Milford, K. (2010). The boneshaker. New York: Clarion Books.
Plot
At the crossroads lies a ghost town that was abandoned years ago under mysterious circumstances. When the town of Arcane was founded, its founders decided to move it up the road to keep it from falling under the same fate. Growing up in such a place, Natalie is fascinated with anything mechanical and is mesmerized when Dr. Jake Limberleg's Nostrum Fair and Technological Medicine Show stops in her fathers bicycle repair shop and asks to fix a broken wagon wheel to their caravan. Knowing that Dr. Jake is more sinister than he leads on, she is the only one who can save the town after everyone has fallen for his miracle cures and snake oil remedies.
Review
A new twist on Bradbury's "Something Wicked This Way Comes" Boneshaker is as creepy as it is good. Milford's writing is incredibly detailed and you can smell the gears as they start to turn and you can feel the tickle in your nose as the dust is lifted off the single road leading into town. There are going to be characters that seem to weave in and out of the story, some serve a lot and some are there solely to fill up pages. Whichever the case, this is a fantastic novel about the strength of family, community and bravery.
Genre
Fantasy
Reading Level/Interest Level
10-12 years/Tween
Similar Books
A Tale Dark and Grimm- Adam Gidwitz
Revolver- Marcus Sedgwick
The Carnivorous Carnival- Lemony Snicket
Readers Annotation
13 year old Natalie loves anything with gears and wheels, until her small town, family and herself are thrust into a gear like story that will force Natalie to face down with the devil himself.
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