Wednesday, October 5, 2011

The Spiderwick Chronicles by Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black

The Spiderwick Chronicles is a five book series where Black and DiTerlizzi share the story of the Grace children.  It was these three children, two brothers and a sister, that have come across a secret book about faeries.  They have shared this book with the authors as well as their adventures as a cautionary tale and a warning.

When I first saw these books years ago, I picked up the first simply due to the look.  The binding was unique - small, the size of a mass market paperback, but with a sturdy hardcover binding.  The pages themselves had antiqued edges.  And, after a quick flip through the book, I discovered the most adorable black and white sketches.  I had to give this book a try!

The story itself is a precious one.  You have three innocent children that end up in an unexpected situation, fighting beasts of all sizes, and you know -- saving the world!  It is a simple read, enhanced by the illustrations that originally hooked my interest.  Though the story does feature some darker scenes (as one would typically expect when battling beasts), they are not too dark or worrisome, even for the feint of heart.

I have not yet seen the film based on the series, but I do look forward to viewing it in the future.  Afterall, one can never be too prepared and the visuals of the techniques outlined in the book may prove to be handy!  For those of you also interested in preparing yourselves and heeding the warning of the Grace children, the five books in the series include:

  • The Field Guide
  • The Seeing Stone
  • Lucinda's Secret
  • The Ironwood Tree
  • The Wrath of Mulgarath

Have you been educated by The Chronicles?  What did you gather from it?

6 comments:

  1. I liked the movie, but it suffered from one of the usual problems of a movie they left out things that seemed important to me.

    Have you read the sequels?

    ReplyDelete
  2. I haven't read these books yet - though I, too, used to eye them at the store all the time, simply based on their looks.

    I did watch the movie and enjoyed it.. but I can't speak to its honesty to the original material, obviously.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Ticia ... That does sound familiar! I found myself doing that all the time! I have not read the sequels. Are they just as worth it?!?

    Adam ... Sometimes I do judge a book by its cover (and pictures)! :) I need to see the movie, I think!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I read all of these books in a row a couple of years ago. They are really good as a set! I read what there was of the second series at that point too but it wasn't as good. The main problem with the movie is that the siblings don't work together. The older sister is a terror and I was sad that it lost something as good as that relationship was in the books. These are some books that I need to get on Z's shelves for when he's ready.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Yes, I have. Purchased them when they first came out because our library didn't have copies. Never watched the movie, but loved the books.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Kristen M. ... Thanks for the info! I think I will check out the second series eventually, but I don't know if it is high on the list at this point. Same with the movie! If it comes into the library, I may get it though!

    365andMe ... They are definitely good ones!!

    ReplyDelete

Thank you in advance for your comments! I love to hear reader's thoughts and respond to each one within the comment section. Please feel free to subscribe to the comment feed to ensure you can fully participate in the conversations.

Comments on posts older than 14 days are first approved through comment moderation. Word verification should not be turned on, so please notify me if it randomly appears.