Story Thieves: A Review

Owen would like nothing better than to escape daily routine (especially fractions) and go on adventures - like Kiel Gnomenfoot, his hero and the protagonist of his favorite book series. He's had to settle with reading about Kiel's adventures and daydreaming about having his own - that is, before he finds out that a girl in his class, Bethany, can travel into books and take anyone with her. Owen strikes her a deal: he'll keep her secret and leave her alone if she takes him into a Kiel Gnomenfoot book for just five minutes. Still, though, five minutes is enough to unleash a couple of Kiel Gnomenfoot characters (one who's determined to free all other fictional characters), including Kiel himself, on the real world. Bethany must fix things in the real world, while Owen must play the role of his hero so that the plot of the last Kiel Gnomenfoot book can go on.

This book is a chaotic, self-referential, laugh-out-loud good time that anyone who's ever dreamed of hopping into their favorite book will enjoy. (Notice: it does include a spoiler for (strangely enough) Harry Potter.) What bugs me about these kinds of books is that escaped fictional characters tend to hunt down the author who created them with the intention to exact their revenge - not that it wouldn't be expected, of course, but I'd rather meet my characters on good terms, thanks. The characters' engaging personalities, the continuous flow of humor, and the page-turning plot will have readers devouring this book and hunting down the ones that follow.


Parental Advisory: fantasy/sci-fi violence