Goblins!: An UnderEarth Adventure (Hardcover)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: bug tunnel, goblin captain, foam bat, Great Goblin, Officer Myrmidon, General Eww-yuk (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 5–8—In a small town near the Canadian border, 12-year-old Sam has to make his own entertainment, often leading to encounters with Sumas's lone police officer. After the latest incident, he meets PJ, Officer Myrmidon's 17-year-old son. When they disobey PJ's father and steal a police car to investigate something suspicious at the border, the boys find something much more dangerous than they imagined: goblins. PJ, with the help of the guardians-a secret society dedicated to keeping the goblins from discovering the upper world and humans from discovering UnderEarth—must rescue Sam from the clutches of the great General Goblin, Eww-yuk. Set mostly underground in the creatures' lair, the book has lots of adventure, fights, and spilled blood that will attract middle-grade readers. Keep this on hand for those who want lots of action with some mild gross-out scenes.—Ginny Collier, Dekalb County Public Library, Decatur, GA
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Review

...lots of adventure, fights, and spilled blood that will attract middle-grade readers. Keep this on hand for those who want lots of action with some mild gross-out scenes. --School Library Journal

A riotously good adventure. -- Kirkus Reviews

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
  
• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Putnam Juvenile (September 18, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0399250026
• ISBN-13: 978-0399250026
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.7 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #773,785 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars I loved this book!, November 2, 2009

By	R. Hughes "seattle shiksa" (Seattle, WA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

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It's really fun and I couldn't put it down! I also loved the other book written by Royce Buckingham. It's called "Demonkeeper".

4.0 out of 5 stars Fun Book for Middle Readers, May 20, 2009

By	SciFiChick "www.SciFiChick.com" (Fishers, IN USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

When Sam and PJ sneak out to investigate an alert along the Canadian border, they think they may stumble upon smuggler's loot. Instead, they run into a monstrous creature. And there is a tunnel that leads down in the ground to a lair of goblins. A group of humans consider themselves Guardians and try to keep the humans and Goblin underground separate. But when Sam unwittingly drops a bag of fireworks, the Goblins may find a way to cause more destruction, while learning about explosives. This may give the goblins enough leverage to overtake humans for good.

Sam is captured by the goblins, and tries to outwit them. And in the process, finds a friend in the least obvious creature. Meanwhile, PJ teams up with the Guardians to take back the fireworks and rescue Sam.

This was a cute, very short read for middle readers. There are only a couple instances of non-graphic death, which may not be appropriate for kids under 10. It's not completely light-hearted. There's not a lot of content or depth, but it was written as pure entertainment for children. Young fantasy fans will certainly enjoy the action and adventure, as well as bits of humor.

5.0 out of 5 stars Goblins! -- good clean fun in the dirt, December 27, 2008

By	Laurie Thompson "writer and mother" (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Goblins! is an exciting and imaginative fantasy adventure story perfectly written for middle-grade boys and just about everyone else. While always keeping up the suspense and seriousness of the plot, Buckingham is able to inject wry humor, astute observations about the human condition, and even a few moral lessons along the way. Fast-paced but not overly scary, it's good clean fun in the dirty UnderEarth. If you liked DemonKeeper, you'll LOVE Goblins!
(Disclaimer: Yes, I know the author, but I'm a busy gal and don't write reviews unless I'm really impressed.)