Harper and the Night Forest

I read this book with my ten year old son. We both kept thinking that we missed something and would have to go back in the story to see if we did. It was written as if we should already be familiar with the characters and places in the story. The many characters were introduced all at once and the story started by throwing the reader into a strange apartment building. This was the third book in the series. I began to think that this is one of those series where you have to start with the first book and read the series in order and that is why we kept getting confused.After we were done with the book, I felt like there was a story, a good one, but it got lost in the jumble of characters. More than half way through the book, when the characters came back together after having been separated, the story was more present and clear. I wanted the book to either have some characters edited out to make it less confusing for younger children, or more character development and flow added for older children.The illustrations were engaging. My son and I enjoyed examining the pictures, which did help us to keep the characters straight. We just marveled at the way the illustrator drew the Wild Conductor. We also loved the cover of the book, especially the colors.This book was fairy-tale like and fanciful - what children love in a story. The author brought in magic, music, and beloved pets, making it even more attractive to children. The author seemed to have so much to tell, but knew the book would be too long for the targeted age group. This would have been a much better cartoon series than a book for seven to nine year old kids.A copy of this book was provided to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Pros:1) The story has a very interesting plot, and is very unique and creative in its own way. My daughter, age nine, enjoyed this adventure and loved the musical instruments and the animals, ( a pink dove, cat, and gray wolf) that joined the brave and clever main characters.2) The illustrations were charming and plentiful, and matched the word images of the characters, settings, and action.3) The central dilemma, one of domestication at the expense of freedom, is well presented, and the heroine resolves the issue in a thoughtful and empathic manner.Cons:1) It could have had more age appropriate vocabulary - word choices seemed better suited for kids even younger than age 7. My 9 year old felt the diction was limited and presented no challenging new words for her to learn.2) One would definitely benefit in being familiar with the rest of this series before reading this installment. Many of the characters and backstory are quite specific and lack of understanding the prior events and personages featured create a sense of confusion for readers new to the series that never quite fades.The author could have stuck a summary of some sort in the book to bring new readers up to speed and made the experience a more positive and fulfilling one for newcomers. Even a "dramatis personae" list with thumbnails would have been better than nothing.All in all, a charming, engaging, and imaginative entry in an apparently well established series. Just make sure to read these in order!

I was delighted by this latest in the adventures of Harper and her musical friends. This adventure takes them to a forest that holds fairy tales - which is a place my six year olds and I all agree we really wish existed. There the friends have to help finish a fairy tale and answer big questions about right and wrong. You can get all that from the back cover. What I don’t feel like a synopsis fully captures is how fast paced this story is. We had trouble putting it down as I was reading it aloud to my kids. The language and setting and characters are still full of lyrical dreaminess I have come to associate with the Harper stories, but there are also suspense and drama and excellent page turns that compel you to keep reading. These are characters we love to root for and look forward to reaching their next adventure.*I received a free copy to review in exchange for my honest opinion.

I averaged my scores for this book to achieve four stars. During the first third, I thought this would be a 2- to 3-star review. From there until the final plot point, it was a solid 5 stars. The ending was 3 stars.I'll start by saying that this is the third in a series, and it really throws readers into the deep end with its characters, plot, and unique laws of nature. Nothing made sense for a while for that reason. Although it's meant to be read after the first two, a truly excellent middle-grade book will make each book a little more accessible to new readers than this was.During the first third, my 8-year-old son and I found the book far too fanciful to enjoy--and we love science fiction, fantasy, and creative middle-grade books. It all felt like the author had asked children for ideas and then woven them all into one scattered story, to be honest. But then the book found its core as Harper and her friends got into the night forest. The flights of fancy made sense within the world Burnell constructed. We stopped noticing the strangeness of its approach to nature's laws and my son stopped asking how to make sense of the plot twists. We fell into the story and looked forward to reading it every night. We felt like we understood who the characters were, how they operated, and how they interacted with the book's world. In the final twist, however, it again felt like it had flown off into something too far from our reality and its own.This felt different to us than how a story can start confusing and then come together. The book lacked an anchor until it suddenly had one.All of that said, we may get other Harper books because it's so hard to find books for my son's age/emotional level that are gripping enough and do justice to his level of maturity without being too much for him.

My granddaughter lived this book so very pleased with the purchase.

Great

Can't recommend this series enough - especially for little girls. An original story, wonderful characters and lots of magic and music.

6 yr old loved this series of books