The Secret Country

Reviewed by Carrie Spellman for TeensReadToo.com

All Ben Arnold wants in life are Mongolian Fighting Fish. The day he walks into Mr. Dodds's Pet Emporium with enough money to buy them should be the best day of his life. Except that he walks out with a cat. It's not really his fault. After all, the cat made him do it.

Ignatius Sorvo Coromandel, Iggy for short, also known as the Wanderer, has quite a story for Ben. He is from another world, a world called Eidolon. A world full of exotic, mythical, talking creatures. A world that is slowly dying and losing its magic. Someone is stealing creatures out of Eidolon and selling them in Ben's world. Each time a creature leaves, the magic is less. And each time one dies, which happens shortly after show more they enter our world, more magic disappears.

The most amazing part of all, aside from the talking cat thing, is that Iggy claims Ben's mother is the Queen of Eidolon! That's why Ben can understand Iggy, and the other strange creatures that are beginning to appear in random places. That means that Ben is a prince and his two sisters are princesses! And that's why Ben's mom is getting sick.

If Ben can go to Eidolon, he might be able to help save both the world and his mom. First, he'll have to escape Mr. Dodds and Awful Uncle Aliester, who are bad enough in the regular world and ten times worse in Eidolon. Not to mention Cousin Sylvia and her creepy hairless cat. Then he'll have to navigate a completely foreign land where he can't be sure who to trust.

Mythical creatures and huge battles are all well and fun in books, but living through them is a whole different story!

I love this book, in every way possible! The plot is interesting and moves along at a perfect pace, fast enough to keep you interested but not so much so that you get confused. It's written simply, but never in a way that makes you feel silly. The characters, even the creatures, are extremely interesting and realistic. The part I like best though, is that there is a great sense of humor throughout the story.

I love it. My six-year-old nephew loves it. My ten-year-old niece loves it. You can't ask for more than that. show less

I’m biased. The moment I read that there’s a talking cat, me being a cat lover, immediately picked this book up. Iggy also happens to be a wonderful character to read so that was an instant bonus.

This was a great fantasy read, and I enjoyed the adventure Ben went through. There was plenty of fantastical magic and action to keep the reader engaged, and the characters are well written and memorable. The pace is great and is steady and although the story might not be that original, and the plot itself may have been predictable, I think it’s still an enjoyable read. The action was exciting enough to by pass these thing to at least make the book a fun experience.

The ending of the book was pretty good, and it’s got me interested show more enough to go into the second of this series. It’s certainly worth a try and catered towards younger readers. Expect an action filled magical journey filled with fun and adventure. This is definitely worth looking into. I’m looking forward to reading more about Iggy and Ben! show less

This was a great book. Unfortunately, it didn't have enough audience to make it's sequel equally available. I really liked the book, was ready for book two and was completely flabbergasted when it never hit my local bookstore shelves.

This book is the best book I have ever read so far. It is about a boy, Henry who has a mother who is a princess in the Other world. In this world, however, she is suffering and is about to die. This will mean that the Other world will be ruled by dangerous powers who will want to capture the entire planet. When Henry realises this fact he is scared to lose his mother as his entire family are normal human beings. What is his decision going to be ?........
Do not miss the golden opportunity of reading this book from the NIST library!

SHOOT THIS USD TO BE MY FAVORITE BOOK I THINK IM GOING TO NEED TO READ IT AGAIN THOUHH

Eigentlich wollte Ben Arnold in der Zoohandlung von Mr. Dodds mongolische Kampffische kaufen. Doch er wird von einer sprechenden Katze daran gehindert, die sich ihm als Iggy vorstellt und darauf besteht, mitgenommen zu werden. Nicht nur einmal zweifelt er an seinem Verstand, als er von dem verborgenen Königreich Eidolon erfährt, eine Elfe in seinem Garten findet und in der Garage seines verhassten Onkels einen Drachen entdeckt. Doch bald muss Ben erkennen, dass Onkel Alister und Mr. Dodds Schmuggel mit Fabelwesen treiben, die sie aus Eidolon stehlen, um nicht nur an das große Geld zu kommen, sondern zugleich das verborgene Königreich und v.a. dessen Königin zu schwächen. Bei Bens Versuch, den Drachen zu befreien, muss er sich show more schließlich selbst nach Eidolon flüchten.. show less