Customer Reviews

The Never War (Turtleback School & Library Binding Edition) (Pendragon (Pb))

5 star:		(41)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Pendragon: The Never War is the third installment in the Pendragon series. You still have the same likable and believable characters, Bobby Pendragon, Mark, Courtney, Spader, and a new character, a traveler, that goes by the name of Gunny. This book's territory is First Earth, the year, 1937 of Bobby's home territory, Second Earth. The book starts on the brink of World War II with two gangsters ready to fire at Spader and Bobby. Filled with exciting scenes that make you want to read forever, Pendragon: The Never War is the best so far in the series. It takes you from a territory called Veelox to hotel in Uptown, New York City. I don't want to give out too much information about the book, but D.J. Machale has you re-think your history. I recommend it to anyone that is into the Sci-Fi and Fantasy genre. A great read!!

D. J. MacHale wrote for television for years before turning his attention to novels. He created ARE YOU AFRAID OF THE DARK?, a long-running series on Nickelodeon in the United States, but it also showed in Canada on YTV and Cinar.

For the last few years, he's been writing the adventures of Bobby Pendragon, a boy who's destined - hopefully - to save the world. Several worlds, actually. Bobby is a Traveler, one of those who have the power to "flume" from world to world. He's brought into the adventure by his Uncle Press. As Bobby was growing up, Uncle Press also took Bobby scuba diving, mountain climbing, to martial arts, driving, and several other things that gave him skills he needs to survive against enemies he encounters. All during that time, Uncle Press was training Bobby to be a Traveler.

Bobby's greatest foe is a villain called Saint Dane. Saint Dane has the ability to change his appearance at will and constantly hides in different worlds while working his nefarious plans.

THE NEVER WAR is the third book in this exciting series. In it, Bobby travels to First Earth, which takes place in the year 1937. The gangster era isn't new by any means, and I was slightly let down when I discovered I wasn't being taken to a new world. I especially loved Cloral, the world Bobby went to in the second book, THE LOST CITY OF FAAR, and I look forward to returning there hopefully in one of the later books.

Still, I'm older than the average Pendragon reader. The 1930s and the Hindenburg are familiar to me through several other books I've read as well as history I've researched.

For all the familiarity with the time period, though, MacHale tells a fascinating and fast-paced tale. Bobby and his new best friend Spader land in the 1930s while pursuing Saint Dane. They're immediately met by machine-gun toting thugs that try to kill them. Bobby figures out how to escape and gets Spader out as well. Spader is way out of his depth because he's never seen anything as "technologically advanced" as the 1930s.

One of the best things about the Pendragon books is that Bobby usually gets to save the day in a down-to-earth manner. He doesn't have any really special skills or powers that help him. At this point, he's fourteen years old and can do what most kids that age can. This makes the series more believable in some ways, and I think it draws the Pendragon audience in a little closer.

MacHale's sense of timing and pacing is excellent. The story moves quickly, and I got a real sense of urgency throughout the book as Bobby tries to figure out what Saint Dane is really doing. Many of the chapters end up on cliffhangers that will draw you rapidly into the next chapter. The dialogue is fantastic and sounds real.

One of the other facets of the series that I really enjoy is Bobby's friendship with Mark Dimond and Courtney Chetwynde. The closeness they share, even through Bobby's journals, feels real.

MacHale also mixes in adult heroes with his young champion. Vincent "Gunny" Van Dyke was an excellent grown Traveler in this novel. He was kind and gentle, and guided Bobby and Spader throughout the adventure.

I did miss the world-building in this novel, but I know MacHale gets back to it in later volumes of the series. But for kids who haven't researched the 1930s much, this should be a fun book and on equal footing with fans of Artemis Fowl and Alex Rider.

This book was a relife after I read the second book in the series. I was so suspensful, and I like that in a book. I like the whole back in time thing. It really worked. D.J. MacHale made a back in time city so real. I actually thought I was going with them back and through the flumes. He is so descriptive when he writes his books.

The book that I read for my report was called The Never War by D.J. MacHale. The Never War is a fantasy book. It was very, very good.

My book is about a boy named Bobby Pendragon who is called a Traveler. Travelers can go to distant universes to fight off a very evil Traveler named Saint Dane. So, Bobby warps to New York 1937, where he is chased down by gangsters and has to deal with, of course, Saint Dane. As he explores this new, or old (to him), New York, he comes along the First Earth Traveler, Gunny.

Bobby also comes along a man named Max Rose, who was a rich gangster and was working with the Nazis in Germany. He finds out Rose has an enemy, Winn Farrow, a very dangerous gangster. But one thing that really makes Bobby mad is that Winn is planning on destroying a blimp called the Hindenburg. But, this blimp is from Germany and is sending Rose his payments for working with them. Should Bobby stop Winn from blowing it up? Or should he let him destroy it so history can play out the way it was supposed to?

You should really read this book. It is filled with excitement and adventure. I would recommend this book to people who like adventure and action. This was a very, very good book. It was probably one of my favorite books because the book flows and never leaves you hanging. The book is also suitable for people who like history. It is going on in 1937 and that's when World War II started.

First Earth... A place mostly like our world, but completely located in the past. 1937 to be exact. Fifteen-Year-Old Bobbby Pendragon, accomponied by Spader, the traveler from "Cloral" head to First Earth on another hunt for Saint Dane. They get a rude awakening when they land out of the flume, as two gangster thugs are there to greet them. They are no sort of friendly. The traveler from "First Earth" save them from the gangsters, and bring them back to the safety of the Manhattan Tower Hotel where Bobby and Spader take jobs as bellhops. When will Saint Dane show himself this time? That is up to you to find out. Be aware though, there are many twists and turns, up to the very very last page.

D.J. MacHale's Pendragon series had a great start with the cannot-put-down, magnificent book, Merchant of Death, about normal, 21st century, fourteen-year-old Bobby Pendragon who learns that he is a Traveler. These travelers must keep territories in the mysterious Halla from being thrown into destruction by the evil Saint Dane. Bobby's home, Second Earth, is one of these territories. Another was the medieval Denderoun, which Bobby and his Uncle Press "flumed" to and tried to save. Assisting Pendragon was the rude, athletic and beautiful Loor, daughter of the traveler Osa.

Sequels to excellent books are often a bitter disappointment, but this was not the case in Pendragon book two, The Lost City of Faar. In that, Press and Pendragon worked to save the aquatic territory of Cloral and its long-lost, underwater city of Faar.

Could MacHale keep up the excellence of the first two books in this third book, The Never War? MacHale had also chosen the added element of this adventure taking place on First Earth, in the year of 1937. This alone could take down the quality of his work.

But he did it! The Never War is just as good as Merchant of Death and Lost City of Faar. Despite a could-be disastrous beginning, this book contains an amazing amount of plausible adventure as well as numerous plot twists and an almost destroyed but ultimately beautiful ending. In it, Bobby and Vo Spader (the traveler from the aquatic territory of Cloral) come to First Earth, near Bobby's geographical home, but decades earlier. With African-American Vincent Van Dyke (nicknamed "Gunny" for his inability to pull the trigger of a gun) and woman fighter pilot "Jinx" Olson, they try to solve the mystery of how to save First Earth as well as the future of Bobby's home territory of Second Earth. The answer includes a New York City 1937 gang war, World War II, the Hindenburg disaster and a brilliant story. The Never War also has important moral values on issues such as revenge, which are often lost in this type of book. And, through all this, MacHale manages to keep that element of personality in all the characters, as seen through the eyes of Second Earth friends of Bobby, Courtney Chetwynde and Mark Diamond, who are the reader's eyes into this story as they read from journals which Bobby has managed to get to them through a Bank deposit slot after his traveler ring (which used to give them the journals) is stolen by gangsters.

All in all, the Never War is an excellent novel in a fantastic series! I will eagerly turn the pages of the next two Pendragon books with no past regrets or disappointments in the series!

Bobby Pendragon was a normal fourteen year-old, that is until his Uncle Press asked him to do a favor. Bobby left cloral to track Saint Dane to find he had gone to first earth. Bobby met the traveler from First Earth named Gunny. Together along with the help of Spader, the traveler from Cloral, they found out Saint Dane's plan. He was going to change the future by having the Hindenburg land safely instead of blowing up. Although it took them a while to finally figure out his plan, the travelers stop Saint Dane from changing the future and prevent him from gaining a Territory. This is a great science fictional book that always keeps its readers on edge, especially since it leaves the readers hanging until the next book is opened.

This book makes things today seem so pre-historic. In this book people are able to travel from one planet and time to another planet and time.
All the technology in this book id futuristic and medieval and some is even non-existent. One last example why this book is so sci-fi based is because Saint Dane can transform himself to whatever he wishes even a bird.

The Never War has great sense of suspense.

(...)

One last reason I like this book is because the characters have completely different personalities. Bobby is boy who can't fight and looks at the greater picture instead of focusing on one thing. Spader only focuses on killing the evil Saint Dane instead of doing what is the right thing. While Gunny does what is right, instead of what he thinks should be done, he also looks at everything at every perspective instead of one.

This book will keep you interested and makes it very hard to put down. The Never War is the third book in the 10 book Pendragon Series. Like the rest of the series this book will make you keep wanting more. While I read the book my parents had to fight with me to put it down. This book is great and everyone will love it.

N. Koester

This book was just as good as the others , maybe even better.
15-year old Bobby Pendragon has just lost his uncle to Saint Daine on Cloral ; can he still fight? A gang war is brewing in 1937 New York City. Bobby, Spader, and First Earth traveler Gunny must find their place in the action. At first it seems like they have the chance to prevent one of the biggest mystery disasters of all time. But a trip to Third Earth shows exactly what would happen if they stopped it . Bobby and Gunny know exactly what has to be done , but Spader can't stand to see innocent people die. How can they succeed if they don't work together?
I reccomend this book to anyone that likes Harry Potter, Lemony Snicket, or Charlie Bone.

Bobby Pendragon is a regular 14 year old, with some irregular adventures. After finding out he is a Traveller, Bobby and his Uncle Press set out to help territories during their turning points. Saint Dane, an evil Traveller seeking to destroy Halla, every time and every territory there ever was, is putting territories into chaos. After two suspenseful adventures on both Denduron and Cloral, Bobby must begin to accept his role as a savior. By sending journals to his friends about his experiences, Bobby, and Spader go through the worst imaginable in 1937, New York City. In between mob gangster conflicts, and a trip to the future, Bobby experiences both shock and tragedy. He is pushed to limits in this incredible book, and unfortunately many characters have bad endings. Pendragon, Gunny, and Spader are tangled in chaos. What is Saint Dane's next plot? Can Bobby see the future, change the past, and prevent World War II from happening? It is up to Bobby to happens to the present, past, and future.

My Grandson had just discovered this series and really liked the first book so I purchased the second book in the set for a Christmas gift and this book which is #3 for his birthday which falls right after Christmas. I'm an avid reader so am always encouraged to see him enjoy new adventures through books!