it never held me back in this current story.

There wasn't as much angst and depth to this book as, say, Garth Nix' [Mister Monday]. But I, personally, get worn out sometimes by that kind of continual tension. I really liked that [Back to the Divide] zipped right along. There weren't huge stressful tense scenes that went on for pages. Problems popped up frequently and got dealt with rapidly. This would make an excellent read-aloud to 4th through 6th graders because enough happened, and got resolved, in each scene that listeners' attention wouldn't wander while the reader waded though pages and pages of set-up.

The only real downside to the book is that I didn't really bond with any of the main characters. I did go head over heels though for Nimby, the flying carpet, a delightfully quirky character, who made the last half of the book quite enjoyable to read. ( )

Snakeweed is back after failing miserably to sell magic to humans. Now he took Felix's spell to go back to The Divide and froze Felix's parents in marble, which everything it touches turn to marble too. Now Felix has to get the countercharm before someone finds out about the spell and use it as a weopon of mass destruction.

But it gets worse. While Felix was away, a new Japegrin took over Andria and kidnapped the king and queen. Also, Thornbeak and Betony are trapped in a library and they accidently release the most sinister sinistorm ever. And everything snowballs and turns into one huge mess.

I liked this book slightly better than the previous one. It's still has the same pace and the style, but nevertheless it is still a good read for younger people. ( )

Reviewed by K. Osborn Sullivan for TeensReadToo.com

After spending the previous summer in a magical world where humans are only a legend, Felix settles in back at home for a nice, normal life with his parents. During his trip to the magical world the previous year, Felix's heart condition had been cured with magic, so he is able to finally engage in the kinds of normal activities he has always dreamed of.

But a quiet life is not in the cards for Felix. One day, he is shocked to find his enemy from the magical world, Snakeweed, standing on the front porch. The evil Snakeweed had managed to sneak into the human world. He did not find it to his liking, however, so he sought out Felix to give him the spell to return to his own magical world. As a means to force Felix into giving up the return spell, Snakeweed puts a spell on Felix's parents that turns them into marble statues. Felix soon realizes that he must return to the magical world and enlist his friends' help once again in order to free his parents.

BACK TO THE DIVIDE is a fine sequel for readers who enjoyed THE DIVIDE, the first book in the trilogy. I must admit, though, that I was not as entertained by it as I was by the original. Perhaps that is largely because the novelty of the magical world was wearing off. But what bothered me more was that the book seemed to focus on an awful lot of traveling. It felt like Felix and his companions moved back and forth across the magical world a dozen times during the story. I'm sure they didn't, but it felt that way at times.

Despite these complaints, I was pleased to see that the fun creatures from THE DIVIDE were back in this sequel, including giant, bird-like, math-obsessed brazzles and evil, shape-shifting sinistroms. Also, in addition to the main quest in the magical world, there was an interesting sub-plot about how the spell that turned Felix's parents to marble was threatening to destroy the entire non-magical world. This added some tension to the story. And, like its predecessor, BACK TO THE DIVIDE has a great cover that is split in the middle. It does not necessarily contribute to the story, but it is a unique feature nonetheless, that might add to the experience of the book for some readers.

Overall, for those who enjoyed their first journey across the Divide, I recommend a return trip. ( )