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The Seven Keys Of Balabad. Paul Haven (2009)

by Paul Haven(Favorite Author)

3.38 of 5 Votes: 5

ISBN

1408303140 (ISBN13: 9781408303146)

languge

English

genre

Fantasy

publisher

Orchard (NY)

review 1: I loved the idea of the story, having lived in the Middle East...but I had a hard time getting into it and staying with it. I usually breeze through books, being inclined to finish anything I start. This book I kept putting down. What I liked: The fictional setting in Balabad was wonderful. Clearly the author drew from his experiences in Afghanistan and Pakistan. There is something compelling about a 12 year old boy, displaced from his comfort zone of New York and dropped into a strange and mysterious place. It draws out the sense of adventure and alienation, at the same time. What I felt fell short: While Oliver is a likeable character, the stakes were never high enough for me to stay with the story. In general, the characters were flat, with the exception of Mr.... more Hajji.I would recommend this book to middle grade readers who have an interest in foreign cultures, but not reluctant readers.
review 2: This was a nice story, fairly well-told, but not that interesting. Suitable for kids from about age 7 or 8, though my kids wouldn't get far because they would be bored, i think. The author mixes an ancient mystery with a couple of boys living in the present-day fictional country of Balabad, which is based on the author's time in Afghanistan and Pakistan. The story takes a long time to wind up; there are no great heroes or villains to increase the story tension; the kids' actions are fairly predictable. Since the author is an experienced journalist who has written another YA novel, and this was published by Random House, I had high expectations. But I was disappointed. less

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