Artemis Fowl
Artemis Fowl
By: Eoin Colfer
I go into middle grade fiction with a certain set of expectations… but Artemis Fowl was nothing like what I expected. It was very good, but very different.
It’s not very often in this age bracket that the kid in the story—the relatable character to the audience—is the “bad guy.” Now, I put that term in quotes because, while Artemis is definitely the one causing problems and coming up with evil plans, he isn’t doing this with world domination in mind…he’s trying to help his family. If world domination is part of the fallout, so be it.
Artemis is an interesting character, but not he most likable. In fact, there are a lot of secondary characters that I found myself caring a lot more about—like Butler the butler, and Holly the elf.
The integration of James Bond spy-thriller and fantasy was fascinating. I didn’t know how I would feel about it, but I think it really worked. Colfer writes a vivid world, the concept of mixing the two genres adds nuance to both sides of the world. It’s well written, and easy to get swept up in the story.
I would recommend this to any kid who likes mystery and suspense and any kid who like a touch of fantasy. It makes sense that kids would love these books.
Now, will I read the other books in the series? Probably not. As much as I enjoyed Book 1, I don’t feel drawn to a sequel. And the main reason for this being that my pile of books to read is really tall… and I already have other series I want to get through. Maybe when my pile has shrunk, I’ll work on more of this series.
I have no doubt that a kid in the target audience would eat it up and love the whole series!
