Sum up of 'The Spiderwick Chronicles':
• Great illustrations that fit the genre and tone wonderfully.
• The whole series can be read in one day - it's easily digestible, absorbing and investing for younger readers. Impressive considering that the little books mostly take place in the same location - Aunt Lucinda Spiderwick's old mansion (of little terrors).
• Some parts are genuinely scary and uncomfortable to read, with life-and-death situations taken tremendously seriously.
• We're told that our protagonist Jared Grace is a troublemaker - or at least he was at school - but we never actually see this. Throughout all the five books he's brave, clever and assertive, without his twin brother Simon's unfortunate blandness. Jared is a likeable young hero that any kid would want to root for.
• Speaking of blaming and shaming the problem-child-by-name-only, I can remember hating the mother even as a kid when I read this series in my school library. She's nasty and exerts blatant favouritism towards Jared's older sister, Mallory. I know she's stressed with the divorce and the move into a new life, but come on! (One thing that the film adaptation got right is making the mother more sympathetic; movie mum at least tries to understand her children.)
• I really like that Mallory does fencing - she's a champion, and it becomes useful to the plot when she fights goblins and such. A female character having non-traditional feminine hobbies and attitudes is always a welcome.
• The books have imaginative and quirky parts, especially the "guide" illustrations of the fantasy creatures.
• The adventure parts are dark and inventive...
• Though most of the creatures are indistinguishable and not very memorable in comparison to the trolls, goblins, fairies, brownies, dwarves and griffons of other fantasy books.
• The pacing and tension improves - and the stakes rise - with each subsequent book.
Overall, a decent children's fantasy.
Final Score: 3/5
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