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Song Quest Echorium Sequence Katherine Roberts 9780439338929 Books

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Song Quest Echorium Sequence Katherine Roberts 9780439338929 Books

I am a seventh grade science teacher and I am always looking for great story books to recommend to my students. However, I was disappointed with this story. The reading level is low and the simplicity of the writing is better for students around ages 9-10 than the advertised middle school level. The story moves quickly without great transitions or character development. The author has some interesting ideas that deal with half-creatures and singing, but there is a lack of development and explanation for what kind of world these characters are living in. If you need an easy and fast moving story to develop your student's reading ability, then I recommend this book.


Tags : Song Quest (Echorium Sequence) [Katherine Roberts] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. <DIV>The debut title in Katherine Roberts' thrilling new fantasy trilogy, The Echorium Sequence. Welcome to a world from another time -- where legendary half-creatures still exist. A world where nature itself can be controlled by unearthly music. A world where the forces of good and evil are held in harmony by the Singers who have mastered the secret Songs of Power. A world on the brink of destruction,Katherine Roberts,Song Quest (Echorium Sequence),Chicken House,0439338921,Legends, Myths, & Fables - General,Extrasensory perception;Fiction.,Fantasy fiction.,Children's BooksAges 9-12 Fiction,Children: Grades 4-6,Extrasensory perception,Fantasy & Magic,Fantasy fiction,Fiction,JUVENILE FICTION Fantasy & Magic,Juvenile Fiction,Juvenile Fiction Legends, Myths, Fables General

Song Quest Echorium Sequence Katherine Roberts 9780439338929 Books Reviews

While I wouldn't compare this book to Harry Potter, or the Prydain Chronicles, it was a good entry into what I'm sure will be a fun new series, definitely worth the time I spent reading it. It was unpredictable enough so that, unlike most fantasy books I read I really couldn't guess how it would end after finishing the first chapter, but also not so intense so that it couldn't appeal to younger kids as well. The plot flowed along nicely in most places, though a few times it got a bit dull and difficult to move through. Rialle has been raised for most of her life on the Isle of Echorium, where children who possess magical talents are taught how to "sing" their powers. She's truly happy there; not only is she the best at what she does, but she's also lucky enough to have friends who adore her. However, she somehow knows her childhood is over when one day, the first Singer summons her to go on a dangerous mission to try to help the half-creatures, whose angiushed wailings only Rialle seems able to hear... Without giving away more of the plot, I can definitely say that this would be an excellent book for anyone ten or older.
I read the entire series when I was a preteen. I was surprised to see it ranked so high. I think 3 out of 5 stars is a more honest rating. From what I remember, there was plenty of action and danger, but even as a preteen I remember the plot being predictable. I finished all three books, and then gave them away to a local library. Typically I hold onto books, but I found these books too weird for me.

If you're looking for books for preteen girls I'd recommend Diana Whyne Jones or Tamora Pierce. If you're looking for a book for a preteen boy I'd recommend the Rangers Apprentice series, Lloyd Alexander, or Orson Scott Card. Hope that helps.
The second reviewer of this book has it quite correctly. Katherine Roberts's works came to my attention a few months ago, when I read this and "Spellfall" (also a delightful book) and found a fantasy far better than HP. Roberts combines beautiful prose, an invented "Singer" community and their array of Songs, and half-creatures like something out of old legends and myths.
The Singers live on the Isle of Echoes, where they are taught in how to use various songs that affect others - the dream song of Challa, the laughter of Kashe, the pain song of Shi, the fear song of Aushan and the death song of Yehn. Rialle is one of the most gifted of the Singers, a young girl who hears the "half creatures" crying - the merlee. What she can make out are cries of pain and grieving. Rialle's jealous classmate Kherron goes off wandering by himself - and finds a shipwrecked sailor who rapidly pulls him into a grotesque situation. When the sailor's compatriots find and capture the merlee, Kherron is forced to gut the half-creatures and extract their eggs.
Rialle is soon sent off on a ship with the Second Singer (the second in command?) to the mainland. Along the way she finds that her ex-Singer friend Frenn has stowed away, and she also dives overboard, where she frolics with the merlee. But she senses their pain and grief soon after she is brought back onto the boat. Upon arriving at the mainland, she soon finds that other half-creatures -- quetzal, half-birds -- are being destroyed by the evil forces at work there...
In a way the Singers are reminiscent of the Jedi knights of Star Wars -- taught in special arts that they must guard and use carefully, feared by some, and lacking the ordinary familial structures (children born in the Echorium are raised by the organization). It's an intriguing arrangement, and the idea of the Songs is excellent. (The rhyme that goes with them isn't bad either)
Rialle's initial naivete both makes her endearing for the reader, and helps us see her grow more experienced and wiser as the book progresses. Frenn is a good counterpart/sidekick, tougher, cocky, and sometimes a little sad; the scene where he attempts the Songs on the boat is heartbreaking. Kherron is best described as the rebel who has to deal with getting what he wanted. His growth as a character is even more pronounced than Rialle's; he has the rare quality of a character that you are fascinated by and understand, even if he is not initially a sympathetic character.
Roberts' prose runs into downright flowery for a kids' book; some of the best passages include such things as Rialle's swim with the merlee. This book is not for squeamish or easily-frightened children, however they might be disturbed by such sections as Kherron having to remove eggs from the dead merlee, lots of blood, and the quetzal eating parts of the dead priests.
Kids and teens with imagination (and a high squeamishness tolerance) will adore this book; adults will probably enjoy it as well, as Roberts' invented universe is far more original and amazing. Also recommended is the sequel "Crystal Mask," and Roberts' "Spellfall."
enjoyed
I am a seventh grade science teacher and I am always looking for great story books to recommend to my students. However, I was disappointed with this story. The reading level is low and the simplicity of the writing is better for students around ages 9-10 than the advertised middle school level. The story moves quickly without great transitions or character development. The author has some interesting ideas that deal with half-creatures and singing, but there is a lack of development and explanation for what kind of world these characters are living in. If you need an easy and fast moving story to develop your student's reading ability, then I recommend this book.