Bound To Stay Bound

School Library Journal - 09/01/2009 Gr 3–5— This is a solid start to a new series. Ten-year-old Nathaniel Fludd's parents have been off on an adventure for three years and are now, in 1928, declared lost at sea at the North Pole. Thus begin Nate's own escapades as he goes to live with his Aunt Phil A. Fludd in Batting-at-the-Flies and learn the family business of mapmaking and beastology. Even though Nate has always resisted adventure, he now finds himself meeting an extraordinary talking dodo bird and talking gremlins, and he and Aunt Phil fly to Arabia to oversee the birth of a phoenix. When his aunt is taken by the Bedouin, Nate must summon his courage to protect the phoenix and save her. The story is packed with adventure and mythological creatures. Children who love fantasy, myth, exotic settings, and even a little dose of history will relate to Nate as he discovers his inner hero and carries on the Fludd family tradition. The characters are strongly developed and the period illustrations done in line, including some of Nate's own sketches, enhance the tale. A quick and enriching read that will appeal to a wide variety of children.—Jane Cronkhite, San Jose Public Library, CA - Copyright 2009 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.

Booklist - 10/01/2009 Ten-year-old Nathanial Fludd, who lives with his governess, has been waiting since his eighth birthday to be summoned by his parents, who are beastologists. Unfortunately, the only summoning comes from the family lawyer, who explains that Nathanial’s parents have been lost at sea. After being sent to live with a distant relative, Nathanial has only just settled in when he finds himself being whisked along to Arabia, where he witnesses the birth of a phoenix, an event so rare it only happens every 500 years. This is a fast-paced story that successfully combines fantasy and history into an entertaining, believable world. LaFevers provides some details about the extensive Fludd family tree and the origins of beastology, but there are still plenty of mysteries left for a sequel. Nathanial proves himself to be a resourceful and brave protagonist who readers will root for. Lively pen-and-ink illustrations complement this first entry in the Nathaniel Fludd, Beastologist series. - Copyright 2009 Booklist.

Bulletin for the Center... - 11/01/2009 Ten-year-old Nathaniel (Nate) Fludd’s explorer parents have been gone for three years, having left their son in the care of governess, when Nate finds out that their airship fatally crashed near the North Pole (in the famous 1928 Italia disaster). Nate is then whisked off to live with his hitherto unknown aunt, Phil A. Fludd, a “beastologist” who studies rare and mythological creatures, including a resident (and rather snooty) talking Dodo, Cornelius (“There are only four of us left, three of us in captivity. Only I don’t think of myself as being captive. More of an honored guest”). Leaving Nate hardly a moment to take in his new surroundings, Aunt Phil hustles him off to Arabia to witness and aid in a rare phoenix hatching. When Aunt Phil is taken by the Bedouins, it’s up to Nate (and a tiny, sassy gremlin named Greasle) to watch over the phoenix and rescue his aunt. LaFevers keeps the action moving along at a spanking pace, and Nate is both likable and credible as a schoolboy rapidly turned adventurer. Cornelius and Greasle effectively provide a bit of comic relief, while the phoenixes (parent and baby) are satisfyingly mystical (“The phoenix turned its head and met Nate’s gaze. A wondrous feeling shot through him. A feeling that he could do anything in the world, if he only set his mind to it”). Murphy’s black-and-white line drawings (about two per chapter) feature lots of cross-hatching, giving the illustrations both substance and shadow; Nate is a pleasant-looking, freckle-faced boy while Greasle looks a bit like a miniature Sendakian Wild Thing. A few lingering questions may frustrate some readers, but as this is the first of a series, most will just hope LaFevers hurries up with the next entry. JH - Copyright 2009 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois.

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