Gregor the Overlander

If someone would have told me that I would fall in love with a series of children's books featuring giant bats, giant rats and giant cockroaches among other creatures, I would have been very skeptical. In fact, after I found Gregor the Overlander in a used bookstore and picked it up to see if it should be added to my growing library of children's books, it sat in my to-be-read pile for more than a year. When I finally sat down with it, I was less than half way through when I took a break and drove to town to buy the rest of the series. I knew that I would want them on hand so that I could finish the series in one big rush. Which is exactly what I did. Then I ordered the entire set in hardcover for myself and mailed the paperback editions to my adult daughter for her to enjoy. Which she did. Since then, I've recommended the series to a number of people, almost all of whom read and enjoyed it as well.In this, her first novel, Suzanne Collins has created a wonderful alternative world that exists side by side with our own. Well, okay, it exists underneath our own, far underneath. Collins is a master at describing that world, enabling me to perfectly envision each new landscape as our heroes move from one area of their diverse world to another. The vast sea, the poisonous jungle, the searing heat of the volcanic wastelands - everything still remains vivid in my mind. And Collins accomplishes this without taking pages and pages to do so.There's a simplicity to the books - not only does Collins never over-described the world, she allows readers to use their imaginations regarding the characters as well. In fact, I'm not quite sure if she ever gives a physical description of eleven year old Gregor at all. But just as as I could imagine the vistas, I could picture the wonderful characters - Boots, Ripred, Luxa, Ares and Temp among so many others - as well and very clearly.There's love and caring in the Gregor series, family, friends, humor and sorrow, duty, prophecies, adventure and, of course, a world to save. The Underland Chronicles deals with war and does a very good job of forcing readers to look at both sides of the disputes underlying the conflict. (Parents should be cautioned that in the course of the 5 book series, more than one beloved character dies.)The series should be read in order:Gregor the OverlanderGregor and the Prophecy of BaneGregor and the Curse of the WarmbloodsGregor and the Marks of SecretGregor and the Code of ClawMy only complaint about the Underland Chronicles is that I found the ending of the series vaguely unsatisfactory. While I appreciate that, with what Collins has given me and how she left things, I can create my own future for the characters, I know I'd still love to read more stories set in this world, perhaps 15 years or so down the road. If Collins does not want to revisit these specific characters, I'd still enjoy another trip to this world, with a catch up to the fate of the characters we met in these volumes revealed somehow as part of the Underland's history. I can only hope. :-)Suzanne Collins is also the author of The Hunger Games, a young adult novel. Both editorial and reader reviews have been overwhelmingly positive and it's currently sitting in my to-be-read pile. Catching Fire, a sequel to The Hunger Games is due to be released on September 1, 2009. I hope readers who have enjoyed The Hunger Games will not dismiss The Underland Chronicles - thinking it for children - and will be willing to give Collins' earlier series a try.Highly recommended.

All the Gregor books I have brought have been super delicate, so it takes a lot of care for it to last long. But the story was wonderful.

Let me start off by saying I didn't think I'd like this book all that much. I read the book flap description and thought `giant rats and bats? Another quest fantasy?'. But, being the bookworm I am, I decided to at least give it a chance. I'm glad I did. And yes, it is a quest fantasy, and yes there are giant rats and bats and cockroaches too. Surprisingly, it all made for a very enjoyable read.Gregor, our teenage hero is an ordinary boy fallen on hard times in New York City. His father vanished years ago and his mother works trying to make ends meet while he tries to take care of his siblings. All this changes when Gregor follows his baby sister, Boots, when she falls through a vent in their laundry room into an underground world with giant bugs and creatures. There are humans there too, and all of them seem to think that Gregor is the Overlander of one of their most powerful prophecies-the warrior who will unite them and bring them victory over the armies of the rats. Gregor is more interested in finding a way home, until he discovers that fulfilling the prophecy might also mean finding his father. But the prophecy is muddled and unclear-can Gregor survive the quest and make it home with his sister and father-or will it claim his life?The story presented here is fairly well tread ground, a reluctant hero from another realm, a quest that requires a gathering of several different creatures, a prophecy that is suitably ambiguous and a dangerous enemy to be overcome. What makes it work is that the author brings the characters to life in delightful ways; the roaches, rats, bats and spiders all have their own styles and customs. As long as the reader is willing to suspend their disbelief that such things can exist, it's a very fascinating a rousing adventure tale with a very satisfying ending. Once the quest is set in motion, events happen very quickly, and our hero becomes the warrior he's required to be. And the twists and turns in the prophecy make certain that this won't be an easy ending to completely figure out. There isn't a great deal of world-building here, although there's enough to make the underground world seem real and realistic in its geography. And while the non-human characters receive some excellent characterization, I found that some of the human characters were less well fleshed out, although Boots is very charming in her way and some of the human characters are better revealed as the story progresses. Perhaps my greatest complaint with this story was that at the very end, a teaser is placed in the story for the sequel in a rather clumsy way. There's suddenly the announcement of "oh, by the way, there's another prophecy . . ." as if it were pulled out of a hat and dropped into the plot. Despite this little add on, the story itself is decent and enthralling and should keep a reader entertained until the end.This book is dark at times, and may be a bit scary for younger readers, but most young teen and preteen readers who enjoy quest fantasy will likely enjoy it. Older readers may find the characters a bit too young for their interest -this is definitely not a universal read, but it works well for its age group. Readers who enjoy this will want to go on to read GREGOR AND THE PROPHECY OF THE BANE, which is the next book in the series. Other types of books these readers may enjoy will be THE DARK IS RISING sequence by Susan Cooper and SO YOU WANT TO BE A WIZARD by Diane Duane.Happy Reading! Shanshad ^_^

Sure, it's no R.A. Salvatore, in many ways, it is better, and I love Drizzt, Caitibrie, etc .,Fantasy mixed with current realities and some Sci fi on top, is a mixture that screams, read me!

I read this series as a kid and it was what got me into reading, while it certainly is a book for children, it still works very well for an adult like me who wants a bit of nostalgia. Fantastic book 1 to a great series of books.

As a lover of The Hunger Games, I decided to check out Collins' other work. This series totally blew me away. Despite being pitched towards younger children (perfect for 9-10 year olds) it has all the depth and integrity of The Hunger Games and has even better character development. The plots (in all five books) are thrilling and action-packed, but there are some meaty, though-provoking scenes and a whole range of ethical and moral dilemmas are raised. The characters are brilliantly described (particularly Ripred who I am very fond of) and I simply couldn't put the book down until I had completed their journeys. As with The Hunger Games, Collins doesn't shy away from killing main characters and this gives the stories a depth and maturity that other children's books simply do not tackle. I read the entire series from start to finish in a few weeks and was blown away. As I am a teacher of 8-10 year old children, I then took the books into the classroom and read them to my class. I've never had a reaction like it. Every single child in the class bought the entire series, would read enthusiastically when before they had struggled and would burst into class every morning simply to tell me what had happened in the last chapter.I adore The Hunger Games but I think I would say that Gregor the Overlander is even better. Simply fantastic.

A great series that on paper you might think wouldn’t work. All the animals / insects that people usually fear/ are averse to are shown in a new light ( Think friendly , loving cockroaches and the loyal bats ) this series follows one boy who thinks himself unimportant, living a sometimes difficult life. As the series develops we see the main character grow in confidence, find and fulfil prophecies ,which are life changing , and ends with his finding himself. A reminder that family comes in all shapes and sizes and that we are defined by our choices in life.

I loved the Hunger Games and was interested to see what other books Suzanne Collins had written. Initially I was put off buying this book as it seemed to be aimed at a much younger audience, however I took a chance and am so pleased that I did! This book was excellent! Beautifully written and I adored the characters of Temp and Boots and the wonderful relationship they shared. This book made me laugh but also kept me up at night as I couldn't wait to find out what happened in the next chapter. I will definitely be reading all the books in this series and can not recommend it enough. Great read for all ages.

Read the Hunger Games series first & bought this to read more by the same author. To my surprise & pleasingly found this series much better, more inventive and really wanted to see where the series sent. Well worth reading the series in order.

My son is 10 and up to now has only really read Beast Quest, which is fine but somewhat limited. We went to see the Hunger Games at the cinema and he loved it! While not yet ready for the Hunger Games books he was very excited about reading something by Suzanne Collins and really took to Gregor.As a result he has since read the first sequel, has requested the other three books too and has moved on to reading other more challenging (and well-written) books too.I am delighted!