Inkheart

Inkheart, written by Cornelia Funke, is a masterpiece! I enjoyed this book more than the first three Harry Potter books. The story is about a young girl named Meggie, who one night sees a stranger in front of her house. She tells her father, Mo, about the man and her father is suddenly very serious. The man is called Dustfinger and he calls Mo “Silvertongue.” Much later in the story, Meggie discovers that when her father reads a book out loud, he has the power to bring something from the book into our world. Years earlier, he had accidently read three characters from a book called Inkheart into our world. Besides Dustfinger, he brought Capricorn and Basta, two of the worst villains ever created. The book is about Meggie and Mo’s adventures as they deal with Dustfinger, who only wants to return to his world, and Capricorn, who is determined to rule the world. It’s a great book! I highly recommend it to anybody who likes Fantasy.

SPOILER ALERT!

One of my favorite parts is towards the middle of the book when Meggie and Mo meet the author of Inkheart. As a writer myself, I really enjoyed getting this character’s perspective. When our heroes mention Capricorn, the author says, “Ah, yes! He was the perfect villain!” To which they basically reply, “Yeah, we know. Thanks a lot.” It was fun to see the author’s reactions as he sees his creations come to life, comparing them with how he imagined them and also knowing their unwritten weaknesses.

Another one of my favorite parts of this book is that each chapter begins with a quote from a pre-existing book, such as Peter Pan or The Princess Bride. That quote has something to do with what happens in that chapter. It is absolutely brilliant! I cannot wait to read the rest of the trilogy.