 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
Guardians of Ga'hoole Series
- By Kathryn Lasky
- Genre: Fantasy
Common Sense Media says
Great messages, heroic characters, just the right length.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that the first three books in this bestselling series are the basis of a September 2010 movie called Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'hoole. The first (and best) book contains the most violence and sadness -- young owls are snatched away from their parents and brainwashed. Some older owls are killed and young owls who escape them try to find their parents and discover they are probably dead. In one scene, vampire bats prey on imprisoned owls. The other two books focus more on young owl training and the building of friendships with some scenes in forest fires and a climatic battle with fire and specialized battle claws used as weapons. Wonderful messages of friendship, leadership, and believing in yourself, and using your gifts for good are weaved through the series.
What's the story?
When word gets out around the forest that owl chicks and eggs are being snatched, Soren's barn owl parents are worried. Soren's sister is recently hatched and his older brother is still not ready for flight. And then the worst happens -- Soren is flown to St. Aggie's, a home for "orphans" that wipes out their individuality with the power of the full moon -- a process called "moonblinking" -- and prepares them for life in service to tyranical owls bent on, what else, but domination over all owl kingdoms. Soren finds an ally just in time -- a highly intelligent elf owl named Gylfie -- and during each moonblinking they tell legends of the hero owls of Ga'hoole to keep them sane. All the while they're hatching a plan to learn how to fly, to save themselves and tell the owl kingdoms about the horrors of St. Aggie's. They think the key is finding the great Ga'hoole tree, where they hope the legends of these owls and their great deeds are indeed true.
Is it any good?
The Capture: Guardians of Ga'hoole, Book 1
A band of four forms in this book: the deep-thinker Soren, intelligent
Gylfie, worldly Twilight, and the burrow owl Digger. Soren and Gylfie
are the most developed characters so far and already they seem worth
the long haul -- this series has 15 books in all. The story of their
escape is as riveting as their friendship is touching. There's also
some sadness as these chicks realize their families' fates, and it's
all handled with real sensitivity.
Publication date: June 2003 Pages: 240
The Journey: Guardians of Ga'Hoole, Book 2
The four friends make it to the Great Ga'Hoole Tree and are taught to
use their skills to protect the owl community. Watching the owls train
sets up the storyline well for future adventures, but gives the book an
episodic feel and keeps the suspense from building -- this is not the
suspenseful page-turner the first one is. However friendship and
following one's heart -- um, gizzard -- are still strong themes.
Publication date: September 2003 Pages: 256
The Rescue: The Guardians of Ga'Hoole, Book 3
Soren's favorite teacher is missing and the young band of owls tries to
piece together clues to bring him back to the Great Ga'Hoole Tree. It's
never clear why this capable band of owls needs to sneak away from
their adult mentors to go on their quest, and conclusions about the
mysterious powers the enemies wield aren't well-developed. But some big
truths are revealed -- like who Metal Beak is -- and Soren, as leader,
becomes an even more compelling character.
Publication date: January 2004 Pages: 208
What families can talk about
Families can talk about friendship and diversity. Why do Soren, Gylfie, Twilight, and Digger make a good band of loyal friends? What do they offer one another?
Families can also talk about what it means to Soren to "feel things in his gizzard." Do you ever get an immediate good or bad feeling about something? Are you usually right?
Families can also talk about leadership. By the end of book three Soren knows in his "gizzard" that he is a born leader and so do his friends. What qualities make him a good leader?
- Show:
- All members
- Parents
- Teens & kids
AGE
Great for boys with special needs.
Love it. Bought them for program I implemented @ Christmas to read aloud to my 17 year old special needs son. Our plan was 1 chapter in a book each night @ bedtime, inwstead of TV.
Bought set of 3 as part of a read aloud program I implemented with my 17 year old son. He is 17 years old and has special needs. The plan was 1 chapter each night @ bedtime instead of TV. We enjoy them so much we are reading 2-3 chapters a night and now are looking for the restof the series. At night when he is ready for bed, he fingds me if, I'm not by his bed, and leads me there to begin reading. We love them, can't wait to find the rest.
Was this review useful?
|
|
AGE
Look Mommie! An Owl Book! Oh, Mommie, the owl is about to die... Uh, can go find one on bunnies?
Seriously, this is an epic series. The storyline is original, the characters are believable, and the author does describe everything in great detail. Still, when I thought 'owl book', I did not think death, pain, mistrust, and torture. Before letting your kids read this, take a good look at the entire series. Perhaps they'll enjoy it.
Was this review useful?
|
|
AGE
too violent.
I read this book ahead of my 9-year-old daughter, and so glad I did. While it does have a good message of friendship and teamwork, there were several occurrences of very graphic violence. I am not opposed to sad or bad things happening in a story, but the amount of detail was over-the-top for younger kids. Furthermore, the type of violence didn't add anything to the story - it was needless.
There are other great books out there for kids to read and get the same great messages of friendship and working together. It wasn't that good of a book to warrant the gratuitous violence.
Was this review useful?
|
|
AGE
Guardians of Ga'hoole is a great read
My 12 year old loves this series. She and her friends read the books, then get together to talk about the plot, characters, even act out scenes. Now she is taking the interest to the next level: joining a birding group, getting books from the library about owls, attending a lecture at an environmental center with live owls.
Was this review useful?
|
|
AGE
One of the very first series I really got into.
I started reading Guardians of Ga'hoole when I was in 3rd grade and have been in love with the series ever since. It was one of the first long book series I ever got into, and I've told all my friends to read it. One of the things I really love about this series is that it manages to constantly weave owl facts into the story. I suggest that you read the books quickly though, because with 15 books in the series it can get a bit hard to remember what happened in the first few books. Ok, so there is some violence, but I really don't think most kids old enough to read novels will be affected too much by that. I wasn't. :) I recommend Guardians of Ga'hoole to fans of the Warriors series by Erin Hunter. (If you allow your kid to read Warriors, I'm 99.9% sure they'll be fine with this series.)
Was this review useful?
|
|
AGE
I am seven years old and absolutely love the Guardians of Ga'hoole series. I won't read Harry Potter because it seems too scary but this series isn't too frightening. I think 7 year olds and up who love animals will like these books a lot. It does have a wee bit of violence but not very much. I am waiting for number 5 The Shattering from the library and I can't wait to read it.
Was this review useful?
|
|
AGE
Fantastic series!
My son asked me to read this, no, begged me to read this with him. I consented, thinking I would read the first book or two. I ended up reading the entire series! It was exciting, adventurous and highly entertaining! Along the way, much was learned, as well. My son and I had a book club of sorts discussing the books and the characters. I was amazed at some very adult themes running through series. I was also pleased to see some new and interesting vocabulary words. Read this along with your child, you'll be glad you did.
Was this review useful?
|
|
Kid, 12 years old
October 3, 2010
AGE
Perfect book for 10+
These books are amazing! I love all the characters like family and think the give a real positive look on things. This is a great book for all above 10 years old.
Was this review useful?
|
|
AGE
A wonderful educational source on owls
i loved this book! It not only is a gripping series but it also has brilliantly put facts that you need in order to understand the book. It really shows that if you believe in yourself and others you can acheive what you thought to be impossible. A bit violent and refers to the canabolism of one owl but isn't too graphic and just says there was blood but otherwise it is really very intrigueing. I would highly recommend it.
Was this review useful?
|
|
| Author: | Kathryn Lasky |
| Book type: | Fiction |
| Genre: | Fantasy |
| Publisher: | Scholastic Inc. |
| Publication date: | June 1, 2003 |
| Number of pages: | 219 |
| Paperback price: | $5.99 |
| Publisher's recommended age(s): | 9 - 12 |
| Read aloud: | 9 |
| Read alone: | 9 |
Review It
Register now to save reviews and advice articles to your personal lists!
Great alternatives handpicked by our editors
Already read it? What do you think?
More from Common Sense Media
Top advice and articles
