An enchanting, delightfully creepy adventure for children aged 8-12 from bestselling author Lauren Oliver.
One day when Liza went to bed, Patrick was her chubby, stubby, sweet-grubbing, and pancake-loving younger brother, who irritated and amused her both, and the next morning, when she woke up, he was not. In fact, he was quite, quite different.
When Liza’s brother, Patrick, changes overnight, Liza knows exactly what has happened: the spindlers have got to him, and stolen his soul.
She knows, too, that she is the only one who can save him.
To rescue Patrick, Liza must go Below, armed with little more than her wits and a broom. There, she uncovers a vast world populated with talking rats, music-loving moles, greedy troglods, and overexcitable nids . . . as well as strange monsters and terrible dangers. But she will face her greatest challenge at the spindlers’ nests, where she encounters the evil Queen and must pass a series of deadly tests – or else her soul, too, will remain Below forever.
One day when Liza went to bed, Patrick was her chubby, stubby, sweet-grubbing, and pancake-loving younger brother, who irritated and amused her both, and the next morning, when she woke up, he was not. In fact, he was quite, quite different.
When Liza’s brother, Patrick, changes overnight, Liza knows exactly what has happened: the spindlers have got to him, and stolen his soul.
She knows, too, that she is the only one who can save him.
To rescue Patrick, Liza must go Below, armed with little more than her wits and a broom. There, she uncovers a vast world populated with talking rats, music-loving moles, greedy troglods, and overexcitable nids . . . as well as strange monsters and terrible dangers. But she will face her greatest challenge at the spindlers’ nests, where she encounters the evil Queen and must pass a series of deadly tests – or else her soul, too, will remain Below forever.
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Reviews
'The Spindlers is an intensely imagined mini-epic. Young Liza has to journey through a fantasy underworld to reclaim the soul of her brother Patrick. Accompanied by a rat wearing a wig, she sees off various outlandish creatures before a final show-down with the utterly villainous Spindler Queen.'
'In the tradition of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and Coraline, The Spindlers is a frightening and fantastical heroine's quest. It offers terrifying and delightful creatures, daunting tasks and plenty of magic . . . The humour and writing is playful and clever in all the right ways'
'Oliver's magical, mesmerizing quest affirms the saving power of story, friendship, and love.'
'The Spindlers is fun and exciting, and definitely a little creepy - but not too scary for the age range. It's as beautiful and enchanting as we've come to expect from Oliver's middle grade writing, but with a darker edge... The Spindlers is a fantastic story that will spark children's imaginations and take them on a spine-tingling ride of excitement!'
'It is a story that has deep roots in a variety of different kinds of children's fiction, and borrows ideas from many which helps to make it a wonderful journey through a magical and absurd underground landscape... I found it a creative and imaginative story about the magic of stories and childhood and the importance of letting children play and dream. I think Lauren Oliver is a master storyteller and I can't wait to read her YA fiction next!'
'This imaginative fantasy emphasizes individual initiative and the power of hope and friendship. Below is a fully realized alternate world with echoes of both classic literature and mythology. This is particularly notable in its variety of inhabitants. Although the creatures are Oliver's own creations, such beings as the winged, dream-bearing nocturni and the shape-shifting, cannibalistic scawgs have the feel of true folklore. With strong, self-reliant female characters and well-defined action, this is a strong addition to fantasy collections.'
'Lauren Oliver has a genuine talent for writing beautifully and poetically... It's always vivid, colourful, and empathic. It makes you feel something and stays with you long after you've closed the book. The Spindlers is no different... an immensely magical novel with love and hope at its heart, the story of an intelligent young heroine, yet it's not all bunnies and rainbows - how about Troglods and Scwags instead?'
'Oliver offers a richly developed world with a mythology that positions Liza and her unyielding loyalty to her brother with the wise, ethereal good guys as they battle the Spindlers for both Patrick's soul and for Below itself. . . Liza's journey plays out much like any good quest tale, with seemingly insurmountable obstacles overcome, self-pity vanquished, and the bad guys duly outdone. Oliver's fluid, poetic prose elevates this tale above the genre, often imparting weight to the simplest sentences.'
An absolute delight . . . The story is packed with mystery, murder, adventure, humour and magic, but above all it is a beautiful evocation of loss, tempered by the gradual blossoming of friendship, trust and hope. Although aimed at younger readers, the lightness of touch and the tenderness of the message could make grown men weep.
A gorgeous story - timeless and magical.
Invigorating and hopeful, this novel testifies to the power of friendship and generosity to conquer greed and depression.
'Liesl & Po by Lauren Oliver brings much-needed magic to an increasingly neglected age group . . . there are some exquisitely drawn characters . . . it's books like this, with its classic quest plot, intertwined with lyrical metaphysics, that can set a child up for life.'
'Lauren Oliver has created a whole new mythology in this story, and this is no mean feat. She has created a variety of unique and wonderful creatures . . . I think the thing that makes this book a good book, and not an okay book, is Lauren Oliver's writing. She is the master of beautiful, succinct, text'