Parents' Guide to

Abarat: The Abarat Trilogy, Book 1

By Matt Berman, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 9+

Travelogue of the weird for kid fantasy fans.

Book Clive Barker Fantasy 2004
Abarat: The Abarat Trilogy, Book 1 Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this book.

Community Reviews

age 9+

Based on 1 parent review

age 9+

A wonderful colourful adventure.

I myself love this series and recently let my 10yr old daughter start the first book as she was growing bored of her selection. She loves it also, it's a wild adventure with loveable characters, amazingly descriptive lands that make you feel at home. It is slightly macabre, Clive Barker definitely has a certain style, yet this book is pure fantasy. I'm on the 3rd book at the moment and when I think of Abarat I imagine great friendships and adventure.

This title has:

Great messages
Great role models

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (1 ):
Kids say (4 ):

The plot is mainly an excuse for an excursion through the fertile, bizarre, and gruesome imagination of author Clive Barker. This first book suggests an author obsessed: In addition to more than 400 pages of text (including a 25-page appendix), Barker has created over 100 vividly colorful illustrations. When the book first came out there was a free poster map of the world, and there is an interactive version on the Web site (www.harperchildren.com/), though why they didn't print the map on the endpapers is a mystery in an otherwise gorgeous and lavishly produced book.

This appeals to children who like to be fascinated, rather than emotionally invested. Though the story lacks the heart tight plotting of the best children's books, children with a taste for the wild and grotesque will by enthralled by this travelogue of the weird.

Book Details

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