City of the Beasts

I found City of the Beasts by Isabel Allende an absorbing read. Telling the story of Alexander, who is sent off to accompany his grandmother on an expedition to the Amazon. His family is in crisis, with his mother very ill with cancer. Alex and his sisters are to be farmed out to the grandparents. Alex thinks he has drawn the short straw by being sent to his decidedly eccentric grandmother, Kate.

This coming-of-age tale was written beautifully, the South American jungle comes to life as do the inhabitants of the jungle. As the expedition travels deeper and deeper into the rainforest, civilization seems so very far away, and Alex comes into full contact with his spirituality. We are taken into the realms of a fantasy world as Alex and his show more friend Nadia are taken captive by the People of the Mist and eventually these two are taken to the City of the Beasts to meet the legendary creatures. They are given the tools they will need to ensure that the People of the Mist don’t come under the control of greedy entrepreneurs in the future.

Isabel Allende manages to include both the topics of genocide and the exploitation of the Amazon Basin in her story, but first and foremost, she stays true to her younger audience and tells a wonderful fantasy adventure story about a boy coming to terms with his life and taking those first steps towards becoming a man. show less

From the book jacket: Fifteen-year-old Alexander Cold has the chance to take the trip of a lifetime. Parting from his family and ill mother, Alexander joins his fearless grandmother, a magazine reporter for International Geographic, on an expedition to the Amazon. Their mission, along with the others on their team – including a celebrated anthropologist, a local guide and his young daughter, Nadia, and a doctor – is to document the legendary Yeti of the Amazon known as the Beast.

My reactions
Allende has crafted a very engaging, fantastical adventure story, with a fair amount of information provided regarding environmental conservation. I did think that Kate (Alexander’s grandmother) was pretty over-the-top, and the anthropologist show more was little more than a cartoon character. Still, I liked the young people and loved the way that the native indigenous tribes were portrayed. Alexander was just mature enough to be open to new experiences, and young enough to welcome guidance from whomever offered it.

Nadia was a marvelous character, wise beyond her years, brave, resourceful, tenacious, and attuned to the jungle in ways that American Alexander could not possibly be. Their partnership was helpful to both characters, and they complemented one another.

I also really enjoyed the way that Allende reimagined El Dorado and explained the “reality” of that myth. show less

Isabel Allende's Eagle and Jaguar series is a young adult-oriented fantasy series that takes us through several adventures in different regions of the world. City of the Beasts focuses on the Amazon rainforest, introducing us to a variety of different, partly ancient cultures and their secrets and treasures outlined through Allende's skillful application of elements of magical realism.

Allende knows how to insert more complex thematic issues and questions into a less sophisticated setting in comparison to some of her more adult-oriented works. It's clearly written for teenagers, but the social and cultural aspects that become a central part of the story's development are suitable for adults and more demanding readers as well.

A minor show more weakness of City of the Beasts might be Allende's struggles to characterize her cast ensemble. Everyone feels mostly one-dimensional; we have lots of Mary Sues and John Does, and the scope of the cast caused me to lose my overview on questions of who is who several times. However, that did not harm my enjoyment of the audiobook on any level, as Allende's substantially note-worthy attempt to speak to a younger audience is full of charm, wit and allure, exploiting the Indiana Jones-like adventure style for her full benefit. show less

City Of The Beasts, by Isabel Allende
★★★★

Synopsis: (From the book flap) Fifteen-year-old Alexander Cold has the chance to take the trip of a lifetime. Parting from his family and ill mother, Alexander joins his fearless grandmother, a magazine reporter for International Geographic, on an expedition to the dangerous, remote world of the Amazon. Their mission, along with others on their team—including a celebrated anthropologist, a local guide and his young daughter Nadia, and a doctor—is to document the legendary Yeti of the Amazon known as the Beast.
Under the dense canopy of the jungle, Alexander is amazed to discover much more than he could have imagined about the hidden worlds of the rain forest. Drawing on the strength of show more the jaguar, the totemic animal Alexander finds within himself, and the eagle, Nadia’s spirit guide, both young people are led by the invisible People of the Mist on a thrilling and unforgettable journey to the ultimate discovery….
In a stunning novel of high adventure, internationally celebrated novelist Isabel Allende leads readers through the intricacies of two personal quests, and on an epic voyage—teeming with magical realism—into the wonder-filled heart of the Amazon
In A Sentence: A very entertaining, thought-provoking children’s novel that you should absolutely read with your kids.
My Thoughts: This one took me about 5 hours collectively to finish. I say collectively because I kept dozing off while reading. I’m not sure if it was because of the writing, or if it was because of the sleep deprivation I’ve been experiencing, but I do confess to falling asleep while reading this book.
That being said, it was still a great book. The premise is an excellent, epic adventure, with a bit of magical realism added in to make it more exciting for the target audience. The characters were fun too. I loved Professor LeBlanc. He was the ultimate joke of an anthropologist, the perfect example of what you shouldn’t do when you’re studying new peoples.
Allende must have done some type of college-level anthropology research before writing this book, because a lot of the things she says, about encountering isolated tribes and how different people perceive each other, strongly remind me of what my professors kept telling me during my cultural anthropology classes: people with a different way of life perceive us the same way we perceive them. Our habits are frequently considered as bizarre, and sometimes as unnatural and dangerous, which is what we also think of their habits. The point is that we shouldn’t judge and condemn a culture because they are different from us; we should instead take the time to learn from them and try to understand them. Preserving an existing people takes a greater priority than trying to change/improve their way of life, because even the best intentions can ultimately destroy an entire culture. I was really impressed that Allende was able put that in a way that even children could understand, and it’s the main reason why I rated this book so highly.
I did have some minor problems with book, however. The writing style seemed a little flat and dry in its simplicity. It might be because of the translation, but nevertheless, it did detract from my full enjoyment of the story. The plot made up for it, however, so I can’t complain too much.
I would definitely recommend this book to kids ages 12-15, since this book has an excellent moral behind it, about being open-minded and feminist. I would also say that the parents should read it too, since they’ll probably enjoy just as much. show less

3.5 stars, started out exciting and adventurous, got a little muddled in the middle, and was kind of obvious at the end, but overall enjoyable. A clean look into a different culture for young readers, nothing really inappropriate or terribly questionable.

Young adult fantasy involving a journey to the Amazon jungles in Brazil to vaccinate the native population. It features two teenage protagonists, Nadia and Alex, who travel with a group of adults, including an expedition leader, a doctor, Nadia’s father, Alex’s grandmother, soldiers, a professor, and an International Geographic photographer. They are also seeking ancient beasts reputed to be living in the jungles. It is a great example of Allende’s entertaining storytelling abilities. Just don’t examine the plot too carefully. It is fantasy so it is not supposed to be ultrarealistic. I enjoy Allende’s books and was curious to see what she had done in the young adult arena. It is a quick, fun read.

I haven't read any Isabel Allende before, so this, the first in a trilogy of adventure novels for YA readers may not exactly be representative of her work, but I was in the mood for a light read. Incidentally, I don't read much YA books either. I noticed many of the reviews tend to compare this, either favourably or unfavourably to Harry Potter. Not having read any of the Harry Potter books, I can't really comment on that either. What I can say is that this is an entertaining adventure story, packed with exotic locations and an exciting quest, which is engaging without really managing to be enthralling.

The story follows young Alexander Cold, a 15 year old American boy whose mother has unfortunately contracted cancer. While his father show more looks after her, Alexander is sent to live with his grandmother, a tough, whiskey-swilling journalist for 'International Geographic' who wouldn't win any prizes for wise parenting. She drags Alexander off to a trip deep into the Amazon searching for a mythical Beast (sort of a Bigfoot like creature). This is an adventure story in the mould of Indiana Jones (though much more culturally sensitive, thank goodness). Probably the best parts of the book are when the expedition is making its way up the Amazon river where Allende's descriptions of the flora and fauna in all their wild abundance and variety are particularly effective. show less