Author : Jonathan Stroud
Publication date : September 30, 2003 by Disney-Hyperion
Oh, gosh, I have to admit that I read this book like what, six years ago? Cheers to the good ole' days! I didn't have a blog at that time and I had been intending to finally post a review about this series for a while and I am glad it's finally here, yay!
Maybe some of you wonders why I waited so long to post the review, but let's face it, I am not young anymore and in fact it's been centuries since I last touched the book, I was afraid I could not review it thoroughly. There are parts I forgot, but thanks to Google which enabled me to find summaries, I finally remember the most important part and I am confident enough to post The Amulet of Samarkand's review here.
Maybe some of you wonders why I waited so long to post the review, but let's face it, I am not young anymore and in fact it's been centuries since I last touched the book, I was afraid I could not review it thoroughly. There are parts I forgot, but thanks to Google which enabled me to find summaries, I finally remember the most important part and I am confident enough to post The Amulet of Samarkand's review here.
Ten year-old Nathaniel was sold by his parents to the government when he was five years old to be a magician apprentice. He lived with a foster magician family, the Underwoods. Mrs. Underwood was kind to him unlike her husband who kept on belittling Nathaniel and emotionally torturing him. One day, a powerful magician called Simon Lovelace asked Nathaniel difficult questions just to humiliated him. Mr. Underwoood did nothing to stop him and now Nathaniel wanted a revenge. He then summoned a five thousand-year-old djinn to helped him steal Amulet of Samarkand from Lovelace. Being a child himself, Nathaniel never knew the price he has to pay because of his action.
If I were to describe The Amulet of Samarkand with one word, it would be witty! Other than that, the book is like the antidote of Harry Potter where the wizards are mainly deceptive and love to enslave magical creatures. They are not very likable, if you ask me. This story is told with two point of views, Nathaniel's and Bartimaeus'. I had to laugh out loud whenever I read Barty's part. He's totally funny and sarcastic, but charming in his own way. In the other hand, Nathaniel is a very fragile character but cold at the same time. Granted, being in a not so healthy household makes him unlikable, well, at least I don't really like him. I pity him, though.
The good news is, this book is fully packed with action and of course, comedy. If you read Barty's point of view, you'd find footnotes here and there (usually a more descriptive version of what's on his mind) and they're hilarious. I like how Stroud write his description and the plot itself is complex enough and not too complicated considering that this book is aimed for younger readers. Everything is in the right amount which makes this book also good for adult readers.
And now it's time for favorite quote, oh, this one is super witty!
And now it's time for favorite quote, oh, this one is super witty!
“I had a chance at him now. Things were a bit more even. He knew my name, I knew his. He had six years' experience, I had five thousand and ten. That was the kind of odds that you could do something with.”
4 rating for The Amulet of Samarkand. I recommend this book for those of who love some witty reads or fantasy lovers. And if you find yourself not liking it very much, don't give up just yet, it gets better in the next books. Much better, in fact!
Now, have you read this series? What do you think of it?
