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Apr 22, 2011

Barky rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Jul 28, 2009

Barb rated it:

This debut novel by author Mattew Skelton intertwines two stories, one set at present-day Oxford University and the other in 15th century Germany. The present day story concerns Blake, a young child of divorced parents, who discovers a wordless book in the college library. It is not so much that he discovers the book but that the book discovers him. The book that Blake discovers purports to contain the secerts of eternal wisdom. It appears blank when the pages are looked upon, but shows the More...

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Sep 29, 2008

Pam rated it:

Not being a big fantasy fan, I initially had ambivalent feelings about reading this book. However,I really enjoyed this book. I thought it was captivating and intelligently written. I also liked how it was intertwined with the Gutenberg and the history of printing.
I found myself engrossed in this story that switches back and forth between Mainz, Germany, in 1453 and present day Oxford England. While reading, I empathized with the young character's predicaments in both time zones.

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Sep 14, 2010

Jessi rated it:

I really enjoyed the writing style of this book. The author ties together different historical versions of the person known as Fust (believed to be "Faust"). Evil and its presence in the world is explored, and its meaning questioned. The storyline moves back and forth through time with the narrator's voice being in the past, yet it works surprisingly well to add tension and depth to the plot. The narrator is actually mute, but his thoughts are so vivid it gives him a strong voice. More...

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Jul 29, 2011

Mrs.Houck rated it:

In a story that jumps between the early days of the printing press and the 21st Century, Matthew Skelton tells the story of Blake Winters, who is passing time in an Oxford Library while his mother does research. When a mysterious book pricks him on the finger as he is running his hand along the shelves, he is caught up in a mystery centuries old. Parallel stories tell the tale of Endymion Spring, the original printer's helper who worked with Johann Gutenberg as he was perfecting the invention of More...

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Oct 13, 2011

Alyssa rated it:

Endymion Spring is a cute novel with a dual-story about two boys both connected to a magical book that contains basically all the knowledge you could ever want to know.

Throughout most of the novel, I was more intrigued by the back story than I was by the present-day story with Blake and his sister Ducky. This turned itself around near the end, but I would have liked to see some more of the black magic stuff that was presented so nicely with Endymion in the past.

The climax of More...

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Nov 24, 2011

Theoxeny rated it:

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Apr 23, 2011

Lizixer rated it:

I picked this up off the children's shelves at my local library, reading the first chapter to pass the time as the kids played, but couldn't put it back as the first few pages intrigued me.

Books with children as the central characters are not necessarily just books for children and there is an impressive level of care in the historical detail about medieval Germany as well as a suitable level of gothic spookiness.

The modern day part is a familiar story of children made u More...

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Jun 28, 2011

Natasha rated it:

Excellent read. Loved it. Suspense, drama, emotion. At first, I thought I would not like it .. thought it might be too much of a young read ... but was hooked from page one to 389. I always like reading books that delves in to history yet can encompass the present day. Skelton has done a beautiful job of intertwining both. why is it that some people are obsessed with knowing it all? If you know it all, what is there left to learn? My main take away from the book is that an unassuming, ot More...

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Nov 01, 2009

Belann rated it:

Endymion Spring is the story of two boys separated by 500 years. The stories of the two boys are connected by a magical book, said to hold all knowledge. The first boy, Endymion Spring, is the mute assistant to the famous printer Gutenberg. The other boy, Blake, lives in the modern world with his mother,who is doing research at Oxford University,and his little sister Duck. The thrilling adventure alternates between the two lives. It begins with Endymion working for Gutenberg. Endymion ends up More...

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May 03, 2009

Sarah rated it:

This was rather disappointing. Parallel stories about the making of a truly unique book in Mainz in the 1400s I believe and a young boy in Oxford in the present day. The stories connect through the extraordinary book known as "Endymion Spring." I love books about books, especially ones with a bit of mystery but this was really just a let-down. I didn't find anything about it particularly interesting and it wasn't compelling either. I'm also a little annoyed by the overly cutesy nicknam More...

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Apr 21, 2011

Jill rated it:

Intriguing, and a fun, fast-paced read that kept my attention. There is an undeniable appeal of a story that spans so much time and a secret that is so huge. And this book almost works! (As a librarian, I didn't like the librarian as babysitter setup from the second page, and the "mole-like" librarians who fetch books from underground storage.) The two kids are kind of annoying. [return][return]And without spoiling it, what are we supposed to learn from the ending? The Frodo compa More...

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Apr 23, 2010

Sara ♥ rated it:

Whew! That took quite a while! I'm just listening to the "exclusive interview" with Matthew Skelton... Okay, all done.

Well, this book was really interesting, but somehow it wasn't so gripping as to motivate me to clean my house, like really good audiobooks do... ;) (Any excuse to keep reading, you see...)

The book weaves two stories together: one set at present-day Oxford University and the other in 15th century Germany.

The Oxford part of the st More...

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Oct 29, 2010

Mailis rated it:

I don't know about this one, i gather the author had rags to riches story after writing this book, but i honestly don't enjoy books that rely on hinting or giving you glimpses of a story that could stand on its own without the other complicated effort to make it more sophisticated, the background story seems to be a lot more interesting and didn't need the addition of a boy and his sister running around oxford and discovering a whole lot of nothing surrounded by this overwhelming mystery. It see More...

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Nov 30, 2011

Solyndra rated it:

Endymion Spring is an exciting children's book, that gives a nice (if basic) introduction into the world of the humanities and how they work. It speaks of libraries and the Middle Ages and the coming up of the printing press. The read was interesting, I found myself turning page upon page. There were little things that bothered me (most particularly Duck, who really grated on me) but overall it was an enjoyable experience.

Then I came to the historical notes. I had been wondering abou More...

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Jan 29, 2012

Susan rated it:

I think I would have enjoyed this book more if I was younger. Alas, I can not accommodate.

Fun children's book about a brother and sister who find a mysterious, magical book in one of the Oxford libraries. This book jumps back and forth between modern day and 1400s Germany, during the life of Johannes Gutenberg.

I really enjoyed the 1400s stuff and wish that the book had had more of that. But then I also really enjoyed the kids traipsing around the Oxford libraries.
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Jul 13, 2011

Stefanie rated it:

As a fan of books, I had fun with this - it's actually a pretty good choice for an ambitious pre-teen or young teen. The biggest thing that irritated me, however, was what seemed to be the lack of editing. If two children are born and raised in America and spend a few weeks in Oxford, it's pretty unlikely they would be using British terms (paperknife (letter opener), correspondence (mail), candy string (cotton candy) or calling their mother "Mum"). Even if it DID happen (which is somet More...

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Sep 04, 2011

S. Bell rated it:

Oh seriously? That was just so incredibly awesome! A surprisingly fast read as well, for all its seemingly enormous length. I just couldn't put it down as well :) Nicely adventurous, where the adventure and mystique are to do with books and libraries - the sort of book that you'll love if you love stuff like The Neverending Story and Inkheart - which I do love, so yay! It's set in present-day Oxford, as well as having several flashbacks to 15th century Mainz which was just lovely. I liked how th More...

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Mar 28, 2008

Hana rated it:

I quite enjoyed reading Endymion Spring. It follows two storylines: one in the past in Mainz, Germany and the other in the present in St. Jerome’s College, Oxford. The past storyline reveals that Endymion Spring is a young apprentice to Johann Gutenberg. The present storyline reveals that Endymion Spring is “the most legendary, sought-after books in the world and could be incredibly dangerous if it falls into the wrong hands.”

Why is the book so dangerous? What secrets does it More...

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May 18, 2008

Jennifer rated it:

Like many books, Endymion Spring began with a lot of promise and never quite delivered on it. The main characters felt rather flat and in the end there was no great revelation as it felt like we'd been building to. The end was all to predictable and bland. Was it really an end at all? The story swings wildly from the middle ages and Endymion to the present day and Blake and Duck the two young protagonists who stumble into the story. The parts set in the middle ages were intriguing but they never More...

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Mar 21, 2008

Dave rated it:

Our family listened to this novel, geared toward transescents (middle schoolers), but viable for anyone who enjoys mysteries, book collecting or the Faust story, during a family road trip. My middle school aged daughter thought it would be a good story. She was right. We all enjoyed listening to the story as we drove. It reminded my of Susan Cooper's "The Dark is Rising" series and some of the books by John Bellairs. A ripping yarn about youth coming into the ongoing contest betwe More...

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Jun 27, 2007

Toby rated it:

I am still reading that book via PDA. I don't know what to say about it because I heard so much about it, as if it is a very good book. But as I read, I hope it would be a fast-pacing book. It is not. It is very slow.

Only part in the book I like is the paper dragon. It is cute. I am sure it would look good when it is live action, i.e. the movie. I know WB has bought the rights for the movie. Not sure when it will be out. I am still keeping an eye on it.

Anyway, I know I More...

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Nov 09, 2010

Challengeddino rated it:

Honestly this book took me more than a month to get through due to the slow pace. The beginning was moderate; it caught my attention. Then came the middle which I hardly enjoyed, there wasn't enough grip to it. The ending then came to become predictable. It's not that it was written badly it's just that it was not of my taste. It moved far too slowly and where as I enjoy demons and gore this book offered fantasy and wonder. Great read for those who enjoy fantasy but this book just wasn't for me. More...

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Jan 20, 2012

Miakamo rated it:

I have to admit that the moment I started to read the book I was captured, I wanted to know more, wanted to know what was inside the chest ^^.
The reason why I gave only 3 stars for this book is the writening. Now, it could be that the book is much better in its original english version because I read it in Croatian and in some places I had the feeling the book was written by some small child, but as I said it could be because of poor the translation.

All in all the book is worth r More...

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Jun 08, 2009

Nicki rated it:

I felt like the plot of this book was really creative - I loved the comparison between the two time periods and how they connected with each other. However, I felt like the author didn't do as well a job as he could have with such a great idea. I was a little disappointed at the end. I just wanted more - a deeper story, more character development. Overall, it was a fun, quick read, with a good idea... even if it wasn't as good as it could have been.

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Oct 30, 2009

Noriko rated it:

The first time I picked up this book and read the synopsis, I thought it was a story about a boy who unleashed some sort of monster into his world! But I never expected it to be a book about a Book! Nonetheless, it was one which has links to the intruiging history of Fust and early book printing, libraries and dusty bookshops and Oxford. As a book-lover, I love the ideas which were conveyed in this story: dragon skin paper, a library-forest, a hurricane of book pages, a Book of knowledge... I ev More...

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Aug 04, 2011

Neill rated it:

When Endymion Spring started his apprenticeship with Johann Gutenberg he had no inkling that he would end up as the rescuer of a mystical book printed on dragonskin that would write him messages as he read its blank pages. When the book discovered Blake in Oxford five hundred years later while his mother was pursuing research his life was put at risk by the greed of scholars to acquire the knowledge and power contained in the book.

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Feb 25, 2010

Magila rated it:

if you asked me up till like page 100, i'd say i was slogging through this book and it was worthy of a 2. somewhere though, it turned good. without me even realizing. like 4 good. so it balances out to a 3. for 1.00 at the thrift store, i can't complain. if you have a little time, you might want to give it a try... and if you feel yourself not thrilled, try to give it a little more time.

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Jul 05, 2011

Vishy rated it:

The book's setting was wonderful - Oxford university and its libraries. The premise was interesting - the search for a mysterious book which reveals all knowledge. Unfortunately, the way the story went about it was quite disappointing. Could have been better. I enjoyed reading the parts of the book about Gutenberg and his assistant Endymion. The author's inexperience in storytelling showed. I hope his future books are better.

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Mar 28, 2008

Legend rated it:

I really loved this! I chose it for my PSL (personal study of literature...) at school last year and I couldnt put it down :D I just kept wanting to read each new chapter as each bit made me more and more intrigued as to what happened. it was a while ago so ive kinda forgotten all the details but it was really interesting to be able to write about two different plots set in two different times and i didnt expect what happened to happen! anyway, i'll shut up my review kinda sucks. but if you like More...

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