The Divide [Paperback]

Elizabeth Kay (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up | Series: The Divide

On the other side of the DIVIDE, magical creatures are real and humans are the stuff of myths! Part 1 in the incredible, unforgettable trilogy.

Felix is spending what may be his last summer in Costa Rica, that odd global crossroads where two continents meet and two oceans part. Perched on an abyss, Felix loses consciousness and falls through The Divide. When he comes to, he's in another world: one where legendary animals are real. And he soon discovers that all these wonderous creatures think HE'S the mythical beast with magical powers. Guided by his newfound friends Betony, an elfin girl, and Ironclaw, an eagle-eyed, owl-eared, lion-pawed brazzle, will Felix find his way back home? And will he find a cure for his weak heart?

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-8-Felix, a sickly 13-year-old on vacation with his parents in Costa Rica, stands astride the Continental Divide and is transported into a world in which mythological creatures are real and humans are believed to be myths. Felix first meets a griffin, called a brazzle. Soon he meets Betony, a tangle child, known to humans as an elf. They enlist some brittlehorns (unicorns) to help Felix try to find a magical cure for his heart defect. Things go badly, though, because Snakeweed, an evil japegrin (pixie), has a plan to make a great deal of money selling bogus healing potions that are sometimes fatal. After a series of adventures, Felix is indeed healed by magic and manages to be transported back home, but Snakeweed and a couple of other evil creatures join him. This leaves the way open for a sequel. Unfortunately, while Felix and Betony do brave things, they are not well developed as characters and it is hard to become emotionally involved with them. Unicorns and brownies die, and other wonderful beings are placed in grave danger, but no one seems to care as much as they should. Felix himself is cured without much cost or sacrifice on his part, and the whole concept of a world in which mythological creatures are real but have different names begins to wear thin after a while. This is a light, enjoyable read, but one cannot escape the feeling that it has not lived up to its potential.
Bruce Anne Shook, Mendenhall Middle School, Greensboro, NC
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Gr. 5-9. While visiting Costa Rica with his parents, 13-year-old Felix, who has a life-threatening heart condition, passes out. When he comes to, he finds himself in a magical world populated by griffins, unicorns, dragons, pixies, and elves. Humans, their science, and their culture are considered mythical, totally nonexistent. When he meets Betony, an elf about his age, Felix proves that he's human by showing her his flashlight, ballpoint pen, and compass. With the help of some unicorns, Felix and Betony journey toward the city where Betony's brother and sister are, but the travelers soon find themselves sought by evil pixie Snakeweed and his vicious shadow-beasts. Kay's grand adventure, which includes a search for a cure for Felix's illness and the means to send him home, is packed with humor as the protagonists work to turn the tables on Snakeweed and his minions. The conclusion points to a sequel. Sally Estes
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: The Chicken House; First edition (June 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0439543436
• ISBN-13: 978-0439543439
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (56 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #230,363 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #65 in Books > Children's Books > Social Situations > Illness

More About the Author

I'm half Polish and half English, and I live in Surrey, England. I started out writing plays for radio, but I've since had a go at most things. I've won prizes for short stories and poetry, and my most recent publication is Missing Link, a novel for adults published by Eprint. I'm best known for my children's books, and the Divide Trilogy, published by Scholastic, has been the most successful. I've also written for Barrington Stoke, a British publisher who specialise in books for struggling readers. I think I'd list travelling to obscure destinations and trying not to get eaten by the local wildlife as my main hobbies.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This one is destined to become a classic!, July 9, 2003

By 

Robert L. Sanders (Leatherhead, United Kingdom) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Divide (Hardcover)

This book has it all:

It has a well-paced and intelligent story laced with wry humour that still manages to unobtrusively educate and tackle such important themes as globalisation without ever become preachy. Ms Kay expertly juggles, weaves, and final neatly knits together at least half a dozen different plot threads.

There is a rich cast of quirky and varied characters who avoid the stereotypes so often found in the average children's book. Every character, (even those with only bit parts), in this book feels real. The heroes and heroines have flaws and foibles and the villains all have at least one likeable or redeeming feature. (My personal favourite is Ironclaw; a loveable, fearsome and occasionally pompous brazzle - The Divide's equivalent of a griffin - who specialises in pure mathematics. Yes - The Divide manages to make even abstract maths both interesting and fun!)

Best of all though, is the setting. A wonderfully well thought out magical other world that engages the imagination, wraps you up in a sense of wonder and leaves you longing for more.

In the book's introduction, the publisher says he is trying to persuade Ms Kay to write a sequel. I sincerely hope he succeeds!

I have four goddaughters all of whom are the right age for this book. I am buying a copy for each of them.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Courtesy of Teens Read Too, June 18, 2007

By 

TeensReadToo "Eat. Drink. Read. Be Merrier." (All Over the US & Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Divide (Paperback)

Felix is a boy whose parents are a little overprotective of him. And who can blame them? Their son has a potentially fatal heart condition. One wrong move could be Felix's last. Considering the circumstances, his parents are doubly horrified when Felix disappears during a family vacation to Costa Rica.

While his parents fear that Felix might be kidnapped or lost in the jungle, the truth is far stranger. Their son is in another world - one he entered accidentally while crossing the continental divide. In this other world, magic is real and Felix is treated like a legend that sprang from a storybook. After all, the many odd creatures that inhabit this magical world have never seen a human before and find it hard to believe that one is walking among them. Felix spends the majority of THE DIVIDE exploring the magical world, making friends with its bizarre inhabitants, and trying to find a spell that will send him home.

Some of my favorite characters in the book are the brazzles, which are huge, bird-like creatures, much like griffins. The males of the species are obsessed with math. The females are not. This does not make for happy brazzle marriages. Felix also becomes close friends with what is known as a tangle child. Her name is Betony and she is an elf. After getting over the fact that they have really met a legendary human, Felix's new friends are willing to use their understanding of magic to try and help him find his way home.

Unfortunately, not everyone in the magical world is so generous and kind. Felix also runs afoul of some unpleasant creatures, including japegrins, who want to take advantage of his helplessness.

THE DIVIDE is an imaginative book that I highly recommend to lovers of young adult fantasy. It has likeable characters, as well as villains who are easy to despise. It presents a magical world that the reader can see through Felix's eyes. Also, as an added bonus, it has a wonderful cover. Maybe that should not carry much weight, but for some reason, I was delighted by the cover that split down the middle. Overall, I believe that if readers jump to a magical world along with Felix, they will agree that it was well worth the trip.

Reviewed by: K. Osborn Sullivan

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Divide, December 2, 2003

By 

Catherine (Washington, DC USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Divide (Hardcover)

This was an excellent book!! It drifts you into a new world of excitement and fantasy. After I started reading it, it was hard to put down. I would hid it under my desk in class and read the pages hungrily every time I rode the subway. Not only are there mystery, suspense and adventure there is also magic, and tons of it. A wonderful land is tightly packed in the flaps of the book, one I was very sorry to leave when the book ended. The only disappointing thing about this book is that there is no sequel. But fear not! It is a very new book and hopefully there will be a sequel in the next couple of years, where I can flow back into my mystical universe.