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Loading... The Apothecary (2011)by Maile Meloy
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. This review was written for LibraryThing Early Reviewers. What a lovely book and a pleasant surprise! I had won a copy of this book years ago and never got around to reading it, but I'm so pleased I picked it up. The historical details are well-researched and woven into the story. The characters are fully fleshed-out and delightful. Janie, Benjamin, and Pip make a wonderful trio. The magical details added a fantastic element to a story full of courage, love, and friendship. ( )This YA book was an adventure set initially in the USA during the 1950's era of anti-communist McCarthyism. The story quickly moves to London, UK where the Scott family travels to escape persecution as alleged communists. The 2 main protagonists (Benjamin and Janie) embark on a mission to outwit Soviet agents and free Ben's kidnapped father. While the plot's plausibility is questionable, the story is intriguing and the adventure is definitely engaging with a fair amount of quirky and suspenseful episodes. The rules of alchemy are observed, albeit a bit deceptively, in the process of using medicinal plants in the London from the physic garden to make 'magic' elixirs. The middle-grade students can enjoy a story here with lots of imagination and learn some history which is presented very unobtrusively. YA. 1952. The Scott’s are forced to leave Hollywood because of the Red Scare. Janie meets Benjamin after his father is kidnapped and they are plunged into the Cold War. They are trying to control an atomic bomb test. It is a true test of an Apothecary’s powers. Good characters, good premise, good pacing. Good young adult fantasy read, with an anti-nuclear war theme. Janie Scott moves to London so her parents can escape persecution as alleged communists. At a new school, she meets the son of the apothecary and together they become involved in a plan to thwart/contain a Russian nuclear detonation. While briefly in jail, they befriend a young East End ruffian and pickpocket, who assists.
A fairly interesting mystery set mostly in 1952 London, The Apothecary offers a little of everything; magic, romance, mystery, and historical fiction. When friends of Janie’s parents are blacklisted in Hollywood (they are a television writing team), the Scotts move to London. Around the corner from their flat is a mysterious shop with an enigmatic apothecary. The man’s son is Janie’s new friend at school. When she and Benjamin, who aspires to be a spy, happen to witness a handoff involving a Russian attaché in the park, the teens get more than they bargained for. As it turns out, not only is Benjamin’s father involved, but the Latin instructor at their school is also a part of this web of espionage. The two rush to save the apothecary only to find out that he is attempting to stop a nuclear test in Soviet territory. Everyone goes along to help stop the explosion. However, the magic occasionally feels like a contrivance to move the plot forward instead of an organic part of the fantasy. The ending is sort of a free-for-all, and the created world doesn’t really keep to the rules set up at the beginning. Nonetheless, this is a highly readable adventure/mystery, and it is greatly enhanced by Schoenherr’s graceful and evocative illustrations. Belongs to SeriesThe Apothecary (1) AwardsNotable Lists
Follows a fourteen-year-old American girl whose life unexpectedly transforms when she moves to London in 1952 and gets swept up in a race to save the world from nuclear war. No library descriptions found. |
LibraryThing Early Reviewers AlumMaile Meloy's book The Apothecary was available from LibraryThing Early Reviewers. Current DiscussionsNonePopular covers
Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.6Literature English (North America) American fiction 21st CenturyLC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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