29 days of book love...

Inkheart 

Cornelia Funke

(2003)

originally published in German

This book is a thrilling ride crafted for fantasy lovers and book readers of every kind.  Imagine how it would change your reading style if your reading abilities could change the story as it does for Meggie and her dad Mo.  Mo loves books and is good at fixing them. He was also a very good storyteller at one time.  Soon after her mother's disappearance though Mo won't read to Meggie and she doesn't understand why. Mo has such incredible reading abilities that even a few bad guys are interested in his talents.

What if, I as a librarian, read in such a way that my library patrons one-by-one began disappearing as I was reading?  Would you want to send your child to the library anymore? Meggie and Mo's journey and the unique cast of characters smattered along the way make this an incredible story worth sharing.  I once read it aloud to a class of 5th grade students in Little Rock. Their teacher and I were friends and she struggled with readalouds so I agreed to help her by modeling.  This is the book I chose, I went every afternoon to read to them, and they were mesmerized by the story. It was one of the best experiences I had of transporting children (and their teacher) to another land far, far away...

The movie is not worth it and even the second book not so much. This book is a stand alone for me.  It's so good it doesn't need anything more.