Kingdom Keepers: Disney After Dark [Paperback]

My sister, a Disney fanatic, got this for my 9-year-old son for Christmas. To my amazement, he sat on the couch the next day and read over half of it in one afternoon. When he brought it to the dinner table we had to tell him to set it aside. He has told me so much about the book I feel like I have read it. I'm sure that our recent trip to Walt Disney World last fall adds to the appeal, as the places and rides are fresh in his memory. He has begged me to order the next book in the series, which is what brought me to Amazon today.

Five young teens living in Florida get the opportunity of a lifetime--they're each going to be turned into a DHI, or a Disney Host Interactive, to guide visitors throughout the park. The five teens--Finn, Charlene, Willa, Philby, and Maybeck--are a varied assortment of ethnicities, and all attend different schools. As Maybeck states, they're "the Orlando assortment pack." When Philby points out that DHI also stands for Daylight Hologram Imaging, the kids get a little worried that maybe the people at Disney aren't telling them everything there is to know. And that turns out to be quite an understatement.

One night when Finn falls asleep, he finds himself in the park after closing-- in his DHI, or hologram, body. He meets an old man named Wayne, one of the original Disney Imagineers, who informs Finn that he and his other four DHI friends have been chosen for a mission. A mission to save the park from the Overtakers, a group of once-benign Park characters who have taken on power and are intent on spreading their power outside of the borders of Disney World.

What at first seems like a fantastical dream soon turns to reality, when the attractions at the Park begin coming to life when the DHIs cross over into the Magic Kingdom while sleeping. They're attacked by animatronic pirates from The Pirates of the Caribbean, the dolls from It's a Small World try to capsize their boat, a dinosaur fossil from the Thunder Mountain ride comes to life and starts chasing them. And then there's Maleficent, the witch from Sleeping Beauty, who appears to be all too real--and determined to stop the kids from solving The Stonecutter's Quill, the fable that Walt Disney passed along to save the Park from the Overtakers.

THE KINGDOM KEEPERS is definitely an imaginative read, full of action, adventure, and suspense. For anyone who has ever visited the Magic Kingdom, you'll recognize the settings immediately. Even if you're not a frequent visitor of Disney World, this is one book that will bring the magic--both good and bad--to very realistic life.

Reviewed by: Jennifer Wardrip, aka "The Genius"

Reviewed by Lauren P.: An Eighth Grader

Kingdom Keepers is a book filled with adventure at every turn. Ridley Pearson (the author) makes those adventures so complex that it feels as if you're right in the book. He hooks you by giving you a little bit of detail and then leaves you hanging. This book is about five kids who were chosen to be hosts of Disney. When they all go to bed at the exact same time, they get transferred to Disney. When they do this however, they are in their DHI (Disney Host Interactive) forms. When they are in their DHI form, they are holograms that aren't see through. This means the real kids can't be at the park at the same time as their DHI's are. This is because one it is a rule of their job, and two if they are seen, it might confuse people.

Maleficent creates fake DHI's of the five kids, so that the real kids can't enter the park. This allows Maleficent time to work on taking over Disney. On the other hand the kids don't want that to happen, so that makes them have to make a decision. One, follow the rules and do not enter the park until night. Or two, sneak past the guards and find out what Maleficent is up to. They don't want to give Malificent any extra time to do sneaky things, so the kids do both choices. The kids come day and night several times. Although, Maleficent does not make it easy for them. She sends them through many traps and many problems.

Maleficent is the evil villain in the story. Her main goal is to takeover Disney. In order to achieve that goal, she must get rid of the Kingdom Keepers (the five kids). Either that, or keep them busy until she has enough time to takeover. That is why she decides to make the fake DHI's so that the real kids can't come into the park. That doesn't stop the kids, because they don't give up that easy. They keep coming back, stopping her plans.

The five kids who are chosen for the DHI's are completely different from one another. That can be good, and that can be bad. One of the five has a super ego and thinks he's all high and mighty. One worries about everything scared to try anything new. One thinks she is to pretty and to cool to do anything. One is worries about things, but tries not to show it. One I would say is the perfectly average kid, although he is a little more than average in his smart section of his brain.

I think this book is not only interesting, but it is a book that many kids can relate to. It is an adventurous and mysterious series about a fight between good and evil in every kid's favorite place.... Disney World. I read the book, and little after I went to Disney. As I walk around I saw where the things took place. It was really cool to do the things that the characters did and see what Ridley Pearson was explaining.

Ridley Person does a good job at bringing the characters to life, to where you can get to know them. I bet many people can relate to them. They begin to grow on you, and you and you feel as if you are in the book as well. I was sad when the book ended because I wanted to keep reading. I hope Ridley Pearson does not stop writing the series.

I think this book is an outstanding read for teens around the YA section. People who love Disney and other series like Starcatcher series, Never Land series, Steel Trapp series, and the Science Fair would like this book and it's series.
If you would like to find out more about Ridley Pearson and the Kingdom Keepers series, please visit Ridley Person's website.

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