Bank Holiday Reading

The Eye of the North - Sinéad O'Hart

The book begins in Widget Manor, the rather dangerous home (full of strange and unusual creatures) that Emmeline shares with her often absent parents.  Convinced that her parents are trying to kill her, she has spent her childhood preparing herself for every danger imaginable and never goes anywhere without her trusty satchel which is filled with equipment. It is here that Emmeline receives the news that her parents have mysteriously disappeared and are probably dead. 

And so begins the adventure: Emmeline is whisked away by boat to stay with people in Paris who have vowed to protect her; however, inevitably, she never arrives.  Instead, during the sailing, she befriends Thing, the boy with no name, who helps her when unwanted visitors raid her cabin.  She then meets Edgar and Sasha who know her parents and determine to help her to safety.  But things don't go according to plan and Emmeline is kidnapped by Doctor Bauer who is on his own journey to the ice fields of Greenland where he plans to summon, from the depths of the ice, the mystical kraken which is said to be so powerful that whoever controls it, will control the world.  He's not alone in this quest, as we soon discover that The North Witch also has designs on releasing the kraken, craving the immortality that this will bring.  

Will Emmeline and Thing remain safe?  Will they be able to halt Doctor Bauer and The North Witch?  Will they ever discover what happened to Emmeline's parents or will the kraken be awakened, changing the world as we know it?

O's opinion:

I liked the fact that Emmeline was brave enough to go on a ship on her own and do all of the things she does at the age that she is. I would never be able to accomplish what she has in this book. Thing was my favourite character because he is very adventurous and he helps Emmeline through a lot of tricky situations in the story as it goes on. He journeys to try to save her from the Dr and he meets a lot of brave people along the way. Thing is very inspirational for me as he can do all sorts of brave acts and he still has problems of his own that he has to sort out. That makes him a hero to me. I like the fact that the narrative kept switching from Emmeline to Thing in chapters and that created a lot of suspense for me in a lot of different places.

K's opinion:

'For as long as she could remember, Emmeline Widget had been sure her parents were trying to kill her.'

One of the best opening lines I've read!  Such a gripping start and the action never abates.  Emmeline is a strong, independent girl (she has to be as her parents have been absent for large parts of her young life) and I love the strength of her personality and the determination she possesses in everything she does in the book.  This really is an action-packed book with many a twist and turn along the way - be warned though, if, like me, you tend to read to the end of the chapter and then vow to stop/go to bed/go to work or school, you may find this difficult, as the end of a chapter invariably leaves you desperate to know what will happen next!

I enjoyed this book so much, I used chapter one with my class and devised comprehension questions for them to answer!  They loved it and are now queuing up to find out what happens to Emmeline!

After reading the book, I was surprised to discover that this is Sinéad O'Hart's first novel. If this is what she produces as a first book, I can't wait to see what comes next.  O is adamant there should be a sequel...

More of Emmeline and Thing's adventures ... it's a yes please from us!