The Moon Robber (Magic Door Series) [Paperback]

Stephen Krensky (Author), Dean Morrissey (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 7 and up | Series: Magic Door Series

One day, an earthquake rattles the town of Old Bridgeport. In The Magic Door Toy Shop, an old rusted door swings open. Surprised to see an unfamiliar room on the other side, Sarah, Michael, and Joey step through. As the door in the toy shop slams shut, the three children find themselves in Great Kettles, a mysterious land in another dimension.

Great Kettles is a magical place, filled with storybook characters such as the cow that jumped over the moon, the Sandman, and even Father Time himself. Yet all is not peaceful in this amazing world. Mogg the giant is stomping around, looking for something -- something important. But the trouble really begins when Mogg finds what he's looking for and does something that could destroy both Great Kettles and Old Bridgeport. It is up to the children, with the help of some new and some old friends, to stop the giant and find a way back home.

The Moon Robber is the first book in The Magic Door Series.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

After an earthquake unexpectedly rumbles through Old Bridgeport one day, pals Joey, Michael, and Sarah are amazed to see a rusted old door in the local toy shop swing open. Stepping through, they find themselves not only in another room (a mirror image of the shop they just left), but in another dimension. Here they encounter a cow practicing her moon jumps, a grumpy man in the moon, a cloud keeper (and peddler), and a giant who is afraid of the dark. If the night sky is ever to have light again, the children must stop the giant from hoarding--or even destroying--the moon!

The many fans of Dean Morrissey's Ship of Dreams, The Great Kettles: A Tale of Time, and other picture-book fantasies will be delighted to see this new title from the author/artist. It's the first book in the new Magic Door series, for which Morrissey teams up with well-known children's author Stephen Krensky. Although the story does not glow with originality or flow seamlessly to its conclusion, readers will enjoy the idea of the moon being a spaceship that needs constant maintenance, and chuckle over such amusing details as a flying quilted tugboat. The illustrations are the obvious draw here. Morrissey's vivid oil paintings (each shamelessly signed) seem to be the hook on which the entire book hangs. (Ages 7 to 11) --Emilie Coulter --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

The settings and some characters from Morrissey's previous fantasy tales resurface in this middling chapter book, first in the Magic Door series. Here, six-year-old Joey returns to the group of islands "across the Sea of Time" that he visited in The Great Kettles. He and 10-year-old friends Sarah and Michael enter the Great Kettles through a mysterious door in the shop of toy maker Sam (who came to Father Christmas's aid in The Christmas Ship), finding themselves in the village of Moonhaven. Perched on a platform in the main square is a large, spherical machine that the children learn is the moon. After they enter it in hopes of meeting Captain Luna, "the Man in the Moon," Sarah pulls a lever and the moon rises into the sky. Their flight is short-lived, since Mogg, a seemingly ferocious giant who "fancies himself a pirate," plucks the orb out of the sky and holds it hostage until Sam devises a way to appease him (it turns out Mogg is afraid of the dark). Morrissey and Krensky (How Santa Got His Job) sprinkle their light narrative with some clever contrivances and amusing dialogue, yet wordiness intermittently stalls the pace. However, Morrissey's crisp paintings and spot art are as captivating as ever. Depicting the imaginative world of the story with uncanny clarity, the graphics will keep readers aloft throughout this flight of fancy. Ages 7-10.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 7 and up
  
• Paperback: 64 pages
• Publisher: HarperTrophy (November 27, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0064421139
• ISBN-13: 978-0064421133
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.9 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,285,110 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Delightful, May 28, 2001

By 

E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Moon Robber (Magic Door) (Hardcover)

The first book of the Magic Door series is a fun ride, a story about three children getting sucked into another world.

Ten year olds Michael and Sarah (with six year old Joey) are in the town of Bridgeport when an earthquake strikes - and opens a discreet-looking old door that leads to a bizarre-looking room. In an instant, they are transported to the alternate world of Great Kettles (yes, that is the real name).

It is, not surprisingly, a place filled with magic and mystery. The inhabitants include storybook characters like the Sandman, Father Time, and others like them that are seen only in storybooks and fairy tales. But, there is something extremely bad brewing: a giant is looking for something important and powerful, which is capable of destroying Great Kettles - and the town in our world also!

This story has similarities to others (like Alan Garner's "Elidor") but is presented in a fresh and enjoyable manner. Readers who initially think "oh ack, it has little-kid storybook characters in it!" might like the portrayal of them - not to mention the fact that the illustrations are just beautiful.

It's a light, pleasant fantasy with above-par illustrations and a nice storyline that will keep the reader interested. It's not very long, though, and I wonder if it is targeting an audience slightly below the 9-12 crowd.

Looking forward to Book 2.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Magical fun, February 23, 2002

By 

Alyssa A. Lappen (Earth) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Moon Robber (Magic Door) (Hardcover)

Sarah and Michael, both 10, were standing at the window of the Magic Door Toyshop with Joey, 6, when owner Sam set a toy on his workbench and implied that it was magic. The shop had a door with an arched top, and a great latch and bolt. They had never seen it open. Suddenly, as Sam spoke, the gumball machine on the bench started to shake and a strange rumble passed through the shop. Nothing like this had ever happened before in Old Bridgeport. Then, right before them, the magic door swung open.

The door led to a dusty shop, although there was no other shop next door and no door on the Sam's outside wall. There was a clock tower. They found themselves in Kettles, and Videlia Potts introduced herself as the shop owner. With eyes bright as stars, she explained that the magic door connected Kettles to the Outland. Just then, an earthquake seemed to shake the shop. It was Mogg, the local giant.

The children met the cow who jumped over the moon, and saw the actual moon, not to mention the man in it. In the next six chapters, the children had several adventures before returning to Sam's shop, where the clock was only 20 minutes later than when they had left.

This is a great book, albeit short (64 pages) and the illustrations are wonderful. It is most suitable for children in first or second grade. Alyssa A. Lappen

5.0 out of 5 stars Great imagination., October 22, 2009

By 

J. Clark "inpcfl" (in the south) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Moon Robber (Magic Door) (Hardcover)

We just love the illustrations in Dean Morrissey's works. The story is entertaining and lit up even more by his great pictures. I read this to my boys and we all enjoyed it :)