Customer Reviews

The Ink Drinker

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

We read this book in our speech class and thought it wasgreat. The ink drinker was scary and we didn't want to put the bookdown. It is the perfect story to read for Halloween. We would highly recommend this book to 4th and 5th graders. We can't wait for the sequel! We hope to see some ink drinkers on Halloween night.

The Ink Drinker is about a vampire who has suffered from liver problems for twenty years, so he can't drink blood. Instead he drinks ink, not from a bottle, but letters from books. The Ink Drinker is interesting, weird, drinks books, floats, and is smart. My favorite part was when the ink drinker came in the bookstore and started drinking the letters from books I recommend this book because it is surprising. It is surprising because the ink drinker comes in the bookstore and starts drinking books and because of the part at the end where the boys too starts drinking books.

Every teacher needs to own this book! Packs a powerful message about the thrill of reading. Great read aloud.

A wonderful story that, in an inky sort of way, prompts children to savor the written word! My two daughters (6 and 4) loved it, happily gobbling up the illustrations and enjoying the story as I read it aloud. I love to find books that are off the beaten-path to give as gifts . This is one of those that I plan to pass along...especially to those persons that I know do not enjoy the written word!

This book is very good for children in elementary school. The illustrations will catch your eye the first time you look at them. I liked Odilon. He is a detective. He finds out why the Ink Drinker wants his books. Draculink is not that scary when you first see him, but when you read about him, it will make you shiver. If you want to find out more about this book, you will have to buy it. It is worth every penny.

This was highly suggested by the reading specialist in my school. As a librarian, I am interested in books that kids are enjoying. This was a perfect read-aloud for my upper elementary kids at Halloween. It does mention Dracula (renamed Draculink) but shows how you can "sink your teeth" into really good books. The kids love the humor, and understand the underlying meaning of the book. Highly recommended!!!

The class thought this was a VERY WEIRD and STRANGE book. They especially liked the idea of an ink drinking vampire. Brandon thought it was great when Odilon's dad caught him with a straw in his mouth.Karrica liked it when he told his dad it was just chocklate.Cameron felt it was a great adventure story.Devon thought it was a really weird story.Lance thought it was unusual.Zach thought it was cool because he lived in a cemetary.Kayla though it was unusual that that the vampire was allergic to blood. The class really enjoyed the book and recommends it, especially for Halloween. Just be careful the next time you go to the Library!

This quirky but very suspenseful tale was originally published by Les Editions of Nathan, France in 1996. This U.S. edition was published two years later in 1998. This 35-paged, 6-chaptered, Martin Matje-illustrated tale is about a boy who is bored stiff one summer stuck in his dad's bookstore during summer break from school.

In chapter one "The Hiding Place", the boy is not permitted to tidy up or touch anything because paper doesn't last long in his hands. Though the young lad is adversed to reading books ("I hate them",p 2), he does like to write. And so through a tiny portal fashioned in a wall of books, he spies on customers on the off-chance he may spy a shoplifter and writes entries of his observations in his journal.

In chapter two "A Strange Customer", the boy spies a strange-looking patron shuffling through the books on the shelves. Instead of reading them, the strange man inserts a straw into a book and begins sucking on it. The boy gasps and the man hears the boy, so he hastens off. The boy goes to the section of books where the strange man was browsing and discovers that the man was sucking up the printed words off every page through his straw!

In chapter three "The Chase", the boy darts out of his dad's bookstore and runs down the city sidewalk hoping to spy the word thief. Finally, he catches sight of him and "his unmistakable walk: he was moving quickly, but his legs were motionless" (p13).

Chapter four is subtitled "In the Cemetery". The boy's pursuit of the word thief leads to a cemetery and finally a mausoleum with a flight of stairs that go down to a basement.

Chapter five is subtitled "Vam...Vampire!". The boy discovers the word thief in his underground library. "What are you doing here, kid?", challenges the word thief. The boy tells some inadequate lies so the word thief cuts to the quick - "You followed me from the bookstore, kid! Why?". The boy confesses what he saw and that his curiosity put him in pursuit of the word thief. That's when the word thief explains that he is a vampire who can no longer drink blood but must drink ink instead, especially dried and aged ink - something the lad should be grateful for. However, the wordpire tells the boy whether he believes him or not is moot because the boy will "too will develop a taste for ink" (p25).

Chapter six "Yum! Delicious..." describes the boy waking up in his dad's bookstore with a taste for words. His dad believes him when he says the messy ink from his first meal is really chocolate.

In conclusion, was the wordpire real or a figment of the boy's imagination? Is the boy and his vampire similar to Calvin and Hobbes where all is the result of a young boy's imagination? Or had he been bitten by the wordpire while in the mausoleum? A suspenseful tale with just enough doubt to keep a ten year old from having nightmares - I hope.

Even though I have gone past "mommy" into "gram" I like to review children's books so that I can read to the little ones - and be informed as to what is good and what is to be steered away from. This book is excellent - I enjoyed reading it for myself and loved watching the little faces as I read it to children. It also stirs the imagination and causes lots of conversation AFTER reading the book. It is a wonderful gift for any child. Please buy!!!

Those who love books often describe their reactions to books in physical terms. This is the story of a being that must literally drink up words to sustain life. Poor Odilon cannot stand books. the fact his father owns a bookstore, loves books and can't understand why Odilon hates to read makes it worse. One day, while being pressed (forced) into helping his father, Odilon spies a creature that is slipping through the book stacks. What follows is a twist on the classic horror story. Without giving away the end too much, my only disappointment is the residence of the creature...too cliche. I wish he had resided in the old and rare books vault in a creepy basement somewhere. Nevertheless, a delightful book.