Chris Grabenstein, author of the New York Times bestselling Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library and coauthor of the I Funny series with James Patterson, celebrates the power of imagination with this action-packed adventure that shows that sometimes the real story starts after you close the book!
What if your favorite characters came to life? Billy’s spending the summer in a lakeside cabin that belongs to the mysterious Dr. Libris. But something strange is going on. Besides the security cameras everywhere, there’s Dr. Libris’s private bookcase. Whenever Billy opens the books inside, he can hear sounds coming from the island in the middle of the lake. The clash of swords. The twang of arrows. Sometimes he can even feel the ground shaking. It’s almost as if the stories he’s reading are coming to life! But that’s impossible . . . isn’t it?
“A wonderful tale. . . . This book is like no other I’ve read. It’s a complete original.” —James Patterson
"Kids will enjoy the cartoonish mayhem, especially given Grabenstein's breezy narrative voice and jaunty wit....as in 'Lemoncello', there is a winning generosity and sweetness to the story's telling."--The New York Times
"Chris Grabenstein gleefully plunders great works of literature for his cast of secondary characters . . . a madcap mash-up that 8-to-12 year olds will want to devour in big gulps."—The Wall Street Journal
"Effortlessly readable and a whole lot of fun." — Booklist Reviews
Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful.
The Island of Dr. Libris (YA)
By Melissa A. Palmer
Book #6 Read in 2015The Island of Dr. Libris by Chris Grabenstein (YA)I enjoyed this author's book Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library and was excited for the chance to review this one...and it did not disappoint. In this book, Billy is spending the summer in a cabin with his mother, who is working on her dissertation. She encourages Billy, who is looking for the cabin's television, to check out expansive library/study of Dr. Libris. Billy does so and the books come to life...literally...on an island nearby. Billy meets Robin Hood, Hercules and The Three Musketeers, among others. His hope is to find treasure in order to erase the financial troubles that he thinks are getting in the way of the happy marriage of his parents.This was a good, quick read. I loved the literary references throughout it. Billy is an interesting character. I enjoyed it a lot. I received a copy of this book from the Amazon Vine program in exchange for a honest review.http://melissasbookpicks.blogspot.com
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful.Grabenstein is so clever
By Jaddo Mueller
Having read Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library not too long ago, I was very excited to try Grabenstein’s latest, The Island of Dr. Libris. I am so impressed by the depth of the plot goes into the story. The author has thought of all sorts of delightful details and tied them together perfectly.In The Island of Dr. Libris, Billy is staying at a cabin owned by the Doctor who has an extensive collection literature. As Billy checks out the stories, the action of each tale comes to life. Billy gets to see some amazing classic stories in action, but none more interesting than the one that helps him to get started on a treasure hunt.I don’t know what to compare this book to other than the author’s Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s library. They are different from other young adult novels, but completely enjoyable. Fun characters, classic literature, puzzles, and completely captivating. If you liked Grabenstein’s previous novel as my kids and I did, I think you’re sure to like this one too.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful.A fun, fast read with literary characters!
By Deborah V
I originally got this to read with my granddaughters, but after reading the first few chapters I felt it was "too adult" for their ages (9ish). In the first chapter we learn Billy's parents are separated and they argue over money constantly since Billy's dad likes to spend it foolishly. I could see them asking all sorts of questions about separations, divorce, grown ups and their money etc. Maybe next year?So I read it for me! It was a cute story where favorite characters come to life from books. It's quirky, has some laugh out loud moments and of course has Billy as the hero in his efforts to become a family again with his mom and dad. I love to read and have read a lot of the books where the character came to life--and Pollyanna being one of my faves. One of the nice things the author does is list, at the end of the book, all of the books he pulled characters from so that you can go back and read or reread any that catch your fancy.
