Gary Chalk

A sweet and fairly easy read, The Six Crowns: Trundle's Quest pleasantly surprised me! It's always nice to find a fantasy story that younger readers can enjoy as well. Weighing in at less than 200 pages, this is the perfect fit.

Trundle is a humble lamplighter who loves his job. His quiet existence is very much to his liking. Enter Esmerelda! A princess whose sole purpose in life seems to be adventuring and, unfortunately for Trundle, causing lots of trouble. These two unlikely heroes set of show more on an fantastic adventure. Filled with pirates, explosions, and even the occasional sword or two.

To me, the best part was definitely the characters. Trundle and Esmerelda are like night and day. They compliment one another perfectly. I also liked very much how Allan Jones gave Trundle a conscience. He is unwilling to steal, even when it seems the only way to get things done. Overall I'd say that this is a perfect fit for a reader around the fourth grade mark! Just enough story and action to keep them intrigued, without overburdening them. Pick this up. It's adorable. show less

This is an exceptional read aloud. The humor is clever, with conversation driving the story more than plain narrative. The illustrations - especially of the characters themselves - are expressive and fun. Although the reading level is middle grade, the story is easily understood by younger audiences. I purposely picked up the book in the "middle" of the series. The prologue gives you some background, but I recommend reading The Six Crowns in order.

Pros: Lots of action combine with show more imaginative characters and events, to create a swash-buckling adventure for young readers.

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Like many a reluctant hero, Trundle is a bookish homebody of a hedgehog, happy to live his lamplighter life. A mysterious princess/gypsy hedgehog named Esmeralda barrels her way into his life, cajoling him into a quest to find six mythical crowns. I included this in the pirate roundup because the hedgehogs' main adversaries are dastardly pirates in the form of hogs, rats, and shrews. Trundle and Esmeralda manage to elude the pirates, save a mineful of slaves, and test their abilities. The show more best part of this book was the relationship between Trundle and Emerald, including their witty banter and their growing friendship. This is a nice introduction to fantasy for young readers. show less

Perfectly adequate for what it is, but in a world with Warhammer, completely unecessary.