John August (2) (1970–)

Loyal, Brave, Kind and True -
Keeper of the Old and New -
I Guard the Wild,
Defend the Weak,
Mark the Path
And Virtue Seek.
Forrest Spirits Hear Me Now
As I Speak My Ranger's Vow.

Epic. This middle-grade adventure keeps you on the edge of your seat through its entirety. We got in our Owl Crate months ago, and we just got to read it over Memorial Day Weekend.

Srsly? How did this fall to the bottom of my TBR pile?

Arlo is my kind of kid- "if you don't have a plan b, you don't have a plan." I agree. If show more you have a middle grader (or younger) who is into magical realism, this is an excellent Summer read, kind of like Gravity Falls.

This is the first in a three book series and for those people who love Podcasts, you can listen to the author on his podcast- Launch which is all about launching this book.

Please note that I purchased this book from Amazon without a review requirement or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that, I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.

Verdict- buy show less

Arlo Finch is a likable 12-year-old who has just moved to a new town in the mountains of Colorado with his Mom and sister. His Dad had to flee to China for an alleged crime in cryptology. He joins the Rangers, a youth outdoor group that dabbles in ancient mountain magic. Arlo discovers that he is the target of magical creatures for reasons unknown. His tight bond with Ranger friends, Indra, the unstoppable, and Henry Wu, the optimist, helps him find his place in Pine Mountain. Arlo reminds show more me of myself with his penchant for structure, observation, and worrying about family and friends. These traits become vital to both the real and magical worlds as he sees and understands things more deeply and learns to uphold the Ranger’s Vow to be “loyal, brave, kind and true.” If you like your adventure laced with a touch of mystery and magic, Arlo Finch In the Valley of Fire is for you. show less

As pointless as most of the Disney live action remakes, but by a pleasantly decent margin not among the worst (blandest) executed ones. Will Smith in particular does an impressive job being an entertaining take on the Genie without being too similar to the incomparable Robin Williams. The frame story is also a nice touch, as is the subplot about the princess' charming handmaid. But as is always going to be the case with such a film, there is both too little new here to warrant the remake, show more and too little of the old for those scenes where the individual viewer subjectively would have loved to see it in live action (for me and my wife, this movie's biggest transgression in the latter regard was not giving us the Cave of Wonders rising from the dunes). Some of the new stuff does also feel rather forced and ham-fisted, in particular Jasmine's flight-of-fancy girl-power song felt jarring and poorly placed (though this song aside I'm otherwise happy for her beefed up plotline). I liked this film a touch better than I'd expected going to the theatre, but even so I'd be quite hard-pressed to think of a situation in which I'd want to watch this (perfectly fine) retelling rather than the (utterly amazing) original. Ironically, I think Disney milking more money out of this by making a (hopefully good) prequel or sequel which to a much larger degree could be an original story would be the one way to retroactively make this film feel more worthwhile. So fingers crossed those (when they inevitably come) are good enough to warrant this film's existence as a launching point. As it stands, though, the film remains unfortunately pointless. show less

A few weeks ago, my husband sent me the first episode of this new podcast called Launch, saying that he thought I would enjoy it. So I gave it go, and turns out he was right. I loved it!
Launch is hosted by screenwriter John August, who recently decided he wanted to write a children’s book. So he did. And then he made a podcast about the creation of the book, starting with the moment he began writing his story, to in the latest episode discussing how books are printed. John August talks to show more people involved in every step of the process, including the man who designed the typeface used on the front of his new book.
After listening to the first four episodes, I decided that I actually really wanted to read this book, which was released on February 6, and is called Arlo Finch in the Valley of Fire. It is a middle grade book, and is similar to the Percy Jackson or the Mysterious Benedict Society. So we went to our local Barnes & Noble and picked up a copy.
I have read some fantastic middle grade books as an adult, and I have also read some that I think I would have enjoyed much more if I had read them earlier in life. I was a little worried that this would fall into the latter category, as the Percy Jackson books did for me.
However, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The main character (Arlo Finch) is a young boy who moves to Colorado with his mom and sister. In an attempt to fit in, Arlo joins the Rangers group, which is similar to Boy Scouts. However, Arlo soon discovers that the Rangers do more than learn basic survival skills and go on camping trips. They learn about using the magic of the Long Woods to create snapfires and thunderclaps, and how to avoid creatures such as NightMares and Wisps. Arlo draws some attention from the darker forces of a newly discovered world, and as a result finds himself on quite an adventure.
Although this story seems to be another variation of the same plot line that is told in nearly every middle grade book (young boy finds himself on an unexpected adventure and turns out to be especially talented at some special skill, saving the day) there are a few things that make Arlo Finch’s story different. The writing of this book is very intelligent, and definitely helps cater the story to an older crowd. The book is also structured well- chapters are an appropriate length and always have little “cliff-hanger” endings, the pacing is spot on, the characters are well-developed... basically, I wasn’t bored, but the action also wasn’t so fast-paced that details are missed. Arlo Finch in the Valley of Fire is the first in the trilogy, with the next book set to release in the spring of 2019. Although this book definitely set up plot lines for books to come, it was also a complete story in and of itself.
I had high expectations for this book and fortunately they were met. I am very excited to continue with the series. This group is appropriate for a wide variety of readers- from the 8-12 age group it was initially intended for, up through adults who need a little bit of extra magic in their life. show less