Artemis Fowl
Artemis Fowl is the first of a series of semi-realist novels produced by Eoin Colfer. They document the adventures of a precocious prodigal child of the criminal empire, Artemis Fowl. In this book, accompanied by his huge and loyal bodyguard/sidekick/advisor Butler, Artemis engages in a series of surreal activities; the absence of his missing father and the mental disorder of his mother allow him to pursue the unlikely position of a criminal mastermind. However, Artemis soon encounters more than he bargains for when his attempted capture of a member of the underground 'fairy' civilization goes terribly wrong. Be prepared for a thrilling adventure, with trolls, magic and much more! Twelve-year-old Artemis Fowl is a millionaire, a genius, and above all, a criminal mastermind. But even Artemis doesn't know what he's taken on when he kidnaps a fairy, Captain Holly Short of the LEPrecon Unit. These aren't the fairies of bedtime stories—they're dangerous! Full of unexpected twists and turns, Artemis Fowl is a riveting, magical adventure.
Stats for nerds
7recommend
21mentions
21people
2007–2026years
33% recommend62% neutral5% critical
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
- I have daughters that love nancy drew novels, read to them before bed, currently on book 28.
for a boy the Hardy boys is the equivalent..
Also depends on the age but other good ones are:
Artemis Fowl Alex Rider Berenstain Bears
- Not to put too fine a point on it, but you seem unfamiliar with Wilde's work or his stated position on criticism - i.e. that only critical faculty enables any artistic creation at all. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Critic_as_Artist
Joyce's penchant for scatology in no way diminishes his canon's suitability for engagement via critical theory. If anything, the poststructuralist interdisciplinary approach is as natural a bedfellow for the interpretation of Ulysses of Finnegan's Wake as one could hope for.
To demean Eoin Colfer is another interesting hill to die on (Darren Shan?). Benny and Omar is a fantastic debut novel and a great introduction to class and cultural distinctions in the Islamic world as viewed through the eyes of a surly western teenager. The Artemis Fowl debut as well is a perfectly inoffensive fresh IP with an interesting take on putting a cyberpunk spin on Irish Mythology - although marred somewhat by an appalling cinematic adaptation.
To then cite Brian Jacques as a high-point, ploughing a furrow as he does in the foothills of mid-brow K-12 readership, only suggests to me somebody completely unfamiliar with the canons of Terry Pratchett or Philip Pullman. In any case, you seem to be conflating Young Adult Fantasy with the rich and well populated canon of Young Adult Fiction.
- > “I’m hoping that the tent expands. I’ve always kind of hated it when there’s only one tentpole, like Harry Potter or whatever. I want there to be more tentpoles with room for more people underneath.”
There already are? Deltora Quest, The Old Kingdom, The Chronicles of Narnia, Goosebumps, Percy Jackson, Keys to the Kingdom, Artemis Fowl, Tamora Pierce, David Eddings, Robin Hobb (depending on reading level and expectations) ... And there are plenty of non-series books for that age group as well - Kiki's Delivery Service, Howl's Moving Castle - they mentioned Bridge to Terabithia too...
The idea that reading isn't possible for young kids without the next black swan publishing/cinematic/theme-park experience, or that there just isn't anything other than Harry Potter to read seems crazy to me.
But I guess I'm not 9 anymore. Interesting that they didn't actually ask any 9-year-olds either it seems.
- Eoin Colfer generally writes science-fantasy appropriate for older kids / young adults. See: "the Supernaturalist", the Artemis Fowl books, the WARP trilogy.
"Escape to Witch Mountain" (by Alexander Key) is a classic.
- It depends on on what type of fiction you like. If you're into fantasy with hard magic systems[0], I highly recommend anything by Brandon Sanderson. The narrators for the Mistborn and Stormlight Archives are pretty good.
I can also heartily recommend the first 5 or so Artemis Fowl books. They also have a great narrator.
[0] A hard magic is very understandable by the reader and can be used to resolve conflicts. Personally, I love them. See https://brandonsanderson.com/sandersons-first-law/
- I have read Eoin's Artemis Fowl trilogy and found it quite good -- but it's not anywhere near the same writing style used in Hitchhiker's Guide. If they wanted the same Hitchhiker feel they probably should have gone with Terry Pratchett (though I doubt he'd accept, he seems to quite enjoy his own Discworld universe). I'm sure it will be good, just different from what people expect from the series.
