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Product Description
Product Description
Alcatraz Smedry has an incredible talent... for breaking things! It generally gets him into a lot of trouble, but can he use it to save the day? In this second Alcatraz adventure, Alcatraz finds himself on a mission to save Grandpa Smedry when he gets swept up by a flying glass dragon powered by the mouthy Smedry clan. Their mission? A dangerous, library-filled one of course! This time they are on their way to the ancient and mysterious Library of Alexandria (which some silly people think was long ago destroyed!). They must find Grandpa Smedry, look for clues leading to Alcatraz's potentially undead dead father, and battle the creepy and dangerous soul-sucking curators who await them.
About the Author
Brandon Sanderson is the author of the Mistborn trilogy and Elantris, which Orson Scott Card called "the finest novel of fantasy to be written in many years." The Alcatraz series is Brandon's first series for kids. He writes and plays with swords in Provo, Utah.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.7 out of 5 stars (19 customer reviews)
19 of 20 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Why are you reading Stephanie Meyer when you can have Alcatraz?, Oct 14 2008
By Karra - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Alcatraz Versus the Scrivener's Bones (Hardcover)
I have only two issues with Brandon Sanderson. Firstly, he should stop everything else he is doing and write more Alcatraz books. I like his adult fantasy, don't get me wrong, and I'm super excited about his finishing the Wheel of Time, but Alcatraz is better. Waaaay better. Someone with this kind of writing style and sense of humor should be writing young adult books. If you can get that many philosophy jokes into a book designed for 8-11 year olds effectively, and make it so darn funny that 35 year olds are checking for a sequel release date daily, you need to focus on them. These books are just a really really smart guy playing. He's doing the things he can't do with 'real' fiction, and I want MORE of it. It is perfectly designed, magnificently executed, and quite frankly the funniest books I've ever read. (including Christopher Moore- and that's saying a lot) The sequel, although not quite as good as the first book, is still the kind of book you annoy other people endlessly while reading. You MUST read these books.The only other issue that I have is that the covers for the Paperback Alcatraz vs the Evil Librarians, and The Scrivener's Bones are atrocious. They do not at all represent the nature of the books. As a bookseller who is constantly trying to hand-sell these books, the covers are not helping me. Please get a new illustrator.
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
More Zany fun with Alcatraz and his crazy family, Oct 9 2008
By Storylover - Published on Amazon.com
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Alcatraz Versus the Scrivener's Bones (Hardcover)
Brandon Sanderson is one of the bright new lights in the world of epic fantasy--his Mistborn series are among the most exciting fantasies that I have read in years. So I was very enthusiastic when I heard about his young adult series about a young man who has a talent for breaking things. Alcatraz's first adventure was a delightful romp through a world of conspiracies perpetrated upon all of us "Hushlanders" by the evil Librarians. Sounds crazy? Well, it was so crazy that maybe he is right...maybe the librarians are all out to get us.So I was very happy that the second book, Scrivener's bones has come out to some fanfare. The same Alcatraz is back--but a little more self assured, in more command of his talent. His collection of crazy family members are also back, as is Sanderson's talent for inventing new and original magic systems. The Ocularists are a very interesting take on magic, and one that people who are into these things will really enjoy.
The real star of the show, however, is Sanderson's writing. It is crisp, funny, engaging, and really fun. I found myself turning pages so quickly that I was getting fingerburn. I laughed out loud on multiple occasions, and closed the book pleased that I had taken another trip through some really original locations--flying glass dragon, anyone?
This is not Harry Potter. Alcatraz is simply not as weighty as that young magician. His characters are not as well rounded or complex as those of JKR; however, I don't think that was his intention. He has created a fun alternate universe, a fun new magical system, and now gives us some more depth to this very likeable young character. I would recommend this for younger teen readers, or for people (like me) who are rapidly becoming fanatics about Sanderson's novels.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Alcatraz Series Review, April 9 2011
By Mathachew - Published on Amazon.com
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Alcatraz Versus the Scrivener's Bones (Mass Market Paperback)
Below is an excerpt of my full review of the first four books in the Alcatraz series:This review goes in line with that of the Alcatraz series, more specifically the attitude of a Smedry. You see, they are trouble makers, and are prone to getting themselves into life threatening situations. They have an uncharacteristic attitude when dealing with any situation. The more danger, the more excited they are. Through thick and thin, Smedry's are rarely to be found with a sour mood. They are bubbly, charismatic, bold, audacious, and have a knack for getting themselves into trouble. Wait, I said that did I not? Gack! You see, I imitating a number of characters found in this book. Granpa Smedry, Alcatraz, talking dinosaurs. Yes, you read correctly, talking dinosaurs with a British accent, and as we know, those Brits are refined, calm, and well-mannered; dinosaurs are no exception! They really know how to cause trouble for Librarians, like eating the entire C section of the Science Fiction shelf and moving six books out of their proper places. Okay, so maybe they are useless as Bastille said... The only thing worse than talking dinosaurs are talking rocks, but I tell you, the dinosaurs are a treat! To round off this paragraph, I leave you this quote from Grandpa Smedry if you think I am making any of this up:
I am a Smedry, and we do ridiculous, unexpected, eccentric things like this all the time.
The Alcatraz series is a tremendously fun read. My friend that recommended Mistorn and Elantris did not bother giving these books a shot because of their young adult emphasis, despite being a lover of Sanderson's work. Aspiring Asimovs, what a horrible reason! Lots of fun, many laugh out loud moments, tons of humor and wit, with a great story to boot! The books are written from the first person perspective of Alcatraz Smedry, written as a biography of how he became the hero of the Free Kingdom and to dispel the many myths about how it happened. The books are much shorter than all of Sanderson's other works, easily read in two or three days, and are extremely enjoyable. I cannot recommend these books enough!
Unfortunately Scholastic decided to not sign Sanderson for the fifth and final book. According to his assistant via Twitter, Sanderson will finish the series, but it's still a few years out, which is a shame. When I found out about this, I shook my fist at Scholastic and demanded they be burned alive with the Firebringer's Lens. You'll have to read the books to know what that's about ;)
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