Rating: 
Summary: Beautiful Story
Review: I do not think this book is even half as bad as the other reviewers say it is. I'm fact, I'm shocked at this lack of appreciation for such good writing. Isabel Allende did a great job writing this book, especially as it is her first young adult book. It's better than alot of other young adult books out there.
Also, from the outside the book may look daunting with all the pages, but it's really not that hard to read. And I do not think the writing is "clunky". Besides, "clunky" writing can be good too...Meg Cabot (author of The Princess Diaries, Princess in the Spotlight, Princess in Love, the new All American Girl and other books) has a writing style like that and she's one of the best and most popular young adult fiction writers currently out there. True, Ludovic Leblanc has a cartoon-like personality. I kept waiting for him to show some depth, but it never really happened, only for a page or two. Good thing this book features Alex and Nadia, not Ludovic.
I believe this is a great read. Isabel Allende's City of the Beasts is a BEAUTIFUL story. I am going to read it again for sure. I loved it from beginning to end. For me, this was one of those books that didn't have a boring page...I couldn't put it down. Also, the descriptions of the Amazon in the book are wonderful. It made me feel as if I were there with the expedition....
Rating:
Summary: Enjoyed-City of the Beasts
Review: I have been bored with the so-called adult writing, so decided to try this one, as it was quoted to be for young adults. Thus far I'm enjoying the book. I keep going back to it to see how it ends for the charactors. It is good reading for the young and "old" alike.
Rating: 
Summary: the book is fascinating if you're 16
Review: I like the beginning part of the book as it describe the life of the boy but as the story began to proceed, the story became too predictable and the plot seemed to be like from the Harry Potter's series. I like the description of the rainforest and that eventhough I'm only 18, I think the book is not as fascinating as I thought and the target audience should be younger.
Rating: 
Summary: one of the best
Review: I loved City of the Beasts by Isabel Allende because it expresses friendship. It expresses this because he meets people and learns that they are his friends, and some of them are his enemies. It also shows that you may need to learn to trust other people. It is a wonderful book about a boy who lives with his grandmother because of his sick mother. The grandmother, who works for a book company, is told to go live in the Amazon rainforest. In the rainforest he meets extraordinary people, and sees an abundance of animals. He also tries to foil an evil plan. What is the plan? Does he foil it? Can he help save his mother from cancer? Read this wonderful book to find out. Hope you like it.
Rating: 
Summary: Well-trodden paths
Review: I never planned to read "City of the Beasts". I spotted recently "El Reino del Dragon de Oro" at an airport. Not having read anything by Isabel Allende, I decided that it was about time and bought it, only to discover that: (a) it was written for teenagers; and (b) it is the sequel to "La Ciudad de las Bestias" ("The City of the Beasts"). Always read the blurb on the inside flaps of the dustcover prior to rather than after a purchase! Nothing daunted, I decided to read "La Ciudad de las Bestias", but being lazy picked up the English translation.As my initial venture into Isabel Allende's fiction started on the wrong foot, it's hard to be too critical of "The City of the Beasts". The central hero of the novel is the 15 year old American, Alexander Cold, who accompanies his eccentric grandmother, Kate, in a sponsored expedition to the heart of the Amazon jungle in search of a creature called "The Beast". The members of the expedition become embroiled in various adventures, including foul plots to expoit the rainforest and to exterminate the local Indians. I found the book nothing more than an adequate read. Allende gives lots of heart-felt messages about the evils attendant upon the despoilation of the Amazon. Fair enough, but as an adventure story it didn't really interest me, perhaps because I felt that there was little originality in it - it seemed composed of elements of "King Solomons's Mines", "The Lost World", "Indiana Jones" and other such works of fiction. Not to be disparaging to teenagers, but I suspect that even for a them, "City of the Beasts" must seem pretty familiar stuff. Perhaps the translation was at fault, perhaps this type of writing is not Allende's forte, perhaps this is just a bad start in her attempt to write for a different audience. I'll read "El Reino del Dragon de Oro" - that might be better. But a delve into her more mainstream work might have been wiser. G Rodgers
Rating:
Summary: The second book was much better
Review: I read first El Reino del Dragon de Oro and I like that book very much, then I read this one and the first part is very good, but the second half of the book is just boring, when Alex and Nadia went with the natives and they want to make you feel that they live better than any civilization is just pathetic, and I won't tell anything about the "invisible Nadia" the last 100 pages could be written in 50 or less pages. If I read first this book I would never read the second one.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointed
Review: I really enjoyed this book in the beginning. Alex and his grandmother are great characters. However, when we got to the point of the "quest" I became disappointed. I felt I had read this part of the story many times before in other "jungle" stories.. I thought it was obvious the creatures had to be sloths and Dr. Torres was so vague about her "vaccine." I was glad I had The Thief Lord to look forward to.
Rating:
Summary: Great Book
Review: I think that this is a great book, it's true that it is very different fron Allende's other books, but is obvious, since this is her first book for young readers. I really like this book, and I personally recomend it to anyone that likes adventure.
Rating:
Summary: Dissapointing
Review: I wasn't expecting much when I picked up City of the Beasts. I was intrigued by the cover, and curious; but I have never read any of Isabel Allende's works before, and as such have nothing to compare it to. All that I could think about while reading this was how often she repeated herself, and how terrible the dialouge is at some places. The characterization leaves alot to be desired. The only really interesting character was, in my opinion, Borbora, Nadia's pet monkey.
Rating:
Summary: A Young Adult's Book that an Adult Can Enjoy
Review: I've read many books with my twelve year old son and eight year old daughter that they have enjoyed, but that I found myself struggling to feign interest. I barely made it through the first Harry Potter book with my kids. They went on to read all four. The Laura Ingalls Wilder books seemed even more inane to me but my daughter liked them. I teach high school Spanish Literature in Spanish and am accustomed to meatier works by Latin American writers. I am reading "The City of the Beasts" with my eight year old and she is finding the book quite interesting. It provides her with some new vocabulary and opportunities for us to have meaningful discussions based on situations in the book. It isn't a mental work out for me, but I do find it an enjoyable read. I am sure that my twelve year old son will enjoy it as well, even if it doesn't have flying motorcycles. I haven't looked at the Spanish version yet, but the English version has quite a natural feel to it so don't feel that you're missing anything. Allende has a good sense of what makes a good youth novel. I don't hesitate to recommend this book for a teenager or precocious pre-teen reader. You might even find it refreshing as well if you read with your kids.
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