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Twelve-year-old Artemis Fowl is the most ingenious criminal mastermind in history. With two trusty sidekicks in tow, he hatches a cunning plot to divest the fairyfolk of their pot of gold. Of course, he isn't foolish enough to believe in all that "gold at the end of the rainbow" nonsense. Rather, he knows that the only way to separate the little people from their stash is to kidnap one of them and wait for the ransom to arrive. But when the time comes to put his plan into action, he doesn't count on the appearance of the extrasmall, pointy-eared Captain Holly Short of the LEPrecon (Lower Elements Police Reconnaisance) Unit--and her senior officer, Commander Root, a man (sorry, elf) who will stop at nothing to get her back.
Fantastic stuff from beginning to end, Artemis Fowl is a rip-roaring, 21st-century romp of the highest order. The author has let his imagination run riot by combining folklore, fantasy, and a fistful of high-tech funk in an outrageously devilish book that could well do for fairies what Harry Potter has done for wizardry. But be warned: this is no gentle frolic, so don't be fooled by the fairy subject matter. Instead, what we have here is well-written, sophisticated, rough 'n' tumble storytelling with enough high-octane attitude to make it a seriously cool read for anyone over the age of 10. --Susan Harrison --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From Publishers Weekly
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Browse and search another edition of this book.
HO Chi Minh City in the summer. Read the first page
Concordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Theres Nothing Foul about Artemis Fowl,
By Mary E Gober 1 (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Artemis Fowl (Paperback)
Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer, is none other than a classic. Not as intoxicating as the illustrious Harry Potter series, but it has that special flair that die-hard Harry Potter fans will enjoy! It's a modern day story combined with magic and mayhem. The creativity of this book flows from its very pores. Colfer has a unique way of explaining the human misperception of folklore. Like for instance, the myths of the Leprechaun; humans have actually been saying it wrong for centuries, it's actually L.E.P. Recon. They're not short men who go around with pots of gold, waiting for you to find them at the ends of rainbows, but they're a special elite police force who patrol and control the safety and security of Haven, the underground society of magical beings and other such folk, known as the People. Holly Short is the only female officer of the L.E.P.; she has a bit of an edge to her that reflects that, 'I'm not just a chic' kind of attitude that is important for our heroine. Oh, I'm, giving too much away. Meanwhile a wealthy young man, Artemis Fowl, without a steady father figure, filled with Lex Luther tendencies, is a child prodigy of may sorts. He seeks out criminal activity to his own delight and his own self-proclaimed quest for struggle and challenge. He seeks to expose and take advantage of these forgotten People. He learns their language and uses his newly acquired knowledge of the People, along with his technological advancements and rather large bodyguard, to capture a member of the People, hold him or her hostage and make himself some fairy gold in the process. Only his plans don't go as well as he had hoped, because he messed with the wrong elf, Holly Short.Well, as one can tell this tale is highly original, and dynamic. It's an easy read for those of you who have difficulty reading books and/or novels. It's easy to follow and it makes sense, in the same way that J.K. Rowling's writing does. A reader doesn't get lost or confused as easily with high-class mumbo-jumbo, such as in Philip Pullman's published works like the Golden Compass. The wording is made to make sense, not to confuse. Children with reading related learning disabilities will have no problem getting through this book. Plus, there's a little added bonus in the book. There is a fun code that runs along the bottom of the book, it is in the ancient language of the People. It isn't too difficult to decode, but if you pay attention to the book, and fill in the wholes, you're bound to figure it out. It foreshadows the entire Artemis Fowl series, in a prophecy. Excellent book as well as a series, I highly recommend it! Definitely one of my praised literary keeps.
3.0 out of 5 stars
Harry Potter it Ain't!,
By
This review is from: Artemis Fowl (Hardcover)
Like the first individual reviewing this book, I too was excited by the possibility that I might be able to read something comparable to Harry Potter. Certainly the hype surrounding this book led me to believe that this might be the case. Much to my great disappointment, I found Artemis Fowl to be far less entertaining, or imaginative than Harry Potter. Eoin Colfer does have a talent for description. He paints with words beautifully. Unfortunately, most of his leading characters lack a great deal in the "likeability" department, especially the main character, Artemis Fowl. His last name should actually be "Foul". Perhaps I'm in the minority here, but I really don't find a twelve year old child who lies, cheats, steals...and even tortures some of the other players in this story...endearing...even if it's in an attempt to replenish his family's diminished fortune. This is due to the fact that his father, a notorious criminal, has been missing for months and is presumed dead...murdered...and his mother is in a drugged stupor in a darkened upstairs bedroom, unable to recognize her son or surroundings. Nor do I find tunneling dwarfs who use exploding farts...(yes, you read that correctly)and other secreted bodily fluids as weapons as entertaining. However, to give Colfor his due, the characters of Holly, Root and Foaly are winners. Had he written the book entirely about them, I would have enjoyed it a great deal more...to say the least. This book is only the first in what is obviously intended as a series. A "Leprechaun" code which appears at the bottom of every page can be decoded to win prizes, the first prize being a part in the already planned movie. So, even if this is far from being great literature, it will have it's avid fans and followers, I'm sure. I for one will not bother with the next book and will instead wait patiently for the next Harry Potter.
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars
One word sums it up: "Ugh.",
By Rob Standefer (Plano, TX United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Artemis Fowl (Hardcover)
The Harry Potter references don't apply to me; I read this book before I even touched a Harry Potter book. Thus, I think my review is Potter-free.That being said, I really, really didn't like this book. The idea was good: Boy genius, modern update of mythology (LEPrecon = Leprechaun, etc), an attempt to steal fairy gold. The problem with the book is the terrible writing style. It's just...boring. It reads like it was written *by* a 9-year-old, not *for* a 9-year-old. By contrast, other children's books are written in a style that doesn't coddle the reader and instead focuses on moving the story along in plain English. Maybe something got lost in the translation from Gaelic to English. The end of the book left me unsatisfied and annoyed. I liked Holly Short, but she's the most underused character. Instead, we get lots of garbage about Root and Butler. Butler is cool, if a little overblown, but Root is annoying and completely uninteresting. It was impossible to really care about any of the characters in the book. My final slam: The book fails at suspension of disbelief. It's written so poorly, it's impossible to go into the world of the book and read it is if the story was really happening. Suspension of disbelief is the cornerstone of good fantasy, and this book just doesn't have it.
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