A month ago I finished reading the last book of the fantasy series Fablehaven by Brandon Mull. Essentially the book series follows the adventures of 13 year old Kendra and 11 year old Seth as they go to theirGrandparents estate. The estate turns out to be a preserve for magical creatures: centaurs, fairies, satyrs, etc. I have always been intrigued by writers taking different mythos and adding some creativity. Mull creates a wonderful story centered around the idea of different preserves bound by treaties by both good and evil magical creatures.
The first book in the series, titled simply Fablehaven, was not particularly good. While it was a good introduction and Kendra and Seth are a joy to laugh at, especially if you have ever been around teenagers, the plot was easily foreseeable and the foreshadowing was very poor. In the next books Mull goes awesome!! They are a true treat. Usually I pick up quickly on Children’s novels foreshadowing, but Mull surprised me several times. It really was a treat.
In books 2 through 5 multiple themes are addressed. Mull really captures the young mind in Seth and Kendra. Their embarrassments and thought processes just make you laugh and remember your own childhood or if you have teens in your life it gives you some fun insight to their mind. Mull really captures the essence of early adolescence.
The First book of Fablehaven
For kids to read I recommend it. Some amazing life principles are taught. I always felt Harry Potter books (which I did enjoy) glorified being disobedient and painting adults as somewhat stupid. Fablehaven does a great job of showing virtues and failures of both the adult and teen mind. That is probably what I enjoyed the most. The series showed how adults have to begin seeing teens and pre-teens differently as they age, while showing the aging teen how they still don’t quite get life, though they definitely get it more than many adults give them credit. In a fun way it examines this and really has lessons for both the adult and teen.
If you want an easy read for some fun I highly recommend the Fablehaven series.
Any thoughts on Fablehaven or the perception between teenager and adults? Comment!
