Rating: 
Summary: A Treat For All!
Review: I kept delaying buying this, kept looking at it in stores, turning it over and reading the dustjacket blurb. Finally I just took the plunge, thought "It's Clive Barker, what the hey" and bought it. Boy am I glad I did, and also glad I didn't wait around for the paperback to come out.
I became a little cautious reading the first page and started thinking maybe I was a little too old for this, but there was a connection with Candy Quackenbush - I knew what she felt like because I'd been there too, not many years ago. Anyway, I'm not going to go into depth about plot (others before have been kind enough to do that for me) but I will say this: it's imaginative, colourful, funny, disturbing, and a damn fine read.
The hardback is great to have, it was a pleasure to turn the glossy pages and unexpectedly be met with beautiful colour illustrations. I felt a great disappointment when I got to the end and realised that I had to wait for the next book to come out!
This is one of those books that you'll buy for your child only to find you can't tear yourself away from it! I hope the next instalment is just as enjoyable!
Rating: 
Summary: WOW
Review: Wow I mean WOW this book is so amazing and suprising I have read it 10 times on Christmas Vacation!
At times it does start to get boring but suddenly when you want to put it down something amazing happens. It is about a young girl named Candy who doesn't like her teacher parents and just everything about her life. One day she goes exploring and meets a man/thing with many heads only to find that he is running from the scariest creature in Abarat. She then finds her way into the Isabella ocean that leads to her journey and suprising adventure in Abarat. The author had perfect detail!
I definently reccomend it for all ages!
It is my new favorite book!
Rating:
Summary: Oh Woe is me, oh woe is me, I used to have a Hamster Tree!!
Review: This story is amazing! When I ordered this book, I wasn't exactly thrilled about it, it looked interesting enough, so I gave it a try. Boy was I surprised when I opened the book and found that it was filled with imaginative and colourful drawings, that helped me to no end while reading the story. There is so much imagination in this story and in its characters and settings that I think even I might have had a hard time understanding without the illustrations! Candy is a very likable heroine, and the jethrat Malingo, is my favourite character, although he isn't introduced until halfway through. The ending is nice, and it is left with major strings untied, so it is obvious that this won't be the last book about Candy's adventures in the Abarat. This novel has depth, colour, and fun little rhymes speckled throughout and is amazing to no end. I highly suggest that you find yourself a copy and indulge in a good fantasy, and once you do, you'll be as impatient as I am waiting for Book 2 to come out!!!!
Rating:
Summary: Magical Book
Review: This book is a great fantasy tale with the best illustrations I have seen in a book in ages. Clive Barker no only has incredible talent as an author with wonderful quirky characters and great descriptive scenes, but he is also an outstanding artist! This book is definately a must read for all ages, no matter what genre you normally read. If you appreciate great writing and awesome artworks this is the book for you!
Rating:
Summary: abarat, my new favorite book
Review: wonderful book, cant lay it down, beautiful pictures, plot is diffrent from other books- a fresh new idea
Rating:
Summary: Wow, wow, wow!
Review: Do you love Harry Potter? Were you completely amazed by the His Dark Materials trilogy by Philip Pullman? Well, let me tell you, if you loved those books, you will LOVE Abarat! I finished the book yesterday and am in a funk because I'm done! I want Candy's adventure to go on and on forever and ever! Mr. Barker's adult books are a bit graphic and dark for my psyche but this one is truly amazing! I have a mini-book club at work and this is going on my list of recommended reading.
Rating: 
Summary: Bubbling with charm.
Review: Fed up with her dreary life in Chickentown USA, our heroine Candy finds herself swept away (literally) from her domestic troubles and into the Abarat. A magical archipelago of 25 islands, the Abarat is home to a staggering array of unique characters and landscapes. 24 of the islands exist exclusively in a specific hour of the day or night and one mysterious island exists outside of time. Even though Candy only visits a few of the islands of the Abarat, the story maintains a whirlwind pace throughout. The worlds Candy visits are detailed and intriguing. This reader could easily imagine entire books written specifically about each island. Abarat is well done and is sure to please the reader regardless of age. However, be aware that Abarat is book 1 of a series. The book fails to mention this fact anywhere on the cover and is the main reason why I didn't give it a 4 star rating. The unresolved plot in book 1 leaves you hanging, but not so badly that it leaves a sour taste in your mouth. I'll definitely be reading book 2. You will too.
Rating: 
Summary: HORRID!
Review: This book is just awful. First, Barker tries too hard to make kids relate to it with the main character, Candy Quackenbush, who has an alcoholic father and lives in someplace called Chickentown. Oh, and did I mention that she has no absolutely no personality, and one of the worst names ever to grace the pages of a published book? The idea of the Abarat, or 25 islands, one for each hour of the day and another that is outside of time, is exciting. The problem? Even at my age I could write a better story about them blindfolded and with my left hand. All in all, it is very frustrating to read an awful book based around a very good idea. Reading this book will make you want to go back in time, steal Barker's idea, and re- write the whole thing, making it less boring, taking out Candy Quackenbush, Chickentown and other frustrating stuff like Mendelson Shape = (a ripoff of the Andelites from Animorphs- talk about digging from the bottom of the barrell!) Bottom line? Barker is trying too hard to impress kids with this abomination of an attempt at creating another Narnia or Harry Potter. The only thing I like about this book is that you can read the title, Abarat, on the cover upside down or rightside up.
Rating:
Summary: Abarat- Best book ever.
Review: After you read Abarat, Harry Potter is nothing! I got the book from my grandmother for my birthday, and I thought it didn't look to good after I read the cover. Anyway, later that day I got bored and since I didn't have anything else to read, I read Abarat. I couldn't put it down it was so good. Abarat is about a girl named Candy quakenbush who lives in Chickentown. (The Prolgue is important, read it before and after the story) She wants to do something more with her life than work at a hotel or the chicken factory. One day she gets fed up and just walks out of school and past Where the Street Ends. She sees a building in the distance, and decides to make that her turnaround point. on the way she meets an eight headed person named John Mischeif. They are running from the evil Mendelson Shape. Will Candy help them? Will she live? If she does live, will she return home or go to the Abarat with the Johns? This is the best book I have ever read and don't worry. There will be a sequel. Just read the very 1st page to the very last page including the pages after the book is finished.
Rating: 
Summary: brilliant illustrations, dreadful prose
Review: The illustrations are fantastic, but Barker's writing made me want to hurl. His prose is not alive, and it's full of cliches. Furthermore, the episodic nature of the story failed to hold my interest. The terrific paintings are the only reason to read this book, which without them would be a complete insult to readers worldwide.
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