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Summary: Takes the prize
Review: "Prince Ombra" is one of the more obscure, unusual fantasy books that will have people blankly staring if you mention that you enjoyed it. However, it is also an insightful study of human nature, good and evil, and an intriguing philosophical fantasy.Bentley Ellicott was literally born to be a hero -- with a massive store of mythical knowledge and the information and a crippled leg. He knows that he was meant, like the thousand heroes before him since the beginning of time, to battle the incorporeal evil called Prince Ombra, who appears every so often to try to corrupt the world. Though he is considered peculiar and even dangerous by the inhabitants of his home town, he makes two friends: Slally, a girl who speaks in a nonsense language that only Bentley can understand, and Dietrich Kreistein, an elderly German shrink who gradually realizes who and what Bentley is. The town is gradually being corrupted by malice as Ombra draws ever closer with confrontation in mind. Despite the finding of a magical stone that is the key to defeating Ombra, Bentley is tempted and shocked by new revelations about his family, his friends, the people around him -- and about himself. Will the thousand-and-first hero with a "borrowed heart" overcome his weaknesses and fears, or will Ombra triumph? Perhaps the most moving message of "Prince Ombra" is that true heroes are not perfect, that they are tempted, sometimes fail, and need help like any other person. They also can't do everything: Bentley is unable to help everyone he loves. And defeating evil is more than simply getting rid of an evil person, but also overcoming one's own weaknesses as well. And while Bentley is the conflicted hero, the story also involves several subplots: Straitlaced Mrs. Tally and the much-maligned pretty girl Polly Woodhouse, the widowed, always-sad Mr. Ellicott and Slally's mother Ellen; McGraw, the embittered police chief who unknowingly combats Ombra's influence and questions his lack of faith; Slally, the lonely little girl who comes out of her shell for Bentley; Doctor Kreistein, the Merlin to Bentley's Arthur, who remembers Ombra's influence during World War II and is determined to help his charge. It's also quite pleasant that rather than outright scares and cartoonish badness, Ombra's influence is quite realistic and all the more chilling. He enhances rage and negative emotions in even the nicest, most well-meaning of people. And people who are already rotten at heart willingly become his pawns, a disturbing and realistic portrayal of evil. This book is more suited to young adults than to younger children, as there is some profanity (nothing too obscene), a tastefully-written but very disturbing scene of attempted child molestation, and a few sexual references (also discreet), and a truly horrifying scene with an insane pastor. Additionally, younger children may be confused by Bentley's confrontations with Ombra, and not catch on to the deeper undertones of this book. Fans of mythology will have a heyday with the variety of obscure hero stories from various cultures, and those who enjoy good writing will like the evocative, detailed language interspersed with small-town atmosphere. However, teen or adult fantasy/horror fans will undoubtledly give "Prince Ombra" a permanent place on their shelves. A fast-paced, thought-provoking, one-of-a-kind book.
Rating: 
Summary: What a Wonder
Review: An incredible journey for anyone familiar with the myths; and thinking to themselves "I wonder how this began? To believe that every hero has his or her teller gives the reader a chance to explore without prejudice and the desire to explore in his or her own time the myths that carved the world we now know. Prince Ombre offers everything from the beauty and wonder of a childs eyes to the resolution of the faithful and the questioning of the agnostic and back again to beauty. Whether or not you believe you are given the chance to experience hope!
Rating:
Summary: What a wonder
Review: An incredible journey for anyone familier with the myths and thinking to themselves "I wonder how this myth began? To believe that every hero has his or her teller gives the reader a chance to explore without prejudice the myths that carved the world we now know. Prince Ombre offers everything from the beauty and wonder of a childs eyes to the resolution of the faithful and the questioning of the agnostic and back again to beauty, whether or not you belive, you are given the chance to experience hope!
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Summary: One of the best books I have ever read!
Review: Bentley Ellicott embodies the soul of the child, wanting at the same time to grow up and remain young forever. He has an impossible task ahead of him from square one in his life and he's known it since before he traveled the birth canal to join this mortal coil! I have read the book over 10 times since I found it in 1984, and I never grow tired of it. Every character is so special--from Polly to the misguided Mrs. Tally, to Bentley and Slally, the rememberer. I don't understand why Roderick MacLeish didn't write hundreds of books--I was so disappointed to find that there are basically only two or three. However, even if Prince Ombra were the only one MacLeish ever wrote, he spoke VOLUMES to our hearts as readers and humans. Don't miss this book--keep a copy on your book shelves, give it to your friends AND your enemies. You'll be doing the greatest mitzvah of all--teaching people to love each other, even when all the odds tell you NOT TO. Peace. . .
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Summary: I usually don't take the time to do these....
Review: But Prince Ombra has stayed with me ever since I read it many years ago. The climax of the story, the confrontation between the champion of light with his most feared enemy (an event which has occurred many times in history), was a stunning revelation to me personally. The writing style is swift and yet deep. I got my teenage kids to read it and it was a hit with them too. Great stuff!
Rating: 
Summary: Not the best book I've read
Review: I gave it 3 stars because although it wasn't an extremely captivating book, I was able to finish it without a problem. I thought the idea of the of the story was fantastic but the story itself was pretty boring. I also felt there was a lot of unanswered questions. All and all, it wasn't horrible but there is a lot better reads out there.
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Summary: Great book, but for kids? Ehh...
Review: I read this book yesterday for the first time and I think it is one of the best books that I have ever read. I literally couldn't put it down and read it in a span of only a few hours. A really great read. While I would recommend this book to many people, I am extremely surprised that it is mostly recommended for small children and as a bedtime story no less. True, the main character is an eight year old boy, but that doesn't make the story a children's book. If that were true you would also have to believe that movies like Witness and books like The Shining were aimed at an audience consisting of small children, which certainly isn't true. While this book isn't exactly a horror novel to you and me, it could seem one for your average seven to eight year old. Whereas books like Harry Potter are about fantastic and fanciful things that even small children know aren't real, Prince Ombra is tied very much into the real world and real problems that ordinary people face every day. It would be easy for a small child to become convinced that the story was real and that maybe some horrible supreme evil being is out to get him too. Also, there are many references to stories and characters that small children have most likely never been introduced to. How many children of seven to eight years know who Agamemnon, Achilleus, Hektor, or Odysseus are? Or know ANY of the actual King Arthur tales? How many are well versed in Japanese or Native American mythology? A very precious few, I'm sure, and those very stories are a large part of the backbone of this novel. There is no way you can possibly realise the true feeling the author was trying to convey without having at least a little knowlege of these things, as well as the general "hero's journey" structure of most myths and legends. In short, children may find this book interesting, and a lot of them may not be afraid or worried about it, as I think they would be. But the truth is that there is no way they can really understand the book when they have been introduced to so little of it's content. If you want your children to read it and understand it, you should wait until they're a little older. In the meantime get them ready for it by reading them a few myths and legends. They're just as entertaining and far less threatening than Prince Ombra could be for them.
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Summary: Wild, Mystical Adventure
Review: If you love to be brought into the books you read, this book is for you.This book was read to me by my mother when I was a young child. The name of the main character has remained in my head ever since, and recently I felt compelled to read the book again. I dug it out and was brought once again into the enchanting world of a young boy, driven by hope and selflessness. This book can change the way you live and look at your life. Read it and let the magic begin.
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Summary: "Prince Ombra": Macleish's grab at the gold ring.
Review: In this age of writers being paid by the inch, how refreshing to find a title so pure in goal and execution. "Prince Ombra" succeeds as both fiction for pleasure, and as parable. As an explanation of the myth of "The Hero" told against a backdrop of darkness and light in our world, it has no peer (save perhaps Bradbury's "Something Wicked This Way Comes"). A child may read this book and cry in horror, but also in sadness and, ultimately, joy. To feel at its conclusion, that there will always be hope in the world, and sometimes, the greatest hero can be the smallest child.
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Summary: I'm 14 years old and i just finished reading Prince Ombra.
Review: It was one of the best books i ever read.At first it's a little hard to understand,but it gets easier,and the more you read the more interesting it gets.It's hard to put down,you always want to see what happens next.It doesnt get boring at all like some books do.I'm going to start reading it again tomorrow!
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