Amazon.com info for 'Inkheart'

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Back to reviews and details of Inkheart

Amazon.com reviews:

Rating: 4 Summary: Wonderful idea, loses some in the translation?
Comment Inkheart - a villan so bad, with a heart so black, it may well be called inkheart.

The villan is that bad. He will scare the patootie off of any child with an imagination. Promise.

The heroes are good. Their motives are pure. And they make you mad with their silly, trusting maneuvers sometimes. This frustration is the hallmark of a great story.

There are characters who are neither heroes nor villans... and they almost make this story. Dustfinger, Elinor, Fenoglio, Farid... these characters are so complex, and they aren't even the main characters in the story!

I think that's what makes me pull a star from this review. The story was almost too complex. The author had so much she wanted to convey, and I became quite impatient with the getting on with it. I don't know whether it was the translation from the German or simply the style of the story. Perhaps I'm just an impatient American. But I found this fantasy a little too verbose for my taste.

The story itself, though, is just fantastic, and well worth the long read.

(*)>

Rating: 3 Summary: Kids Fantasy book... adult language
Comment I bought this book for the 8 year child of my best friend because I loved "The Thief Lord". As I do with all unfamiliar kids books I read it first. I was glad I did because I was slightly shocked by the themes and language in the book. Not shocked for myself but shocked for the kids reading it.

The story itself was a pretty well constructed fantasy plot about a bookbinder who can read characters out of books. The fantasy aspect didn't appeal to me as much personally as did the more believable plot in "Thief Lord", however it will appeal to any kid into fantasy and books such as The Narnia Chronicles, Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings.

This book is definitely darker than those in a lot of ways. The violence seemed more specific than implied. Even the implied violence seems a little beyond what your average 6 - 10 year old should be reading about. (i.e. sex and rape, etc.) There is some swearing in the book too which I thought was unnecessary in a children's book. Even Harry Potter didn't go there!

By the way... my friend's kid already had the book so I guess I didn't need to worry about offending his parents with my gift!

Rating: 4 Summary: Lynn Redgrave does a nice job narrating
Comment Like others, my children and I are much enjoying the story and the characters.

But I wanted to add a plug for the audio version of this. It's a delight to hear Lynn Redgrave do the voices. She has such a beautiful voice, and to my surprise she was able to give each character such a different and perfect sound that when I close my eyes and let myself be carried into Inkheart's world, I forget that it is just one person.

I do sometimes enjoy fancier recordings that actually get different actors for the different roles ("the Golden Compass" is a GREAT example of this) but a single talented actor performing all the characters is something special.

Rating: 5 Summary: Incredible Work of Fantasy
Comment I'm a huge fan of fantasy and fiction novels, and this one is just great. I would thoroughly recommend this to anyone who is a lover of books, and who has ever wondered what would happen if the characters they loved so much came alive.

Rating: 5 Summary: A Fantastic Read!!!
Comment I have owned Inkheart for awhile and have put off reading it for other books that I have. Boy, was that a mistake! I finally decided to read it and I loved it!
The story is about a girl named Meggie who loves books. Her father, Mo, loves books as well. Their house is filled with them. Even though they both read to themselves, Meggie noticed her father has never read out loud to her. One night a dark stranger appears at their house. From there the book just keeps on going. There is so much more to the book. I don't want to create any spoilers for those who have not read it though. The main part of this story is that Meggie finds out her Dad can read people and objects right out of any book. The catch is that something from this world must replace what he reads out of the other world. Meggie father realized that this might just be as much of a curse as it is a gift.
The book was fast paced and an enjoyable read. My favorite part about it is the way Meggie, her father and her great aunt all have such a love and respect of books. That reminds me so much of me that I fell in love with the book from the beginning. I highly recommed this book!