The Crystal Prison - Softcover

Jarvis, Robin

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0340788631 ISBN 13: 9780340788639

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton Canada, 2000

Synopsis

An innocent young mouse lies murdered in a moonlit field, as the screech of an owl echoes across the ripening corn. Newly arrived in the coutnryside from the horrors of Jupiter's lair, the Deptford mice find themselves once again facing terrifying evil, as they are embroiled in a series of horrible murders.

About this title

About the Author:

Robin Jarvis studied graphic design in Newcastle and then worked in television and advertising making model monsters and puppets. He has been a full-time writer and illustrator for some time, and has a large following among children and adults. Robin's books are consistent best-sellers and he has won several awards for his work. The Dark Portal was runner-up for the Smarties Prize in 1989.

From School Library Journal:

Gr 5-8-In this sequel to The Dark Portal (SeaStar, 2000), a young mouse named Oswald falls ill, and the powerful squirrel Starwife decrees that he can only be healed if his friend Audrey accompanies a formerly evil but now pitiful rat named Madame Akkikuyu to the countryside. In the country, a bucolic existence is threatened by an evil spirit who uses Akkikuyu to gain power and wreak havoc on the mice who live there. Although this book stands on its own, readers who aren't familiar with the first volume might become impatient with the first section, which introduces a multitude of characters and moves slowly, impeded by old-fashioned, florid prose. The pace picks up in the countryside, where an ever-hungry owl and the mysterious spirit bring menace and tragedy to the close-knit community of field mice who live there, and the final chapters are breathtakingly thrilling. Some literal-minded readers may wonder how a mouse could stride or possess a waist and long flowing hair, but fans of Brian Jacques's "Redwall" series (Philomel) and Avi's "Tales from Dimwood Forest" series (HarperCollins) will likely relish this tale.

Eva Mitnick, Los Angeles Public Library

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton Canada
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 0340788631
• ISBN 13: 9780340788639
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 304