Authors: Jason Segel and Kirsten Miller
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Date of publication: September 2015
Charlie Laird has a dream life.
1) He has a weirdo stepmom who runs an herbarium.
2) He lives in a purple mansion with a portal to the Netherworld.
3) Since they escaped from the Netherworld, he and his best friends have been sleeping like babies.
But Charlie can’t shake the feeling that something strange is afoot. Charlotte’s herbarium used to be one of the busiest stores in Cypress Creek. Now her loyal following is heading to Orville Falls for their herbal potions.
Weirder, though, Orville Falls is suddenly filled with . . .zombies? At least, they sure look like the walking dead. Rumor has it that no one’s sleeping in Orville Falls. And Charlie knows what that means.
Things are getting freaky again.
The Sleepwalker Tonic is the sequel
to Nightmares!. I really enjoyed that book, so I was hoping the second would be just as good. The answer is yes. This is a great series for any middle grade reader. While there is just
enough
suspense and "chills" to keep a lover of mysteries entertained, there isn't really anything too scary that would keep most kids away.
After having conquered
the Netherworld, Charlie seems to be living a quiet and dull life. No one is trying to come out of the portal and people are having
good dreams. That is until
he and his friends discover
that a new shop has opened
up in the
town next door. The shop keeper
is supplying the townspeople with a magic sleep tonic that takes away all dreams. There are two problems with this... it turns people into sleep walking zombies and it's destroying
both the Netherworld and the Dreamworld
. Charlie
and his friends must save the day once again.
As in the first
book, there are some great lessons for kids to learn while being entertained. Charlie learns the difference between being fearless and being brave. The
importance
of having hope even in dire circumstances is another lesson discovered by all of the
characters. And finally, the importance of the strength of family.
The
book does end with a sort of cliffhanger and some questions still left
to answer. I'm hoping the next book, The Lost Lullaby addresses those later in 2016. This is a series I am definitely recommending to my middle grade kids!
Authors: Jason Segal & Kirsten Miller
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Date of publication: September 2014
Sleeping has never been so scary. And now waking up is even worse!
Charlie Laird has several problems.
1. His dad married a woman he is sure moonlights as a witch.
2. He had to move into her purple mansion, which is NOT a place you want to find yourself after dark.
3.He can’t remember the last time sleeping wasn’t a nightmarish prospect. Like even a nap.
What Charlie doesn’t know is that his problems are about to get a whole lot more real. Nightmares can ruin a good night’s sleep, but when they start slipping out of your dreams and into the waking world—that’s a line that should never be crossed.
And when your worst nightmares start to come true . . . well, that’s something only Charlie can face. And he’s going to need all the help he can get, or it might just be lights-out for Charlie Laird. For good.
In the spirit of Halloween, I thought it would be fun to listen to Nightmares!, a middle grade "scary story". While it wasn't really scary for me, I think it will be just spooky enough for any middle grade reader who is looking for a little scare. The story involves Charlie whose mother died three years before. His father has since remarried and moved the family into his step-mother's house. That is just the beginning of his problems. His dreams seem to be happening during his waking time. Soon it spreads to his friends and the entire town.
There are a couple of themes running through the book that make it a great read for this age group. One of the things that Charlie and his friends learn is that in facing your fears, it isn't knowing what you are afraid of. It is knowing why you are afraid if it. Once you figure that out, you can conquer anything. It is also a coming of age story about loss and dealing with the extreme grief of losing a loved one. Charlie's inability to say goodbye to his mother and move on with his new life is the cause of the negative energy that starts all of the nightmares in the town. I have to say the scene in which he faces his own fear was very touching.
The book was co-authored by Kirsten Miller and Jason Segal. You probably know him from "How I Met Your Mother" I thought he and Ms. Miller make a great writing team and I look forward to reading more from them in the future!
