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Kneeknock Rise (Sunburst Book) (Paperback)

~ Natalie Babbitt (Author, Illustrator)
Key Phrases: Uncle Anson, Aunt Gertrude, Uncle Ott (more...)
3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)

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Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 1-6. This unabridged audio recording of Natalie Babbit's Knee Knock Rise (FS&G, 1970) is a wonderful way to enjoy this fable about man's need for belief systems. A young boy ventures from a tiny village to discover the source of a mysterious cry at the top of a rocky mountain. Despite evidence that the sound is an explainable, natural occurrence, the townsfolk refuse to believe it is anything but the wailing and moaning monster, the Megramum. Suzanne Toren, who received the 1988 Narrator of the Year Award for the narration of 900 Talking Books for the Library of Congress, gives an outstanding performance as the narrator and the voices of each realistic and well-defined character. Her voice is pleasant and animated. The clear recording, with even volume, will stand alone or as a companion to the book. In the school setting, teachers and librarians can use it as an introduction to the author, with small or large groups. Reluctant readers will find this a helpful tool and it also would be a great addition to a family library.
Lisa J. Radmer, Opstad Elementary School,
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.


Review

"Although Kneeknock Rise is little more than a high hill, it is a source of awe and pride to the villagers on Instep, who attribute the terrifying sounds which issue from the mist-shrouded top of the Rise on stormy nights to an unseen but fearsome creature they call a Megrimum...An enchanting tale imbued with a folk flavor." --Starred, Booklist

"Here's a wonderfully fluent fable about man's need to have somthing to believe in...The strength of this tale is in Natalie Babbitt's clean, modern, very confident telling. For children, especially, this is fine writing." --School Library Journal

"The allegory seems to have grown slowly and surely, so much fold felling does it have along with its symbolism and satire. Beatifully and clearly written, the story can be read aloud with pleasure." --Horn Book

"Natalie Babbitt's prose is as clean as her pen line. Like The Search...delicious."
--The Kirkus Reviews
See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

  • Reading level: Ages 9-12
  • Paperback: 28 pages
  • Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR) (August 1, 1984)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0374442606
  • ISBN-13: 978-0374442606
  • Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5.1 x 0.4 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 4.2 ounces
  • Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,173,877 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Uncle Anson, Aunt Gertrude, Uncle Ott, Kneeknock Rise, Instep Fair
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Customer Reviews

16 Reviews
5 star:
 (5)
4 star:
 (1)
3 star:
 (5)
2 star:
 (1)
1 star:
 (4)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
3.1 out of 5 stars (16 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Is it better to be wise or foolish?, May 20, 1999
By A Customer
We had the honor of having Mrs. Babbitt read the final chapter to our second graders. They enjoyed debating the issue of whether the Megrimum was real or not. The joy about the book and the author is that each reader must decide. As for me I believe the Megrimum will live forever.
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars Nihilism for Kids (Spoilers)., November 23, 2007
By J. Whelan (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: Kneeknock Rise (Paperback)
The best thing about this story is the setup, involving a weirdly mist-shrouded hill that, according to legend, is haunted by a man-eating demon. After that -- let's just say that a reader who expects nothing will not be disappointed. I will start with relatively minor quibbles, and work my way up. Spoilers will follow:

The story works best as a mystery, but is clumsy even on that level. As in "Tuck Everlasting", Babbitt's weakness is lazy plotting and contrived character motivations. Can we really believe that a young boy would simply decide to journey in the dead of night, in a rainstorm, armed only with a stick, accompanied only by a small elderly dog, to do battle with a giant man-eating demon who he knows or at least believes has devoured every human who has encountered it? Why would he would not turn back, even after hearing the demon's larger-than-life howls? Would he really do this just for dare? Is he suicidal? Could he not at least have taken with him (for instance) a purported magic charm, or some other flimsy basis for hoping he might be able to defeat the demon rather than merely die a horrible death?

The purpose of this contrivance, supposedly, is to get our fearless hero to the lonely hilltop so he can solve the mystery. But instead of discovering for himself, he just happens, by coincidence, to meet on the hilltop an Adult-Explainer-Ex-Machina who TELLS him what is -- and, perhaps more importantly to Babbitt, what is NOT -- on the hill. I guess Babbitt felt constrained to rely on this contrivance because of the inherent impossibility of proving a negative.

But the worst of it is that, after the mystery is (sort of) resolved, we are then forced to endure the nihilistic MORAL, mouthed by yet another Adult Explainer. Referring to the hill demon, he says:

"Nephew, I'll tell you what I think. I think it doesn't really matter. The only thing that matters is whether you want to believe that he is there or not. And if your mind is made up, all the facts in the world won't make a difference."

You hear that kiddies? Why invest the intense effort required for actual learning when you can just believe whatever you please? Why endure the sacrifices that come with honesty and integrity when you can just say what people want to hear? As is repeatedly emphasized elsewhere in this book, knowing the truth and telling the truth can only make you and others miserable.

What makes the above nihilism particularly bizarre is the context: Here we have an adult - and a parent - taking the position that it does not matter whether or not a nearby hill is home to a man-eating monster. That is rather like saying that it does not matter whether or not the next-door neighbor is a serial killer. Of course it matters!

If you want spooky stories with rational explanations, I am sure you will find better than this. You can try Washington Irving, for starters. You can even watch Scooby Doo! At least the Scooby gang has the sense to flee in terror when the monster gives chase. They seem to realize something this author does not -- that it does indeed matter whether or not the monster is real.
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars The best book that I ever read!!, January 18, 1999
By A Customer
It is about a little boy named Egan, who goes to a town called Instep to visit some of his relatives. Instep is right along the side of a cliff called Kneeknock Rise. Up on top of the rise there is a creature known as the Megrimum. Nobody knows what the Megrimum is, but Egan finds out!!!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Good book, but is it really worthy of the Newbery Honor?
I do love Natalie Babbitt's writing style and I enjoy a charming country fable as much as the next person, but I am rather at a loss as to how this received a Newberry Honor--I've... Read more
Published 12 months ago by Emily Taylor

5.0 out of 5 stars A classic story for middle readers
Reviewed by Claire Vath

Natalie Babbitt's Kneeknock Rise was the recipient of a 1984 Newberry Award. Read more
Published 24 months ago by armchairinterviews.com

5.0 out of 5 stars In contrast to the kid's reviews ...
I am 40 now, but read this book when I was probably 7. I still remember it as one of my favorite books of childhood, and I was always a voracious reader as a child (I read less... Read more
Published on August 30, 2007 by Julie A. Parr

4.0 out of 5 stars the clarity of not knowing
Others have told the story of this children's book, so I won't rehash it. Some of the younger readers have also shown their jaded natures in panning it, but I found it to be... Read more
Published on July 7, 2006 by Heldenbaer1

3.0 out of 5 stars Superstition vs. Fact

In a mountain range called the Mammoth Mountains there is a place called Kneeknock Rise. Kneeknock Rise is a place of much speculation, as there are noises and bellowing... Read more
Published on March 23, 2006 by Karusichan

3.0 out of 5 stars Clinging to Superstition
Young Egan is traveling by chandler's cart to the distant village of Instep, to enjoy their annual fair, where he will
stay with relatives. Read more
Published on April 5, 2004 by Plume45

1.0 out of 5 stars OH PUH-LEEZE!
this book stinks on ice. No offense of corse. This is not one of NB's best books. I read ten pages and then i knew the ending. A boy goes on top of a volcano to find a monster. Read more
Published on November 4, 2003

3.0 out of 5 stars Is the migrum really real?
This book is not a really great book it has a lot of moral but the story needs more structure. I did this book for a book project and it is one of the most neutralized books I... Read more
Published on January 29, 2002

3.0 out of 5 stars Is there really a megrimum?
Knee-Knock Rise is a book that is slightly interesting with an okay story. When Egan goes to Instep he hears of the megrimum, a monster that lives on top of Knee-Knock Rise... Read more
Published on April 4, 2001

1.0 out of 5 stars The Worst Book Ever
This book was a bad book. One reason it was bad was that you can almost predict the whole story after reading three pages or so. Read more
Published on March 14, 2001

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