Book Review: Spiderwick Chronicles: The Field Guide (1)

This book is written by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi.

This is the first of five books in which we meet the Grace children, Mallory, and her younger twin brothers Simon and Jared.  They have recently moved to their great aunts abandoned house (she is in the mental health hospital).  They house is in disrepair, and has many creeping noises.  They figure one is a squirrel in the walls, and they discover its nest, which is strange but the pull it out and put it in the trash.  Turns out the nest is not that of a squirrel but that of a Boggart/ Brownie.  It changes back and forth based on its mood.  Of course with its next destroyed it is mad, and takes out its anger on the children, tying Mallory’s head to her bed, making a big mess in the kitchen.  In the meantime, Jared discovers a book, a field guide of faerie creatures.  Using the guide he decides they need to do something to appease the Boggart.  They find his house stuff, and offer him a new house with the stuff inside.  SO the book ends with the Brownie meeting our three siblings, and with a warning.  They are not to keep the book, the field guide.

These stories have lots of action and excitement.  And portends that more is to come.  I am not sure why the book is divided into five parts, other than to make more money.

Book Review: Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles: The Nixie's Song

This is the start of a new trilogy exploring the world of faeries written by Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black.  This book introduces the human characters Nick and his stepsister Jules who live in Florida.  Jules has read the Spiderwick books, and believes in faeries.  She forces her new brother to tag along with her to explore the woods for faeries.  She sends Nick on a hunt for a four-leaf clover.  He finds one, and with it in his possession he sees a Nixie, near death.  He rescues the Nixie, when he should have come in for dinner and is grounded from electronics.  However the Nixie is appreciative and gives Nick and Jules the ability to see faeries.
With this new found ability the Nixie send them on a mission to look for her sisters.  They were separated due to the construction of a new housing development managed by their father.  They find three of the Nixies, dead; and inadvertently find a giant.  The giant can breath fire if it eats a salamander.  This is what apparently happened to the Nixies.  The giant takes after them, and they lead it home where the song of the Nixie seems to but it in a trance.  The problem is the Nixie has to keep singing, without sleep as they figure out what to do.
They visit the authors at a book signing, who do not believe them.  However Jared, from Spiderwick Chronicles is there, and believes them enough to help.  He finds some of his father's letter to a gentleman who lives close to them in Florida.  They visit his shack, and discover some papers which show how to stop a giant.  While the giant is still in a trance, they are able to tie it up.  However they are horrified when they realize the trap is killing the giant.  The book ends with another character, Noseeum Jack, whose papers they stole.  Noseeum ends the giants life, and thinks he has recruited helpers to overcome the giants.  The giants are waking up after a 500 year hibernation.