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4.0 out of 5 stars
Considerable suspension of disbelief, but that's OK, Jun 21 2004
Young Charlie Bone's "endowment" is an interesting and, at first, seemingly ineffectual one (compared to, that is, endowments that have immediately obvious benefits like divining from people's clothing what they feel, and if they're dead or alive; mind control; the ability to change into a bird of any shape or size; conjuring up one's spirit's ancestors, or the ability to summon violent storms of wind, rain, thunder, and lightening). Charlie can look into portraits and hear people talk. In the first book in this installment, we get a few examples of that, and what he hears is mainly of the garden variety: "Sit straight," "you're too fat in your bikini," etc. But we are also told in that same book that after Charlie's father died that Charlie's Grandma Bone (his father's mother) took down every picture of him in the house. If that isn't a smidgeon of foreshadowing, then I'm unfamiliar with the word.Here we have the second installment in the series. Back in 1916, the horribly cruel Zeke Bloor sent his cousin Henry Yewbeam into the future - Charlie Bone's future, of course - using a magical device called The Time Twister. Now, it's somewhat unbelievable that Zeke, a person whom we know craves power, would let something so valuable out of his reach merely to send off a cousin for whom he cares little and whom poses no immediate or distant threat to him, but this is where suspension of disbelief comes in. Without this occurrence, there is no story. So we must accept it, and while it's somewhat glaring, the suspension of disbelief can be honored, mainly because Ms. Nimmo is writing for a younger age group than the Potter crowd. Fast forward to present day, and we find all of the malevolent forces at Bloor's academy aware of Henry's arrival, and Zeke - now Ezekiel Bloor, a crustaceous, horrid beast of a man - is still intent on doing away with his cousin. This is the second major time where we are asked to suspend disbelief. Why in the world would a 100 year old man care what a 10 or 11 year old boy does? Again, especially when that boy is, himself, not one of the endowed, and poses no threat to Ezekiel. The answer is spite. And evil people tend to possess a few common qualities: avarice, paranoia, and spite. Still, I had a much more difficult time understanding the motive behind the Bloor's and their cronies making poor little Henry Yewbeam's life so miserable. Why were the Yewbeam aunt's and Grandma Bone so concerned with where he was? Regardless of this, Ms. Nimmo is a gifted storyteller and pacer, and, as before, she has created a story that is populated with believable and likable characters (mostly on the good side - the bad side is slightly less believable, if only because we don't spend much time with them so little character development is possible), all of whom any reader would have great affection for. So the story, even accepting this suspension of disbelief, is a thoroughly enjoyable one. Because Henry is a relative, and because Charlie is the quintessential good guy who will do whatever he can to help his friends (a marvelous quality, really), they try to rescue poor Henry from the clutches of the Bloor's. Their attempts make for a terrific and blazing read. We also see a little more of Charlie's gifts. Anyone who read the first book must have asked themselves: "If he can hear portraits, what about paintings?" A final thought to ponder: when will the Tree and the flames - if ever - reveal their true identities, and give the Bloor's and the nastier Yewbeam's their comeuppance? Or will that task reside entirely on Charlie Bone's shoulders?
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by Jenny Nimmo
by Jenny Nimmo
by Jenny Nimmo
by Jenny Nimmo
by Daisy Meadows
