Sabriel

Rating:
Summary: Sabriel
Review: Sabriel HarperCollins, 1995, 491 pp., $6.99
Garth Nix ISBN- 0060273224
Imagine this a world divided in two by a wall made of magic! With mages, creatures, and the Dead, this unbelievable fantasy book written by Garth Nix is enchanting. About a young girl named Sabriel and her new friend Mogart, the cat, take on a dark enemy plotting to destroy there world and ours.
If you liked any fantasy book, like the Lord of the Rings, then this book is for you. I recommend this book to a boy or girl, it has a little romance, tons of adventure, and some humor. I loved this book and I think you should read it.

-A.N

Rating:
Summary: Deeply mysterious and captivating
Review: Garth Nix drew me into this strange new world and made me a part of it. The magnificent characters and witty commentary were captivating. I couldn't but the book down. I recommend this to any teenager who loves to read and explore new worlds.

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Summary: Sabriel- Who will guard the living when the dead arise?
Review: "You're alive!" That was the last sentence of Sabriel. You must be thinking, what kind of book is this; however this story is beyond your imagination! The main reason I enjoyed reading this book is because it is different to other adventure or fantasy stories. This is because it is both magical and down-to-earth. The entire story is based on magic and sorcery but the characters are very life-like and occupy the same characteristics a normal person would have. The story tells me about how the courage and determination of a girl called Sabriel can save millions of innocent people. She lives in Ancelstierre where she is learning the skills and knowledge she needs to become a Charter Mage. A Charter Mage is a powerful person who has the ability to fight against evil. Her father is Abhorsen a very popular Charter Mage who has saved thousands of lives. But he has disappeared. Sabriel encounters on a voyage to find her father which leads her to fight the dead.... 1 against 1 million. The real test begins when she crosses The Wall leading to a different universe where evil is begging to be freed. This story unlocks the key of life and how many hardships we face in our lives. Also, how we all encounter on a voyage to discover something new and increase our knowledge about the world we live in. On this voyage we have the support of many people who help us and give us courage to move forward in life. This story uncovers the message ' Courage, Determination and Knowledge is the key of life'.
So read this book and be amazed!!

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Summary: The goods and bads of Sabriel
Review: Sabriel is truely a great book, and I loved every word of it. I liked it so much that dispite homework, I finished it in one day.
Sabriel is about a young girl with the power to bring back the dead to life and to death. She started her adventure in the old kingdom when she realized her father was trapped in death. Equiped with seven bells, and her father, Abhorsen,'s sword, she set on a epic journey that you'll never forget.
Despite the wonderful laguage and plot, the character sounds unreal. Sabriel, in school, sounds like a all perfect student with a first,second, third, or fifth in everything, which is unlikely. Touchstone, the last of the royal family, sounds too much unlike one. All he think about is serving. And then, suddenly, this innocent young half-prince went into the bathtub with a maid! That's really weird.

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Summary: Sabriel
Review: As a child who grew up on the LOTR series, this is the sort of high fantasy that I love.. set in another world, it's a great book plot, structure, and character wise. I highly reccomen it to anyone who likes fantasy!

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Summary: Sabriel
Review: This book is wonderful. It is probably one of the best books I have ever read. Garth Nix writing style is absolutely beatiful. Although the story is a little complicated it is all easy to understand. I would definitely recommend Lirael and Abhorsen as well although Sabriel is probably my favorite of the three. Everything you could possibly want in a good book is included in Sabriel. Beautiful description, romance, adventure, fantasy...EVERYTHING! READ THIS BOOK! IT IS ONE OF THE BEST I HAVE EVER READ!

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Summary: Best Freaking Series Period (Part 1)
Review: First of all, let me open by saying this review might be just a little biased because Garth Nix is my absolute favorite author of all time, but the Old Kingdom Trilogy (as I call it), blows all of his other works out of the water. Sabriel is an incredibly creative novel, just like all of Nix's other books. It is so creative, in fact, that I don't doubt someone who doesn't like his writing style would be intrigued just by his creativity. All of his books, and this one being no exception, are about extremely vivid worlds and situations.

Sabriel is a school girl who is more than a bit special. Her father, is the Abhorsen. An Abhorsen is a necromancer that uses Charter magic, rather than free magic and who takes it upon himself or herself to keep the Old Kingdom free of free magic and evil necromancy. Sabriel has been trained in the arts of necromancy and Charter magic outside of the Old Kingdom in a [town? country?] called Ancelstierre. After her father goes missing, she goes into the Old Kingdom to try and find him, fearing the worst.

The only problem I have with Sabriel (and many of Nix's other books, except maybe Shade's Children) is that the ending is to me anyway extremely boring and it is told too matter-of-factly. Don't let that discourage you from buying this book however. It will prepare you for the real gems: Lirael and Abhorsen. Though this book is like the Hobbit to the Lord of the Rings and is not really necessary to the rest of the series, it is a great book and you should buy it. Now.

PS: If you are wondering why my review is "part 1," check out Lirael and Abhorsen.

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Summary: Complex and intriguing fantasy
Review: I thoroughly enjoyed this book for a number of reasons.

First, Sabriel's world was fleshed out in enough detail to provide a clear picture without being overwhelming. Too often, fantasy for the younger set provides too little detail (making it hard for the reader to use her imagination to fill in the blanks), or too much (making it hard for the reader to keep track of plotlines and characters). Garth Nix describes the colors, patterns, weather, atmosphere, smells, tastes and peculiarities of the Old Kingdom perfectly, providing enough information to satisfy the reader's curiosity and make the action coherent without becoming a book that simply describes another world. Providing just enough information as is necessary to explain the story, the Old Kingdom is gradually and matter-of-factly revealed as a wild place ruled by old and complicated magic, where electricity and machines don't work, where non-human creatures exist, and where Death is a physical place that can be visited. Details are mostly limited to things that bear directly on Sabriel's story, while at the same time suggesting there is much more to tell. This gives the sense that Garth Nix has created a complete history for the Old Kingdom, one that spans thousands of years and contains thousands of stories. Nix creates a satisfyingly three-dimensional fantasy world.

Second, I love books about capable women, especially capable young women. Sabriel's job is to move back and forth between Life and Death and make sure the Dead stay properly dead. Not a job for a coward.

Third, the plot was familiar (good v. evil) but the setting was completely original, and the back story was well established. so although you suspect Sabriel will triumph in the end, you have NO idea how she's going to manage it. The rules of Charter Magic and Sabriel's seven bells are incredibly imaginative, and the rituals described in such matter-of-fact detail that you almost forget it's fiction.

Fourth, it's dark. I appreciate a good scary story, and some books for the younger set are a little too "safe."

I also really enjoyed Philip Pullman's "His Dark Materials" trilogy for some of the same reasons, but I never quite saw them as children's books. I think kids (and adults) that started those and liked them but found them hard to digest because of the sheer abundance of weird magical details might really enjoy "Sabriel," "Lirael," and "Abhorsen."

Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: Sabriel is an excelent book. It is a hard to put down page-turner.
Sabriel is the first in a trilogy of books about Necromancy and Free Magic. The plot is well developed, and the charaters are personable. I highly recommed this book if you like the fantasy genre.

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Summary: ONE OF THE GREATEST EPIC FANTASY BOOKS EVER CREATED
Review: This was just an amazing book...it's up there on my favorites, which also includes Tolkien, Pullman and Rowling...
This book, in my opinion, should totally be made into a movie. In fact, I'm surprised it hasn't gained enough popularity to be made into one. All I have to say is that more and more people should read this book...
I love the character of Sabriel; she's just amazing...Touchstone and Mogget are great, too. I didn't particularly like Sabriel's father, in my opinion he was sort of strange but I guess that's what happens to all Abhorsens...
IF YOU WANT MORE LIKE THIS:
1. The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, The Silmarillion, all by J.R.R. Tolkien (please read them in that order!!!!)
2. His Dark Materials trilogy by Philip Pullman
3. The Harry Potter books (especially the 4th and 5th-amazingly crafty and dark-love them!)
4. Sorcery Rising by Jude Fisher
well thats all,
Raeanne