More Minds [Hardcover]

Carol Matas (Author), Perry Nodelman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1996

Princess Lenora sets out to conquer a giant causing problems in the northern countries and soon realizes that her real battle is actually going to be trying to keep the Balance, the source that keeps the alternative worlds in their place, from falling apart.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 6-8?The rebellious Princess Lenora and her cautious, clairvoyant fiance, Coren, return. Once again, the princess is bored with the predictable pace of life in Gepeth and seeks adventure, this time searching for a giant who is terrorizing the land. She escapes her parents' scrutiny by creating an idealized version of herself and inadvertently creates a second Coren as well (this one is a swashbuckling adventurer). These two "shadow" characters add both humor and meaning to the tale, exemplifying the ways in which stereotypes limit personal growth. As the four young people seek to discover the source of the problems plaguing Gepeth, they are thrust into many odd situations. Although their views on freewill, personal power, and the importance of balancing diverse needs and abilities are intriguing, Matas and Nodelman occasionally allow these themes to intrude upon the story. Another (minor) weakness is the sheer number of characters and events crammed into the tale. While all are potentially interesting, none are as fully developed as those in the previous book, and the conclusion, while ironically funny, also suffers in comparison to the thought-provoking shocker of the first novel. Despite these quibbles, however, this second collaboration will be welcomed by those who enjoy challenging fiction, told with humor and energy.?Lisa Dennis, The Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing; 1st edition (October 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0689803885
• ISBN-13: 978-0689803888
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,238,187 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Balance, July 10, 2001

A Kid's Review

This review is from: More Minds (Point Fantasy) (Paperback)

More Minds written by Carol Matas and Perry Modelman is a compelling book about how important it is to have balance in our lives. In the kingdom of Gepeth, and all around the world, there is a force called the balance. The king and his advisors don’t know where it came about, but they do know how to enforce it. King Rayden of Gepeth, and Agneth, keeper of the balance, notice that something is wrong with the balance when their messenger comes to them and tells them about a huge Giant out in the outskirts of Gepeth. King Raydon’s daughter, Princess Lenora, is scheming a plan to find the giant and destroy it, but King Raydon, forbids her to do so. Princess Lenora’s fiancé, Prince Coren, knows that Lenora will always try to have her way, and she will go and try to find the giant, but he doesn’t know when and how she is going to do it.

This book is hilarious. Princess Lenora has her own mind and trys to get her own way, at all times, while her fiancé, Prince Coren, trys to stop her the best way if possible. It has a little crazy romance between Princess Lenora and Prince Coren, who obviously are opposites of each other, but they're drawn together by some unknown reason. For example, when Lenora wants to go and destroy the giant, and have an adventure, Coren doesn't want to go with her, because he would rather stay where he is and not go anywhere; he wants to be safe. Lenora yells at him, then kisses him, then slams her bedroom door on his face, leaving him bewildered. Also Prince Coren comes from a kingdom where everybody can read minds, and so can he. But he can only talk inside of his head with people with the reading mind ability. While he's talking to his father inside of his head, he can see him. And one time when he is talking to his father in his head, his father's head turns into a goat's head, because someone else's ideas who are from the same kingdom as Coren, had gotten mixed up with his father. Another reason why this book is such a good book is because of the suspense. For example, the kingdom Gepeth doesn't know where the giant came from, or why it's there. Also, when Princess Lenora is traveling on the gravel road, it turns into a black road with a yellow line going down the middle, and then, it then disappears. The weather in Gepeth also becomes weird, like when white fluffy stuff is falling from the sky. As you can see, this book as lots of adventures, romance, and anything you can think of, so I suggest this book to any reader who enjoys this type of fantasy book.

The book is fantasies book, and if you're into novels, then you wouldn't really enjoy. Why? Well, considering the fact that there are a lot of unrealistic things such as, people reading minds, or wishing things up and they are automatically right in front of your eyes. Even though it might be unrealistic, there are morals that you can still practice in real life. Such as that life needs balance and that if everything is the same then life would be sad and boring.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars They're Back!, September 13, 2001

By 

Emma Alida (Portland, ME) - See all my reviews

This review is from: More Minds (Hardcover)

Princess Lenora and Prince Coren are back and making even more trouble! When Lenora hears about a giant in the North, she wants to be the one to defeat it. But obviosly no one in the castle is going to let her go, so she creates a double of herself-a double that everyone would like her to be like-and sets off to slay the giant. Prince Coren, worried for her safty, follows her. Suddenly, there are two of him too. The giant, it turns out isn't much of a problem compared to the real one. The balance is crumbling, and only Lenora and Coren can save the day. This book really teaches you a lesson about people. Everybody's unique in their own way, and the people who truly love you will always love you for who you are.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars GREAT!, December 17, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: More Minds (Point Fantasy) (Paperback)

I really believe that this book makes an excellent sequel to 'Of two minds'. It brings back the wonderful characters of Lenora and Coren into, yet another, fun and exciting book!