Beyond the Deepwoods: The Edge Chronicles #1
Parents say
Kids say
Searching for streaming and purchasing options ...
Common Sense is a nonprofit organization. Your purchase helps us remain independent and ad-free.
Get it now on
Searching for streaming and purchasing options ...
A lot or a little?
The parents' guide to what's in this book.
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this book isn't meant for thoughtful discussion. It has some fantasy violence and may not be a good choice for kids prone to nightmares.
Wondering if Beyond the Deepwoods: The Edge Chronicles #1 is OK for your kids?
Set preferences and get age-appropriate recommendations with Common Sense Media Plus. Join now
Stay up to date on new reviews.
User Reviews
- Parents say
- Kids say
Violent, exciting, not for kids under 12
You should read this book.
Best series- worst book
What's the story?
The Edge is a bizarre world filled with weird creatures (\"woodtrolls, slaughterers, gyle goblins, termagent trogs ... monstrous creatures, flesh-eating trees, marauding hordes of ferocious beasts,\" and many, many more) and altered physics (certain types of rocks and wood float, powering sailing ships that ply the air).
Hiding from sky pirates, Twig strays from the path in the Deepwoods forest and encounters one weird creature and gruesomely dangerous situation after another, all the while trying to find a place where he can belong.
Is it any good?
The Edge may refer to the part of the world where the story takes place, but it also describes the part of the seat where your child will breathlessly linger. This author and illustrator team possess seemingly inexhaustible, if somewhat rank and fetid, imaginations, just the kind to delight kids with a taste for the creepy, gross, and bizarre. They trot out one all-too-vividly ghastly place and creature after another with wild abandon.
Twig stumbles (usually literally) from frying pan to fire over and over at a pace that some may find exhausting, and the lack of any real goal can make it seem pointless, if exciting, at times. But it's well-written, with crystal clear descriptions and delightfully creepy illustrations, and set into an inexpensive, old-fashioned hardcover edition. Many kids are going to eat this up and beg for more.
Talk to your kids about ...
Families can talk about the dangers (and possible benefits) of "straying from the path."
Book details
- Author: Paul Stewart
- Illustrator: Chris Riddell
- Genre: Fantasy
- Topics: Magic and Fantasy
- Book type: Fiction
- Publisher: Random House
- Publication date: June 22, 2004
- Number of pages: 278
- Last updated: July 31, 2015
Top advice and articles
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.