Off the Shelf: North! or Be Eaten

Last night our family finished North! or Be Eaten, by Andrew Peterson.  What an adventure!  It is the second installment in “The Wingfeather Saga,” and has a very different feel from the first book in the series, On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness.  While enjoyable in its own right, Dark Sea bears the weight of setting the stage for the  saga, and may not overly impress readers the first time through.  However, it is well worth it in order to continue the story in North! Mr. Peterson’s weaving of the tale keeps readers on the edge of their seat throughout the entire book, making it hard to stop – even pushing back bedtime for our two boys on quite a few nights as a result.  The development of the characters, and the reader’s ability to connect with them is a mark of the depth of Mr. Peterson’s story-telling abilities, and has one family eagerly anticipating the next chapter in the adventure.