Thursdays with the Crown

September 1, 2014
Tossed into a faraway land, Celie and company try to figure out how to heal their sentient castle in this third entry to the series. At the end of Wednesdays in the Tower (2013), the Castle flung 12-year-old Celie, two elder siblings, a couple of friends and Celie's griffin Rufus into a realm called the Glorious Arkower. Most of the Castle hasn't come with them, though it was built here. The kids cross a poisoned lake, raid a king's tomb and survive a forest fire, all the while trying to figure out why the Castle (back at home) has been so upset and erratic lately. They seek historical information, which requires untangling "lies and half-truths" from two angry wizards who bicker and tell contradictory stories. Although there's plenty of action, all the heavy significance rests on ancient history and exposition, dousing the immediacy of the story. When Celie deciphers a truth or hears a big reveal, the actual information often doesn't end up mattering: Whichever land this is, whatever the Castle's and the griffins' histories may be, clearly both wizards are bad, and goals stay the same. George's characters and griffins still charm, but readers may miss the vital Castle's larger presence, and the title is, sadly, purely decorative (there's no pattern of Thursdays). Here's hoping the next installment (Fridays, coming in fall 2015) will recover the series' early bounce and zip. (Fantasy. 8-11)

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August 1, 2014

Gr 4-6-Picking up right where Wednesdays in the Tower (Bloomsbury, 2013) left off, Princess Celie and her siblings have been transported by Castle Glower to a strange land. With them are their friends Pogue and Prince Lulath, as well as Celie's griffin, Rufus. In order to return home and heal the Castle, Celie and company must find the missing piece of the Eye that has been stolen. They meet a wizard, the Arkower, and though they don't trust him, he may be the only one who can help them in their mission. Filled with magnificent griffins and mysteries about the true history of the land and the Castle, fans of the series will eagerly devour this latest installment. The stakes are higher than ever before and the well-paced narrative keeps readers engaged throughout. Supporting characters such as Lulath are more fully fleshed out in this title and while circumstances often separate members of the group, the perspective always stays with Celie, so readers share her confusion and skepticism as she hears conflicting stories about the Castle and the kingdom. Like the protagonist, readers will come away with the valuable lesson that there are multiple sides to every story and that there isn't always a clear right or wrong side in a conflict between groups of people. Though this part of Celie's tale concludes, fans will be delighted at the hints of her next adventure in the final paragraphs.-Amanda Raklovits, Champaign Public Library, IL

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