Goblin Quest by Philip Reeve
| Goblin Quest by Philip Reeve | |
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| Category: Confident Readers | |
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Reviewer: Linda Lawlor
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| Summary: The goblins and their friends leave the dark towers of Clovenstone to go a-questing. Serpents, elves, dwarves and some delicious cheese cobbler (even if it did get slightly dropped on the cobblestones) feature in this, the third in the series. | |
| Buy? Yes | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 324 | Date: June 2014 |
| Publisher: Marion Lloyd Books | |
| External links: Author's website | |
| ISBN: 9781407138329 | |
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That's the trouble with heroes. They get it into their heads (and let's face it, there's usually plenty of space in there for the occasional idea) that they absolutely must do something big and valiant to win a place in the Hall of Heroes. I shall go down in history, they announce, and future generations will sing of my bravery and my exploits. Trouble is, of course, once they've fixed on a quest, nothing on earth can stop them – not even the fact that it's the most brain-freezingly, pants-wettingly STUPID thing they could possibly have decided on.
Prince Rhind of the Woolmark, a typical example of the breed, marches up to the goblins' home one day (accompanied by his sister, his sorcerer and his cook) and demands that they hand over the magical Elvenhorn, ancient relic of the Drowned Lands. To him it's simple: if you're a prince and you require something, you get it, especially if you're wearing your very best clothes. Trouble is, when he was planning his quest he forgot to factor in the reactions of your average goblin. Over the last two books in this very funny series they may have learned not to hit each other quite so hard, and even to cooperate occasionally, but they are still scruffy, quarrelsome creatures whose idea of housework is to move to a cleaner room and who value books with soft pages because they make excellent bumwipes. And even more unfortunately for the ambitious prince, this particular treasure turns out to be in the possession of Grumpling. This extra-large member of the Chilli Hat tribe is known as a Problem Goblin – quite an achievement among the unruly hordes at Clovenstone – and no way, not in a squillion years, is he going to give up the best scratchbackler he's ever found.
Foul deeds ensue. The goblins find themselves on a quest of their own – to stop the first quest – and Philip Reeve shows himself to be once again on top form as he twists, reverses and generally chews to bits all the traditions and rituals of the heroic quest sagas. Hardly anybody ends up acting the way you'd expect them to, except, of course, our old friends Skarper and Henwyn, and an accidental visit to a world not unlike our own provides them with a most effective – if unusual - weapon. And there are plenty of opportunities for bum and poo jokes too, which will have young readers sniggering with delight. It's one of those books you simply cannot allow them to bring to the table, not only because they won't be able to resist reading the yuckiest bits aloud to you, but because of serious risks like choking on their crispies and snorting orange juice down their noses. It's that gross.
That being said, every parent of a child between the ages of about eight and thirteen really must have this book on hand for that nightmare day in the middle of the summer holidays when it's raining outside and there's absolutely and definitely Nothing To Do. Just make sure you buy yourself a nice pair of earplugs at the same time.
You don't have to read the first two books in the series to enjoy this one, but they're very good, and will give a lot of background to this adventure. Look out for Goblins and Goblins vs Dwarves with their distinctively garish covers. And Bookbag loved Muddle Earth Too by Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell: not quite so ick-making, but very funny.
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You can read more book reviews or buy Goblin Quest by Philip Reeve at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
You can read more book reviews or buy Goblin Quest by Philip Reeve at Amazon.com.
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