Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Bran Hambric: The Fairfield Curse

Nation, Kaleb.
Bran Hambric: The Fairfield Curse.
9/9/2009.
Jabberwocky, Sourcebooks.


Summary from Sourcebooks:

On the third night of the third month in 2003, Kaleb Nation, age 14, suddenly imagined a boy and a banker on a roof, waiting for a burglar to come. From that original idea was born the story of Bran Hambric, which would take most of Kaleb's teenage years to write.

With no memory of his past, six-year old Bran Hambric magically appeared inside a secure bank vault. For years, he has lived with the man who found him, wondering why he was left behind -- until one night, eight years later, he is suddenly confronted by a maddened creature, intent on kidnapping the young teenager and tantalizing him with hints about his true past.

Within hours, Bran finds himself at the center of a plot set in motion years before his birth: a plot his mother created, along with a deadly curse - a curse that her former masters need Bran to complete...

Haunted by the spirit of his mother in a city where magic is illegal, Bran must undo the crimes of his past... before it's too late.

Kaleb Nation is not only a middle-grade wunderkind, but has excelled at putting himself in the national spotlight. At the age of 13, he hosted his first radio show in Texas, later launching his own program in 2006 called The Top Five. Kaleb's show grew to be broadcast on AM, FM, Internet and satellite radio stations across the globe before he left to focus on writing.

In 2008, Kaleb launched a blog at TwilightGuy.com, giving chapter-by-chapter insight, from a guy's perspective, on reading the Twilight Saga, a series of popular novels. The website when on to receive over three million hits in its first nine months online, and was featured in BusinessWeek and Entertainment Weekly magazines. Kaleb also began posting regular videos on his Youtube channel, with a combined total of over 3 million plays.


My Thoughts:

First and foremost, I need to send out Kudos to Kaleb Nation on such phenomenal accomplishments in his young life thus far!

Bran Hambric: The Fairfield Curse is written and geared toward middle-grade reading interests... and I definitely can see this book being a huge hit with children (particularly boys, in my eyes) in grades 4-7. Perhaps it will even draw in some more advanced 3rd graders! This book is also perfect to share with children who are home-schooled, as the interview in the front of the book shares that Kaleb was home-schooled and that this book started as a creative-writing assignment in his home-school program (Mom's keep this in mind when planning your creative-writing curriculums)!!!

Not only is Kaleb a wonderful writing, he also knows how to pick his cover art! If the suspenseful cover doesn't draw in readers, share with them the first chapter aloud - that will certainly have them hooked! The book has exactly what is needed to get and keep readers interested for the duration! It's definitely a book to share with children to get them on the right foot reading-wise for this new school year!

I'm just one stop along the blog tour, so check out today's other posters promoting this wonderful new novel!
You can also check out Kaleb Nation on YouTube!
If you're interested in finding out more information about any of the books reviewed or if you'd like to purchase the books, click the cover image for a link to Amazon.com.

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