Customer Reviews

13 1/2 Lives of Captain Bluebear

5 star:		(43)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I found this book on my bookshelf and read it while on holiday because it looked quite thick. It is tale of pure fantasy, the imagination in the writing and storyline makes this one of the best books ever. The writing is light-hearted and continuously upbeat, Captain Bluebear displays an amazing capacity for optimism which makes you love every second of his lives. The story twists bizare tales which defy prediction and keep you wondering what will happen next. It is witty and comical with many illustrations however the thing I love about this book is that it is a tall tale well told, a classic of creativity and story telling.

If Norman Juster had written "The Hobbit," it might have turned out something like "The 13 1/2 Lives of Captain Bluebear."

It's also the best description of Walter Moers' debut novel, which is probably the best children's book ever written for adults. Set on the mythical continent of Zamonia, Moers sketches out hundreds of strange creatures and surreal adventures, all written in wryly colourful prose.

Bluebear was found floating in a walnut shell, raised by peg-legged hook-handed Minipirates, taught by the talking waves, and kept as entertainment by gruesome hobgoblins. But when he ends up on a giant carnivorous island disguised as a gourmet's paradise, Bluebear is rescued by Deus X. Machina, a Reptilian Rescuer who later brings him to the Nocturnal Academy, run by the seven-brained Professor Abdullah Nightingale.

But when he reaches the end of his education, Nightingale sends Bluebear onto a strange series of adventures -- he falls into a Dimensional Hiatus, is almost eaten by the Spiderwitch, travels through a Bollogg brain, gets swept up in an aging tornado, chases mirages with the Muggs, and finally becomes a Congladiator (lying/storytelling competitor) in Atlantis. But after a match gone bad, Bluebear must flee Atlantis -- and is abducted by the Moloch, a monstrous ship run by the most insidious substance in Zamonia...

Walter Moers should get some kind of award for cramming as many fantastical, bizarre creatures into one book -- carpet dimensions, tiny cyclops, hairy imps, metallic rock-eaters, killer sugar-skeletons, antlered dogs, and headless giants all turn up, and that's only the start. It's a good thing Bluebear gets an encyclopedia in his brain (from Nightingale), or else we would never keep them all straight.

And Moers brings this to life with writing that is straight-faced, detailed, colourful, but still slightly arch ("It should be explained that in the 2364th Dimension music is played on instruments made of milk"), and full of bustling cities and sandy deserts. There's even a city that flies to another planet. But the whimsical plot pulls itself together in his last few-and-a-half lives, where hints and subplots from his previous lives come together -- and we finally find out Bluebear's destiny.

Bluebear himself is a likable guy, as well as very adaptable -- and somehow no matter what bizarre things he does, he's always just as likable. The supporting characters are wildly numerous, but a few stand out -- Fredda, the Alpine Imp who writes bad poetry, a gelatinous prince 2364th Dimension, the grumpy Mac, and the gloriously eccentric Professor Nightingale.

Except for its length, you'd think "The 13 1/2 Lives of Captain Bluebear" was a kids' book, with its whimsical drawings and colorfully imaginative little world. But it's full of humor, solid writing and bizarre twists -- definitely a good read.

I just finished _the 13 1/2 lives of Captain Bluebear_ and while it was very funny and sometimes thought provoking, I thought that this book would be the most fun to read out loud to an intelligent and quirky child of nine or ten. [In fact, I'm giving it as a gift as such.] Not that adults wouldn't enjoy it [I did immensely].

_13 1/2 lives_ begins when a ship of minipirates discover a baby bluebear floating in a walnut shell headed for The Malmstrom - a gigantic whirlpool whose nature scientists are still debating. The minipirates teach bluebear about sailing and launching attacks on ships, and about tying knots, but he soon grows to big for their boat and so they leave him on Hobgoblin island. [The end of his first life.]

From Hobgoblin Island [his second life] he escapes on a raft and floats off to sea [ his third life] and so the narrative travels on for 13 1/2 more lives, with no particular destination, and no particular plot, except maybe that Bluebear must survive each life to make it to the next. And, as bluebear himself says, "Some lives are short, others long, and many are middling." The book gets dull at times when the author goes too much into detail about any one life (Mr. Moers is at no loss for imagination), but the rest of the time, I couldn't wait to see what Mr. Moers would come up with next. He is a great satirist, and capably and subtly satirizes himself at many points in the narrative. [Such as the chapter in which Bluebear becomes the King of Lies.]

Highly recommended, and, as I said, would be really fun to read with a kid.

I kind of resent the fact people keep calling it that. It's basically a book in the style of "The Hitchhiker's Guide..." so I guess if that's a children's book....

It's basically a journey story. It's wonderfully entertaining and very fast. It's basically a book for adults with a childlike imagination. It's fun and engaging. When's the last time you picked up a adult lit book with illustrations? It's just fun.

I highly recommend it.

Captain Bluebaer is a notorious lyer. No of his stories is true. But they are very convincing indeed. I read the book four times, and it got even funnier. Once I started reading, I couldn't stop it.

I stumbled on "The 13 1/2 Lives of Captain Bluebear" at Borders, purely by chance. The cover caught me eye, so I began reading it, and I was hooked. One of the hallmarks of a great book is the ability of the first paragraph to hook the reader. The first paragraph of this book does that: "People usually start life by being born. Not me, though. That's to say, I don't know how I came into the world. Purely theoretically, I could have emerged from the foam on the crest of a wave or developed inside a seashell, like a pearl. Then again, I might have fallen from the sky like a shooting star."

More a series of adventures than a novel, "Bluebear" is about a blue bear (bet you didn't see that one coming) who travels through a fictional land called Zamonia. It's written from Bluebear's perspective, and follows him from his earliest memory- floating in a half-walnut shell on the sea- to his harrowing voyage on board the SS Moloch. The chapters of the book narrate Bluebear's lives. Here they are:

1.) My Life as a Minipirate
2.) My Life with the Hobogoblins
3.) My Life on the Run
4.) My life on Gourmet Island
5.) My Life as a Navigator
6.) My Life in the Gloomberg Mountains
7.) My Life in the Great Forest
8.) My Life in the Dimensional Hiatus
9.) My Life in the Demerara Desert
10.) My Life in Tornado City
11.) My Life in the Bollogg's Head
12.) My Life in Atlantis
13.) My Life aboard the SS Moloch
13 1/2)....Well that would be giving too much away. Read the book.


Although there are obvious influences (Phantom Tollbooth, Jonathan Swift, Douglas Adams), "Bluebear" is a highly original fantasy. Bluebear's world exudes a sense of childlike wonder, where anything is possible. For example, Bluebear is rescued from the sea by minipirates- tiny little humanoid creatures who are actually born with pegs for legs and hooks for arms. One thing that is both immensely helpful and original is the interspersed entries from the "Encyclopedia of Marvels, Life Forms and Other Phenomena of Zamonia and its Environs'" by Professor Nightingale. The entries explain such curiosities as hobogoblins, cogitating quicksand, minipirates, and more. The Encyclopedia is actually put into Bluebear's head (you'll just have to read the book to find out how this happened). In addition, the author, Walter Moers, illustrated the book himself. The illustrations are as charming as they are original.

In conclusion, "The 13 1/2 Lives of Captain Bluebear" is a wonderful, original book that anyone can enjoy (although it's not a children's book, as many people have pointed out). It will pull you in, and make you want to keep reading. 5 out of 5.

I have just finished the 13 1/2 lives of Captain Bluebear. What a delight. I thoroughly enjoyed Moers vocabulary and imagination. How fabulous to find an amusing and captivating book that is not for the feeble brained. We are in the middle of construction on our home and this was the perfect diversion for those stressful times. Highly recommended.

When you read his books, you will discover new worlds. He can be funny, romantic, scary, fantastic, angry... You just have to try Moers, I think, you will love him. And Captain Blue Bear is only the beginning...
P.S.: I would have given more stars, if possible.

Moers invents more crazy creatures and wacky ideas per page than you would think is possible in one book. The book is a fairy tale in a very strange universe (Zamonia), but it contains lots of references to well-known stories, that are told with a unique twist. The book should appeal to both adults and children, and is probably a great book to read to your kids. Additionally the book is filled with entertaining drawings of its characters.
This is one of the books I just like to reread again and again, it never gets boring.

Growing up in Germany, you just can't get around Captain Bluebear. He's your hero and makes you laugh when you are a child (every Sunday, 12.25, WDR -I still remember). When you are an adult, he makes you laugh even harder, because then you REALLY understand the stories, and the phantastic sarcasm of the author. I'm a very scholarly person, but I really loved this book because of its educated humor. Without a certain level of common knowledge, you won't find the book as entertaining as it is. Join Captain Bluebear on his imaginative journeys, and treat the child in you to a very special adventure.