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The Xanadu Adventure
  
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The Xanadu Adventure (Library Binding)

by Lloyd Alexander (Author) "Miss Vesper Holly leads an active life ..." (more)
4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)

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From School Library Journal

Grade 5-7 - It is 1876, and Professor Brinton Garrett reluctantly agrees to accompany his ward, the irrepressible Vesper Holly; his wife Mary; and Vesper's friend Tobias ("The Weed") on a research trip to the site of the ancient city of Troy. En route, they are captured in Asia Minor by none other than Vesper's archenemy, Dr. Helvitius. After much derring-do and many improbable plot twists, the intrepid travelers manage to save both themselves and the world, and Vesper and The Weed even get married along the way. The action is almost nonstop, broken only by a fair amount of pontificating (both the professor and Helvitius are long-winded types), and readers won't get much of a sense of the exotic locale. Although Vesper is her usual plucky and quick-witted self, the character who really shines is our dear narrator, the long-suffering but lovable professor. His love for his family adds dimension to the wild action and makes the final plot twist all the sweeter. Buy where the series is popular. - Eva Mitnick, Los Angeles Public Library
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.


From Booklist

*Starred Review* Gr. 5-8. In search of a Trojan Rosetta stone, Vesper Holly is off to Asia Minor, along with her guardians, Mary and Professor Brinton Garrett; boyfriend Tobias "the Weed" Pasavant; and twins Smiler and Slider. Early in their travels, they sense "some kind of jiggery-pokery afoot." When they finally arrive at Xanadu, an edifice that "could have been the dream of a deranged architect," they find themselves prisoners of the archvillain Dr. Desmond Helvitius. Megalomaniac Helvitius sees oil as the future source of wealth and power and has designed a powerful petroleum-based weapon to carry out his dreadful schemes. Amid the thrills and chills, Vesper and the Weed marry. With a masterful mix of vivid description; robust, playful language; sly wit; and laugh-out-loud comedy, Alexander packs more mirth and adventure into his pages than some manage to do in novels triple the size. The surprising plot twists and suspenseful chapter endings make this an ideal read-aloud. A damsel who can handle any distress, Vesper is as plucky as ever in this splendid addition to a solid series. Linda Perkins
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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4.0 out of 5 stars End of the story, Mar 28 2007
By E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   
This review is from: Xanadu Adventure Starring Vesper Holly (Paperback)
Lloyd Alexander created a sort of female Indiana Jones in Vesper Holly, a cool, cultured adventure gal. Now in "The Xanadu Adventure," Alexander winds up the series with a final tense adventure, and a surprising -- and deeply satisfying -- finale. If only most series went out so gracefully.

Vesper Holly loves archaeology and adventure. So when she is told that archeologist Herr Schliemann has found the ruins of ancient Troy, she's determined to go investigate further. So she and her friends Brinnie, his wife Mary, and the knowledgeable oddball The Weed (not his real name) set out to Hissarlik. But things rapidly go awry.

A sinister boat captain dumps them off in the wrong place, and a sputtering archaeologist -- who claims he, not Schliemann, has found Troy -- turns out to be working for the malevolent Dr. Helviticus. And this time, the doctor has far-reaching plans not only to take control of the world's oil, but to rule the world itself from his own luxurious Xanadu...

In a sense, "The Xanadu" adventure is Alexander at his best. The story moves fast, the settings are exotic yet familiar, and there's a good blend of humor and action -- one of the best scenes is when an opulent palace goes up in flames, courtesy of Helviticus's superweapon. Alexander also indulges a more scholarly side -- he focuses on Schliemann and the discovery of Troy to kick off the adventure. Later on, Helviticus quotes extensively from Samuel Taylor Coleridge's legendary "Kubla Khan," which Helviticus's own Xanadu is based on.

But Alexander didn't just intend for this to be another Vesper Holly adventure. Sadly, it's the last one. So he wraps up a few personal threads for Holly, both involving Helviticus and concerning a certain young man. Alexander dips out of the action near the ending for a startlingly romantic scene, and the final scene is one of the sweetest he has ever written.

Maybe the best thing about the Vesper Holly adventures is that Alexander doesn't turn her into a Lara Croft type. No blasting guns and acrobatics. Vesper uses her brain and wit as weapons against her brilliant opponent, with the assistance of her loyal pals. Although I did keep wondering why Helviticus would tell her every detail of his master plan as he did. Evil genius' prerogative, I suppose.

The Vesper Holly series goes out with a bang in "The Xanadu Adventure," which is a good adventure in its own right, and a good final adventure for Vesper and Co.
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