Imagination Takes Flight: The Flight of the Phoenix by R. L. Lafevers

It's six o'clock already I was just in the middle of a dream...dum dum dum dum dum dum dum ...I was kissing Valentino by a crystal blue Italian stream...dum dum dum dum dum dum dum... Oh!  Hello!  Sorry, I was just singing to myself!  It's been a crazy day and so the aforementioned lyrics are very appropriate!  (For those of you wondering what song it was, those lyrics are from Manic Monday by the Bangles...don't pretend you didn't recognize them!  But, if you didn't, now I saved you the trouble of Google-ing them!) 

Weekends never seem to last long enough and neither does spare time.....I always end up like little Oliver Twist (Please sir, May I have some more?).  Alas, Father Time is not gracious enough to grant my request, but somehow I manage to fool them anyway!  Between working, blogging, working, reading, working ...oh, I said that already...well let's just say it gets a bit chaotic on the schedule.  I did manage to squeeze in a movie this weekend; went to see The Proposal starring Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds.  I really liked it!  Comedy, romance, the BOOK PUBLISHING world....what more could you ask for?  Anywho, you didn't come here just to read about my weekend (althought leaving a comment about yours would be fine!), so let me get on to the meat of the post.  Today's book choice is....

The Flight of the Phoenix
(Nathaniel Fludd, Beastologist, Book I)
by
R. L. Lafevers

Nathaniel Fludd is a quiet young man...something of which can not be said of many people his age. His parents were explorers, to what extent though, he only learns after their untimely death. You see, for the past three or so years, he has been in the care of his governess, Miss Lumpton (try not to giggle....some of the names later on will definitely get to you).  After this grizzly news has been delivered she has only one worry on her mind....what was left to her for her service?  (Nice, right?)  Upon receiving her Tidy Sum (yes, it is capitalized like this in the book too...loved that detail!), young Nathaniel is sent away to a relatives house by the name of P.A. Fludd. 

Sent on his way via train, he travels to his new hometown called (are you ready?) Batting-at-the-Flies.  (Funny, right?)  Along the way he sketches his surroundings as a way of documenting his journey.  It's great because you get to see the sketches too along with the book illustrations throughout the text.  Anywho, back to the story....expecting an older gentleman, Nathaniel is surprised to learn that P.A. Fludd is in fact his aunt! She lives in a rather interesting house that is more of a collection of life's works than four walls and a roof, but that is only scratching the surface! It is here that he discovers that he is to follow in the footsteps of his ancestors in the great tradition of beastologists! (Discovered through his conversation with Cornelius...a dodo!)  The care and well-being of magical, mythical creatures everywhere depends upon his families decendents, or so he is told.  Being that this is his first time hearing this information, it's more than a little hard to swallow.  There's no time to linger on doubt-ridden thoughts though....his first adventure is at hand!  Aiding in the rebirth of a phoenix...how's that for an introduction!  But what's this?  Aunt Fludd has been captured and someone is trying to steal the book that tells all about their craft?  What's a young boy to do?  What indeed....

I can't say enough about this upcoming series! When I first saw the cover, it reminded me of The Spiderwick Chronicles, and upon reading the first chapters, A Series of Unfortunate Events. Fear not, these are both
great series as well and it is not so much like either one that you loose site of the story at hand. With interesting characters in both human (the Fludd's) and creature form (let's see...the dodo, Greasle the gremlin...) as well as creative illustrations along the way, you will feel as though you are there with them on the adventure of a lifetime if you only allow your imagination to take flight....

Although listed as Kids Fiction, I would recommend it for all ages....especially those that enjoyed the other series mentioned.  This book is set to hits shelves 09/28/09 (at the time of this post) so be on the lookout!  In the mean time, check out the author's website for more about this title (as well as a few others), her blog page, or drop her a line on Twitter!  (ALSO!  The image seen above on the right is a sneak peek at the Book 2 cover drawn and posted by Kelly Murphy!  AND I was able to read this fabulous book early courtesy of NetGalley!)

COMMENT CREATOR
So, in the spirit of today's post, let's think about magical, mythical creatures.  Which one would you like to meet up close and personal?  Why?  These can be "real" (as in ones you've read about) or make believe (as in ones you thought of yourself).....

Feel free to leave your comments and feedback!
Until next time....happy reading!