Fantasy Literature for Children ages 9-12.
The Tower at the End of the World by John Bellairs & Brad Strickland
In The Tower at the End of the World (2001), the ninth novel in John Bellairs & Brad Strickland’s LEWIS BARNAVELT series, Strickland once again pays tribute to the late Bellairs by returning to, and expanding the plot of the first novel in the series, The House with a Clock in its Walls.
At this point, Lewis is 13 years old and has just finished reading Sax Rohmer’s FU MANCHU series.
October 4th, 2021. Kat Hooper´s rating: 3 | Brad Strickland, John Bellairs | Audio, Children, Horror | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Beast Under the Wizard’s Bridge by John Bellairs & Brad Strickland
The Beast Under the Wizard’s Bridge (2000) is the eighth novel in the LEWIS BARNAVELT series for middle graders which was started by John Bellairs in 1973 and finished up by Brad Strickland after Bellairs’ death in 1991. I’m listening, with my daughter, to the excellent audio editions by Recorded Books which are narrated by George Guidall.
Remember that scary car chase scene, I think it was in the first book The House with a Clock in its Walls,
September 27th, 2021. Kat Hooper´s rating: 3.5 | Brad Strickland, John Bellairs | Audio, Children, Horror | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Specter from the Magician’s Museum by John Bellairs & Brad Strickland
The Specter from the Magician’s Museum (1998) is the seventh novel in the LEWIS BARNAVELT horror series for middle graders. The first novel, The House with a Clock in its Walls, was written by John Bellairs and published in 1973. There was a 17-year hiatus after the third book, The Letter, the Witch, and the Ring, was published in 1976 while Bellairs was focused on his JOHNNY DIXON series.
September 24th, 2021. Kat Hooper´s rating: 3 | Brad Strickland, John Bellairs | Audio, Children, Horror | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
The Doom of the Haunted Opera by John Bellairs & Brad Strickland
The Doom of the Haunted Opera (1995), the sixth book in John Bellairs’ and Brad Strickland’s LEWIS BARNAVELT series for middle grade readers, has best friends Lewis and Rose Rita back together again after having separate adventures in the previous two novels, The Ghost in the Mirror (Rose Rita) and The Vengeance of the Witch-Finder (Lewis).
September 20th, 2021. Kat Hooper´s rating: 4 | Brad Strickland, John Bellairs | Audio, Children, Horror | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Vengeance of the Witch-Finder by John Bellairs & Brad Strickland
Thanks to author Brad Strickland, who picked up John Bellairs’ children’s series after Bellairs’ death, the LEWIS BARNAVELT adventures continue with the fifth installment, The Vengeance of the Witch-Finder (1993). Surprisingly, I can detect no difference between the writing styles of the two authors. Strickland continues this series with the utmost respect for Bellairs’ vision and characters.
In The Vengeance of the Witch-Finder we learn what Lewis and his uncle Jonathan were doing while Lewis’s best friend Rose Rita and Mrs.
September 14th, 2021. Kat Hooper´s rating: 4 | Brad Strickland, John Bellairs | Audio, Children, Horror | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Letter, the Witch, and the Ring by John Bellairs
The Letter, the Witch, and the Ring (1976) is the third novel in John Bellairs’ LEWIS BARNAVELT series for kids. Each is a stand-alone horror mystery. It’s not necessary to read them in order but it’d be ideal, if you can, to start with the first book, The House with a Clock in Its Walls, because that’s the one in which we watch Lewis,
September 6th, 2021. Kat Hooper´s rating: 3.5 | Brad Strickland, John Bellairs | Audio, Children, Horror | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Figure In The Shadows by John Bellairs
Lewis Barnavelt, 11 years old and recently orphaned, has been settling in at his uncle’s house. It’s 1949, about a year since we saw him last (in The House With a Clock in Its Walls) and he has made a new friend – a tomboy named Rose Rita.
When Uncle Jonathan opens a trunk owned by his father (Lewis’s grandfather), Lewis, a lover of history, is bequeathed with his grandfather’s lucky coin. When he begins wearing the coin around his neck,
September 2nd, 2021. Kat Hooper´s rating: 4 | Brad Strickland, John Bellairs | Audio, Children, Horror | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The House with a Clock in Its Walls by John Bellairs
Lewis Barnavelt is a chubby middle schooler whose parents recently died in a car accident. He has just arrived in a new town at the house (mansion, actually) of an uncle he hardly knows. Uncle Jonathan is eccentric, as is his neighbor and best friend, Mrs. Zimmerman, a middle-aged widow who loves the color purple.
As Lewis begins to adjust to a new living situation, new school, and new neighborhood kids, he gradually becomes aware that there’s something weird about Uncle Jonathan and his house.
August 27th, 2021. Kat Hooper´s rating: 3.5 | Brad Strickland, John Bellairs | Audio, Children | SFF Reviews | 4 comments |
Da Vinci’s Cat by Catherine Gilbert Murdock
Catherine Gilbert Murdock offers up a solidly charming Middle Grade portal story involving travel through time and space, the painting of the Sistine Chapel, shifting timelines, feuding Renaissance artists, and of course, a cat. With a quick pace, high stakes, and two comically mismatched young protagonists, Da Vinci’s Cat (2021) will probably satisfy most young readers, despite some issues.
In 1511 Rome, 11-year-old Federico Gonzaga is a “guest-hostage” to Pope Julius II, ensconced in the Pope’s sumptuous villa to ensure the loyalty of his aristocratic family,
August 18th, 2021. Bill Capossere´s rating: 3 | Catherine Gilbert Murdock | Children, Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Even and Odd by Sarah Beth Durst
Even and Odd are pre-teen sisters living in Stony Haven, Connecticut, where their parents operate a border shop carrying “supplies for the mundane world, as well as imports from the magic world — anything a magical customer might need for their visit here.” Those imports and magically-inclined customers come from the land of Firoth, where Even and Odd were born, and which is accessible via magic portals. The sisters trade off magical abilities on alternating days, leading to their nicknames, though each girl has different opinions on their access to magic: Even,
August 9th, 2021. Jana Nyman´s rating: 4.5 | Sarah Beth Durst | Children, Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | no comments |
As an old fan of '60s-era Marvel comics, I must say that this book looks FUN!
COMMENT Book #3 of this trilogy is very much a heist story, and I quite enjoyed it!
Pirate stories and heist stories... Do we ever get enough of them?
Very interesting, Ulrich! Thanks for clueing me in!
So happy to hear that you enjoyed this article, Spacewaves! It was something of a labor of love for me,…