The Grimm Legacy by Polly Shulman ★★★☆☆

I always knew libraries were magical!

Fiction – Juvenile – Urban Fantasy/Mystery

Age Range: 10 and up  Grade Level: 5 and up

325 pages

Publication Date:  2010

The Grimm Legacy #1

Literary Awards:  Mythopoeic Fantasy Award Nominee for Children’s Literature (2011), Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children's Book Award Nominee (2012), Texas Lone Star List (2011), YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults (2011)

I was so ridiculously excited about this premise when I found it available at my local library (I now own it thanks to a book fair) that it place jumped to the front of my books to read.  I freely admit, I was completely captivated with the idea of the repository my mind kept wandering as I imagined the possibilities making it hard to pay attention my usual intensity.  It was like a dream come true.  Organizing and sorting interesting objects with amazing stories attached.  How great would this place be?

 I wished it would have been available when I was child, because it would have been an instant favorite and I wouldn’t have noticed the flaws as much.  But sadly as an adult some things did stand out to me.

The first couple of chapters felt rushed, more like someone was blurting out the backstory than setting the scene, but by chapter three the pacing became more comfortable. The cast of characters were just the right side of bland, but this is not really a character based story like I usually enjoy.  Elizabeth’s rushed backstory gave her a bit of dimension, but they were all far from fleshed out.  The mystery was somewhat subpar, with a few glaring story holes.  Also I kind of felt like was jumping in during the middle of the story instead of the beginning.  This isn’t a quality story like Harry Potter or   Maniac Magee, but taken for what it is, a fun little mystery story with a mild romantic element set in an amazing place, it’s nice.  Keeping your expectations minimal in regard to the characters will greatly help in reading with novel. 

The next book is about a whole new cast of main characters and the science fiction wind of the library, which I plan on reading.  It will be pretty awesome I just know it!