About book Charlie Bone And The Time Twister (2003)
Initial thoughts on completion:Once again, this was an enjoyable story and a great diversion from everyday normal life. The same familiar characters are back and we get to meet a few new ones. The subject of time travel is always an interesting one, though I'm not sure it was very well thought out, as I could see some loopholes in the logic of it. I wish she had answered a bit more definitively whether it was indeed possible to travel back in time, or whether the twister only brought one forward. With Mrs. Bloor gone, it would seem that there should have been some affect on the present, either as far as events or characters were concerned. That issue aside, I liked the idea of such a great, powerful object being such a simple thing, easy to overlook. It struck me as significant that, though the Bloors seek so long and hard through the hall to find the marble, they aren't able to do so. It's like they've lost the past, and the childlike innocence that existed when marbles held such wonder.Pros:The character development was great, especially where the Red King was concerned. I'm curious to see how the Red Tree turns up for the other endowed children and what affect it will have on them. I love that Tancrid was able to gain control over his endowment! I really wish Uncle Paton could have a similar experience; it seems so silly that he should know so much about the Red King and his descendents and their endowments, and yet not be able to control his own. On that train of thought, Paton putting his head up was such a huge triumph! Granted, I still feel that his fix for his inability to control his endowment is inadequate, but the fact that he is trying and experimenting was great. Plus we get to see a little more about his family and get hints of that conflict which will sustain further interest. The question of how people can go so wrong and so right in the very same family seems to be an underlying theme and it is strengthed with that detail.Going back to Tancrid and the endowed children, I loved the imbalance created and I really hope that continues. It creates a great scale or measure of what is happening in the overall battle between all the characters of the world.Cook's story is fascinating! That was so great to find an unexpected, underground ally. I was so afraid that that was going to get uprooted really quickly because, as much as I love Henry's curiosity and boldness, if he had led the Bloors to her, I would have had to have stopped reading. Granted, I'm not a fan of Billy, but at least he could keep the secret.I'm still impressed that unendowed characters like Fidelio and Olivia can hold their ground with so many other "more interesting" characters around. Though even some of those could use with development, Gabriel for example. The scene with the glove and Mrs. Bloor was really beautiful; the connection between musicians and the importance of their hands was neat. I think it was important for Mrs. Bloor to be such a shadowy figure for the overall theme of time; dwelling on the past truly does make one absent from the present. I think it is this that allowed her to use the time twister, while Henry could not. She may have been successful in going back because she didn't exert much influence on her present, so going back would not have great impact on the altered future that would create. Henry, on the other hand, embraces life however he finds it, so could not go twisting through time for eternity.Cons:Emma's aloofness irked me. I didn't feel it was explained well. Perhaps she needed the space to figure out who she is and what her endowment is all about and design her bird personna, but I felt that could have either been explained a little better, or she could have just included Olivia and the others.Billy is still so delusional! I just really wish he could see that he would be so much better off with Charlie and the others, provided he could gain their trust again. I'm not sure that's possible though. I guess that frustration of mine stems from other oversights; if people could just open their eyes and overcome their prideful, selfish tendencies, they could be so much happier. That said, I don't know that Billy can turn coat until there has been a character developed which can take him on in a parental role, like Emma and her aunt from the last book. I guess I'll just have to wait.Overall, an acceptable continuation of an enjoyable children's series and I look forward to future installments of the adventure.
In this installment of the Children of the Red King series, you get a little more hint of the history of the red king, but once again, the primary plot of the book is weak. The biggest problem with this book for me was the lack of motivation for all of the crimes/sins/evil doings of the evil doers. The author just doesn't bother. (view spoiler)[I feel that if you are going to have trio of sisters attempt to kill their brother, him being "meddlesome" is not enough of a motivation. If you are going to have a group of adults and children work together to imprison an 11 year old boy, lock in him a hole in the ground with no exercise or light, little air, crusts of bread and water to eat for two weeks with the ultimate intention of killing him, ONE of the adults not liking the person 60 odd years ago is NOT enough motivation. I suppose the author might just feel like people can be mean and evil just because they are mean and evil, but I feel that justification only goes so far. And often, it manifests in contradictory ways. Why would someone devote themselves to finding "endowed" children, but then choose to be against/cruel to/ make enemies of some of those endowed rather than try to charm and win them? Some of the characters are interesting and occasionally there is a plot point that I like (this one has a sideplot of a mysterious woman who "haunts" the music tower of the school who was mistreated in attempt to steal her money). However, all in all I find these books feel incomplete. I will not be reading any more of the series. (hide spoiler)]
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Read February 2014SPOLER ALERT!!!!!My 10 year old daughter & I read this 2nd book of the series. In this story, Charlie Bone meets his 11 year old relative, Henry Yewbeam. Henry mysteriously appears at Bloor's Academy wearing outdated clothes & speaking unlike the other kids his age. Strange? Not when you find out he is from the past. Decades ago, Henry's evil cousin, Ezekiel, rolled a Time Twister to him while he played marbles. Henry was mesmerized by the beautiful glowing ball & didn't know not to look. Henry became frozen in time.When Henry reappears, all are not happy he's back. Ezekiel, now in his 90's, finds out Henry has returned. He uses Manfred, Zelda, Mr. Bloor & the wicked Yewbeam sisters capture Henry. They want him gone for good. Charlie, with the help of his friends & Uncle Paton, helps Henry escape. A great adventure book. Looking forward to the 3rd book in the series.
—Deena
Again a good series...a boy from the past gets "slung" into the future by a speicial magic "marble". Bummer huh? Since he can never go back...history has moved on without him and now he has to make his way in the present. Too bad the one who tricked him into using the Time Twister is still around (though an old, old man now...old Ezekiel Bloor, top dog at the school) and he'd still like to "do away" with his cousin Henry, and also of course Charlei who is also related and in the stew up to his own neck.
—Mike (the Paladin)
"Charlie Bone & the Time Twister" #2 is by Jenny Nimmo. In England's Bloor Academy for endowed children, a magic marble sends Henry from 1916 to the present, where Charlie and pals hide him. I don't like how the time traveller carelessly trips into danger, and the too powerful mean Yewbeam side of the family. Finally, Emma's bird-shape, Tancred's storm, and good guys team up to overcome hypnotic Manfred and beast-shifter Asa. Our hero's own listening to pictures grows; his mind can now step within the frame; he retrieves a great weapon [spoiler: wand]. Finding handy Welsh directions in a ditch seems a squick easy. Even more than book 1, neighbor boy and dog are puzzlingly empty place fillers, serving no purpose, not even admission to the Pet's Café, itself enough to serve the animal-lover audience. The side plots, from a second-hand poisoned glove, and kind Cook's back story, flesh out the fun, and contribute to a well-rounded satisfactory conclusion. Even a bit of a twist in an overall predictable line.
—An Odd1
