A Tale of Two Castles

June 24, 2011 Uncategorized 0

A Tale of Two Castles

Author: Gail Carson Levine
Publisher: Harper Collins
Publication Date: May 10, 2011
Pages: 320
Source: ARC requested from NetGalley, Audiobook received at at School Library Journal Day of Dialogue 


About the Book: Mysteries abound, especially in Two Castles. 

A handsome cat trainer, black-and-white cats, thieves on four legs and two, suspicious townsfolk, a greedy king, a giddy princess, a shape-shifting ogre, a brilliant dragon. Which is the villainous whited sepulcher?

Elodie journeys to the town of Two Castles to become a mansioner—an actress—but luck is against her. She is saved from starvation by the dragon Meenore, who sends her on a dangerous mission inside the ogre’s castle. There, disguised as a kitchen maid at an ogre’s feast, she finds herself cast in the role of a lifetime and pitted against a foe intent on murder.

Newbery Honor author Gail Carson Levine weaves an entrancing tale of a fearsome ogre, a dragon detective, and a remarkable heroine, who finds friendship where she least expects it, learns that there are many ways to mansion, and discovers that goodness and evil come in all shapes and sizes.

My Thoughts: I don’t typically review middle grade fiction here. For Gail Carson Levine I make exceptions. I read her Newbery Honor book Ella Enchanted for a course in college and fell in love. I then went to teh public library and checked out every book she had written up to that point. That was a weekend spent in a fairy tale retelling stupor. It was glorious! Since then I’ve ordered every book for my middle school LMC. They students don’t even see them until I read them! Basically, I love Gail Carson Levine. A lot. 


A Tale of Two Castles was everything I hoped it’d be and more. Elodie is a delightful narrator. I loved viewing the world threw her eyes. As an aspiring mansioner (actress) she has sharp skills of observation and she thinks about the things she sees. I also found it really helpful that she is new to Two Castles so we are meeting everyone as she does. There isn’t a back story between her and other characters that we don’t know about. I just adored her!


Do I even need to bring up how awesome it is that there are dragons and ogres? What’s a fairy tale without them? The fact that the dragon is a master of induction and deduction (as it would be quick to tell you itself!) and the ogre can shape shift into different animals just adds to the awesomeness. The best part about them is that they aren’t your typical “terrorize the village” types. Gail Carson Levine works her magic and makes them new and unique. They add so much to the story and Elodie’s journey. 


For the majority of this title I listened to the audiobook. The narrator did a fabulous job. The voices for the different characters were distinct so I never got them confused. They also felt “right.” Her pacing and expression added a lot to the story as well. Brilliance Audio nailed it on the head with this one!


Random Things I Loved:
*Cat trainers. As in people who train cats. How cool is that?!?
*Inducing and deducing
*Elodie seeing different animals for the first time
*The rules Elodie’s mother gives her to follow while away from home
*Meenore’s smoke
*The mystery and adventure!

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