The Foundry’s Edge
Series: The First Book of Ore
By Cam Baity & Benny Zelkowicz
448 pages – ages 11+
Published by Disney-Hyperion on April 15, 2014
Synopsis- Phoebe Plumm was waiting for her dad to come back home. He was gone, probably on a work trip, but for around three months – his longest yet. One day, Phoebe’s dad is suddenly home, and they need to leave – immediately. Only, they don’t make it away in time. The two of them are captured by identical robot men. Only their housekeeper’s son, Micah, sees this happen, and he decides to rescue them. Phoebe escapes on her own, and ends up meeting up with Micah. They try to find Dr. Plumm, Phoebe’s dad, but end up in a fascinating world, where everything is made of metal, and it seems like the machines there may actually be alive!
What I Thought- This was an exciting book! I enjoyed the world that Phoebe and Micah discovered, along with the secrets they uncovered about the company her dad worked for. The book was an interesting dystopian story, and I enjoyed reading about it. The coauthors worked well together, creating memorable characters in a realistic setting. Micah was a fun character, and you can see him grow from a mean-spirited, selfish person into a mature(-ish) person. Phoebe was a brat (a good-natured one, but still pretty naive) in the beginning, and she really evened out as the story went on. The dystopian world spun by the authors was fascinating and one that the reader can loose him/herself in. One downside- there was some minor language (cussing) throughout the book that didn’t need to be there. At 448 pages the authors give kids a full story that will keep them wrapped up until the last sentence. I cannot wait to read the Second Book of Ore!
I give this book five out of five bookworms!
Categories: Age 9+
As a person who has prepared his entire life for the inevitable robot apocalypse, I find this book intriguing.
It’s not really about a robot apocalypse (but it is good that you are prepared), but finding a world of living metal, and humans slaughtering the metal creatures to “manufacture” to people.
Robocalypse!
Seems interesting. I agree about unnecessary swear words. Middle grade doesn’t need them. Good review. You have me interested.
It’s a really riveting MG novel! (pun not intended)