Reviews for The lost city of faar
School Library Journal
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Gr 5-8-In the second book of D.J. MacHale's sci-fi thriller (Aladdin, pap. 2003), 14-year old Bobby Pendragon and his Uncle Press, a Traveler, journey to the underwater world of Cloral. There he meets daredevil Vo Spader and the two friends have nonstop, action-packed adventures involving multiple high-speed chases and narrow escapes. Cloral's food supply is poisoned and the fate of the underwater utopia depends upon Bobby and Spader's ability to find the mythical city of Faar. Meanwhile, Bobby writes of his astounding adventures in journals he sends back to his friends Courtney and Mark in suburban Connecticut. MacHale has a tendency to use visual flourishes that kids will recognize from various TV shows, such as the twitching ring on Mark's finger to announce a new journal delivery from Bobby and vicious shape-changing guards near the entrances to every "flume" (black-hole type tunnels that connect alternate worlds). If this bad guys versus good guys story isn't ludicrous enough, the entire production is enveloped in junior high melodrama, with frequently used adjectives such as "bizarro," and awesome. Still, it's an entertaining tale. Actor William Dufris's reading transforms the predictable plot line, flat characters, and mundane writing into a fresh and energetic production. He does a great Aussie accent as Spader, provides a deep, authoritative voice for Bobby's selfless Uncle Press, and sounds just like a teen witnessing fantastic events as Bobby. This recording can be enjoyed alone, but it would be helpful to have read or listened to the first title in the series. As long as the stage is set for another high-velocity adventure, no one will quibble about literary value.-Celeste Steward, Alameda County Library, Fremont, CA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publishers Weekly
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In this second adventure in the Pendragon Quartet, readers find 14-year-old Bobby Pendragon traveling through the "flume" to Cloral with his Uncle Press, in pursuit of Saint Dane. This waterworld with a vague Australian/Atlantis air will likely intrigue fans who enjoyed the aquatic world of Jules Verne's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and the teamwork escape aspect of Journey to the Center of the Earth. Bobby is still uncertain about what happened to his family after he was recruited as a "Traveler," a heroic role that first pitted him against the shapechanging monster, Saint Dane, in the series' debut, The Merchant of Death. It's a radically different life from that of junior high student in Stony Brook, Conn., where his friends Mark and Courtney eagerly await the journals in which he updates them with the latest events from various colorful "Territories." In the fabled city of Faar, beneath the waves, Bobby meets Spader, who is also a Traveler, and quickly becomes his first mate. Unbeknownst to Spader, his submerged city is partially responsible for the peace felt above the surface in the floating habitats. When Saint Dane decides to annihilate Faar, Bobby and his Traveler buddies must race to outwit the villain. MacHale embellishes his science fiction with just enough silly touches to leaven the mood; for instance, when the magic ring that Bobby gave Mark twitches (which means it's about to "deliver" Bobby's journals), it expands so that Mark must remove it, and the glowing stone transforms into a "black hole," spewing musical notes and light. Next up: The Never War, which will feature First Earth, circa 1937. Ages 10-up. (Jan.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
School Library Journal
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Gr 5-8-Just back from saving the population of Denduron from the evil shape-changer Saint Dane in The Merchant of Death (Aladdin, 2002), 14-year-old Bobby Pendragon and his Uncle Press are fluming off again, this time to Cloral, where Saint Dane is again causing mayhem. In this beautiful blue-green world covered with water, Bobby learns to navigate via water sled, lives and works on one of the giant floating habitats that serve as farms and factories as well as homes, and makes friends with Vo Spader, an expert aquaneer. The mission is to find the legendary lost city of Faar before Saint Dane can use it in his quest to control the universe. The story is long, the action is fast and furious, and things aren't exactly calm back on Second Earth, as Bobby's Connecticut friends follow the story via the journals he sends back. The town bully has discovered one of the pages and is threatening to expose Bobby's secret mission to the police (who have no idea why Bobby and his family have disappeared) if Mark and Courtney don't share the journals with him. The science is thin but the ideas are clever and the descriptions inviting and easy to picture. Character development is minimal and limited to fairly stereotypical good guys and bad guys. However, the teenaged protagonists enlist readers' sympathy and involvement and the nonstop plot developments keep the many pages turning and readers wanting more. As the situation on Cloral is resolved, the stage is set for the next book in the series.-Susan L. Rogers, Chestnut Hill Academy, PA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
