The Forbidden Library Kindle Edition

I think it's official: Wexler excels at pretty much any genre he tries his hand at. I was initially curious and maybe a little skeptical as to how he would handle a children's novel, but this book was truly excellent. The author shows his talent and versatility in The Forbidden Library, creating original worlds filled with all kinds of interesting creatures, bringing them to life with such rich and detailed descriptions. I have no doubt adult fans of his epic fantasy will be enchanted by the wonderful creativity and imagination found in here as well.The story itself is fantastic, and as an avid bibliophile it's hard for me to resist anything to do with libraries or reading about the wonderful books that take us to faraway places. The plot also had enough mystery to keep me constantly guessing; I could never be sure what everybody's motives were. I felt for the main character Alice and her predicament of being suddenly thrust into a strange environment where she couldn't trust anyone, though she was far from helpless and I'm sure she had no need for anyone's sympathy. Courageous and headstrong, Alice is a good role model for young readers, being a take-charge kind of girl who doesn't take obstacles or setbacks lying down.In some ways, The Forbidden Library was more complex than I would have expected from a middle-grade novel. While it had its fair share of levity (Ashes the talking cat will be a joy to many, for example -- and not just to cat-lovers!), it also had its moments of darkness. Sometimes it's both light and dark at once, as evidenced by the "Swarmers", Alice's horde of bizarre bird-like creatures that have the physical appearance and consistency of a rubber ball with legs. I confess, reading this made me want an army of Swarmers of my own -- in spite of the fact they're essentially a black mass of razor-sharp pecking beaks and I'd probably lose an eye. Like I said, the magical creatures found in this book and the sheer imagination behind them are a pure delight.It's moments like that which make me feel this is a book both kids and adults can enjoy. It certainly has that wide appeal! I've been trying to read a lot more children's books/middle-grade books lately, taking note of my favorite titles to share with my daughter one day (who's still a bit too young now, but it's never too early to start her library!) Without a doubt, The Forbidden Library will be one of them.

There is such a lack really good fantasy right now, I find myself reading a lot of YA. This is really good, but not great. The magic system is intriguing and very well imagined. I just can’t understand what it’s for. What, exactly, do these Readers do besides fight with each other? There is nothing at stake in the outside world, that I can see. Perhaps more will be revealed. Meanwhile, unending library that changes shape, talking cats, bound creatures, intrigue, there’s a lot to like here. Definitely passes the “would I read this to my grandkids?” test. I’ve never read any of Mr. Wexler’s adult fantasy. I heard it’s very gory. That hasn’t appealed to me. But now that I have a feel for his style, maybe I’ll try it.

This was a good fantasy book but sometimes I felt it was trying too hard to be mysterious. Most of the time, the main character Alice, has no idea what's going on. She doesn't even know if she can trust anyone. Right when I thought there was a trustworthy character, another character says they can't be trusted. I'm still not sure why Isaac's master wanted the Dragon book. I have no idea why Alice had too feel all that magical pain in her first meeting with Geryon in the room with all the pillows. What even happened to Alice's father? The ending felt a little incomplete to me.I still enjoyed this book. It was a good read. I would recommend it.

I have no idea if the book is good or not. I bought it as a gift for my granddaughter. Unfortunately it was just thrown in a big box with another item so the cover is all dinged up. On the outside it looks used but the pages are clean and it doesn’t look like it’s been opened. Definitely disappointed with the handling.

The Forbidden Library is lovely. Miss Em looked forward to it with anticipation and a bit of trepidation; Django Wexler wrote her favorite new adult sci-fi novel of last year, The Thousand Names, and as silly as it may sound, some authors just can't make the crossover into good kid lit. No worries, though!Alice hears a strange conversation between her father and a snarky fairy one night, and practically the next thing she knows, her father is missing, presumed dead, she's impoverished and sent to live with her "uncle," a rich old man she's never met--and who turns out to be a wizard who collects his powers by killing or enslaving creatures found in magical books. There's a talking cat, dragons, and critters of all descriptions. And a boy who has to be rescued. Alice has been raised by her Dad to be a plucky, take charge kind of girl, and it's a pleasure to follow her adventure. She stays true to herself and I look forward to the change she'll cause in every book/world she visits--oh yes, the Forbidden Library is true to the saying, "Books are portals to other worlds." I'll be gifting the book to all my nieces, for sure.Like the blurb says, the book should be popular with fans of Coraline and Inkheart; I would say also fans of Diana Wynne Jones, Roald Dahl's Matilda, and I was reminded of the plucky, likeable Sara Crewe from A Little Princess (by Frances Hodgson Burnett, not the movie). Highly recommended for both personal and library collections.[...]

Great story and characters. Good read for adults and I'll be letting my 8 and 10 year old children read it too.

I was slightly apprehensive about this book at first but once I got into it I realised I didn’t want it to end. I loved the idea of certain people being able to bind to the book. Overall, great book, I would recommend it.

lovelly

Great story many thanks

I bought this book for my 10 years old daughter and she loved it. In fact we both did.