I was kindly sent The Mysterious Librarian by Alma Books, in exchange for an honest review :)
The Mysterious Librarian is the second book in the Miss Charlotte series, following this eccentric lady as she embarks on another adventure – this time, the taking over of a library, in a town that seems to have forgotten about the vital importance about books. Constantly in battle with the grumpy mayor, Miss Charlotte soon enough succeeds and transforms the library into a magical place that the town’s children fall in love with, however problems arise when Miss Charlotte gets a little too engrossed in the books. Will the children be able to wake her up again? Or will they lose her forever?
Intrigued? Check out the blurb here…
When the mysterious and eccentric Miss Charlotte arrives in the village of Saint-Anatole to take over the tiny library, the locals are surprised to find out that she does things differently. Wearing a long blue dress and a giant hat, she takes her books out for a walk in a wheelbarrow and shows the children that reading can be fun and useful. Sometimes she is so caught up in the magic of the stories she shares with her audience that she forgets all sense of reality - so much so that one day she loses consciousness and the children must find a way to bring her back.
The second in Dominique Demers's popular The Adventures of Miss Charlotte series, The Mysterious Librarian, brilliantly illustrated by Tony Ross, is a wonderful story about the magical and inspiring power of books.
I absolutely loved everything about this book, hence the 5* review. Yet again, the illustrations were top-notch, and really did bring the story to life. The characters in this book were just as realistic and loveable as in the first book, and the storyline was as exciting and gripping and action-packed as I expected it to be. Miss Charlotte is certainly a character that all children will fall in love with, and ardently care about, until the very last page.
I loved how the importance of reading (and the sheer joy of it) was emphasised in this book, also the significance of libraries – a very topical issue at the moment! This is truly a magical book, made even more magical by the fact that it shows that reading is just, if not even more, exciting than watching TV!
The letters between Leo and Marie were such an adorable inclusion to the book, and I loved how a character from the previous book was included in this one. Demers writes in such a fresh, exciting way that will immediately grip children’s imaginations and wish that they had a librarian like Miss Charlotte! The characters are larger than life – I especially liked the Mayor Mark Peevish with his love of ginormous pastrami sandwiches!
This book is recommended for children aged 6-8, however you could read this book aloud to children younger than this – it is honestly a book that every member of the family will enjoy – including the grownups!
Buy The Mysterious Librarian here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mysterious-Librarian-Adventures-Miss-Charlotte/dp/1846884152
Check out Dominique Demers here: http://almabooks.com/alma-author/dominique-demers/
Check out Alma's brilliant selection of children's books here: http://almabooks.com/alma-junior/
Until next time :)
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