20 November 2007

Book Banter -- The Grey King

Title: The Grey King (the Dark is Rising sequence book 4)
Author: Susan Cooper
Length: ~160 pages
Genre: Juvenile Fantasy
Plot Basics: After a bad case of the mumps, Will Stanton is sent to his relatives in Wales to recover. Will knows that there's something important that he's forgetting from before he was sick, but the illness has driven whatever it was from his mind. As he explores the countryside, he encounters a strange white dog and an equally strange boy, Bran Davies, who together trigger his memory and aid him in his quest as an Old One to find another object that will aid in the Light in the struggle against the rising Dark.
Banter Points: Another great book from Susan Cooper. This one won the Newberry Award and it's easy to see why. The plot is tight and compelling, the descriptions vivid and powerful. Will is a very neat character and it was nice to see him interacting with someone other than Merriman or the Drew children.
Bummer Points: It was pretty short. Word Nerd got caught up in this landscape Cooper painted and would have been more than willing to stay there for another 100 pages.
Word Nerd Recommendation: As she's said before, this series is worth reading, even if you are a grown-up.

1 comment:

veinglory said...

I loved these book. I think I read them when I was about 10 and I still have them somewhere....