Inkheart (Book 1)

by Cornelia Funke

book data

15,005 ratings, 3.94 average rating, 2,906 reviews (more data...)

rating	frequency	%
5		34%
4		35%
3		21%
2		6%
1		1%

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published

August 23rd 2005 (first published 2003) by Listening Library (Audio)

binding

Audio CD, 14 pages

characters

Meggie Folchart, Mo Folchart, Dustfinger, Elinor Loredan

setting

Italy

isbn

0307282279 (isbn13: 9780307282279)

description

Meggie's father, Mo, has an wonderful and sometimes terrible ability. When he reads aloud from books, he brings the characters to life--literally. Mo ...more

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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 20,701)

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05/21/08

Jessica rated it:

(review of isbn 0439709105)

bookshelves: borrowed-from-library, kids, tried-and-couldnt-finish

Read in June, 2008

I was very much looking forward to reading this, as it had very good word-of-mouth as a high-quality children's/YA fantasy that adults will also enjoy. And the premise, that characters can exist in the "real world" outside of books, or that real people can enter the world inside a book, is endlessly appealing. However, my local library is on the verge of opening a new wing with my overdue book fines on this, because I keep hanging onto it in the hope that eventually I will be able to f...more I was very much looking forward to reading this, as it had very good word-of-mouth as a high-quality children's/YA fantasy that adults will also enjoy. And the premise, that characters can exist in the "real world" outside of books, or that real people can enter the world inside a book, is endlessly appealing. However, my local library is on the verge of opening a new wing with my overdue book fines on this, because I keep hanging onto it in the hope that eventually I will be able to finish reading it.

I think it's just not going to happen. First of all, there is something very stilted and anachronistic in the writing, and I can't tell whether that's just Cornelia Funke, or a result of the translation work. Also, the book is simply too long. It takes 150 pages for anything to begin to happen, and that's much too long, even for an adult book. I blame J.K. Rowling for this kind of bloating.

Finally, I'm extremely annoyed by people, whether real or fictional, who pat themselves on the back for loving books. People have loved books for as long as there have been books, and even before books, people loved storytelling and drama. You're not a special kind of intellect for loving books and wordplay. The people in Inkheart are paraded before us as people with an extra special super duper love of books that is so powerful that they can cause the boundary between books and reality to melt. But just carrying around favorite books in a little trunk and bragging you've loved books since you were a baby and could read before you could talk and so forth isn't particularly magical or distinctive or worthy of praise, and I got tired pretty quickly of Meggie and her father and aunt and their extreme reverence for books. Capping it off is Funke's annoying habit of using an epigram from other (mostly fantasy) books for each chapter. If she found those inspiring, fine, stick them on your bulletin board while writing. But they were yet more reason to jump out of the story, rather than having it propel along.(less)

Like this review? yes (20 people liked it)

2 comments

10/13/07

Ann rated it:

(review of isbn 0439709105)

bookshelves: actionadventure, fantasy, young-adult

Read in March, 2008

recommended to Ann by: Katie! Thanks again!:D
recommends it for: Fans of great stories and detailed plots and characters

What a great story!
This is quite the page-turner! I was driven to read more by both the action/adventure and the plot/conclusion. Both are excellently written! Funke’s style of writing (and indeed the translation made by Anthea Bell) makes for a smooth and beautiful read.
Wonderfully drawn and very detailed characters fill this book from cover to cover, each character being unique and complete. The story is told from multiple viewpoints, which adds another interesting dimension ...more

Like this review? yes (13 people liked it)

24 comments

02/24/08

Dana rated it:

(review of isbn 0439709105)

Read in May, 2008

Oy... I really wanted to like this book. I had such high hopes for it. It was one of those books that whenever my students saw me reading it they said, "Oh, I really liked that book! It was so good." So, I thought it would be great. It just wasn't. The story was nice. In short (very short): Meggie's father repairs books. Her mother disappeared nine years ago. After a mysterious visitor shows up at their house, Meggie finds out that her father has a secret. He can read characters out of...more

Like this review? yes (10 people liked it)

2 comments

10/18/07

Kathryn rated it:

(review of isbn 0439709105)

bookshelves: children-s-books, fantasy---sci-fi, very-favorites

Read in January, 2005

A wonderful, imaginative story. The characters are so vivid, the tale so engaging, the prose so poetic... A glorious tale for anyone who ever dreamed of being transported into the stories she reads, or of having friends from the tales brought into our world!

On her website, author Cornelia Funke says,
"I didn't suspect that this story would grow untill it could fill more than one book. I have dreamed for a long time of writing a story in which characters from a book come i...more

Like this review? yes (9 people liked it)

1 comment

02/26/09

Em rated it:

(review of isbn 0439709105)

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

I really liked the concept of this book. How many times have I dreamed of being a wizard at hogwarts, or dancing at a ball with Mr. Darcy, or dare I say it, being a Cullen? (just kidding). I did think the writing was a little dis-jointed at times, but maybe that comes from the translation. I also thought that she was extrememly long-winded. So much of the book seemed rather irrelevant to me. It could have been half the length and been just as good.

I also thought some of her characte...more I really liked the concept of this book. How many times have I dreamed of being a wizard at hogwarts, or dancing at a ball with Mr. Darcy, or dare I say it, being a Cullen? (just kidding). I did think the writing was a little dis-jointed at times, but maybe that comes from the translation. I also thought that she was extrememly long-winded. So much of the book seemed rather irrelevant to me. It could have been half the length and been just as good.

I also thought some of her characters reactions to things were a little unbelievable. Like when Basta finds Pippo and is hauling him around and holding knives to his throat and all the little kid does is cry. Let's talk about tramautic events, and then you hear nothing more about it. It just seemed to me that sometimes she wanted her characters to seem real, with families and loved ones, and then other times they became strictly fictional, reacting to situations like no normal person would react, or like she just forgot about them and wanted to move on with the story. I also though Meggie seemed at lot older than 12. She's definatly more mature than most 12-year-olds I know.
One last note, I thought it funny that she kept saying throughout the whole book how people who read books never think about the authors, or if they do they figure all authors are old and dead.
All in all, a good book. I could definatly relate to their love of books, and when I get older and my kids are gone, I would love to live in a house just like Elinor's, stacked from top to bottom with more books than I could read in a lifetime. I did however think that their reverance for all books was a bit extreme, because what good is a book if you're not going to read it, but just lock it in a glass case. I never really understood the desire to be a "book collector." I'd like to have tons and tons of books, but I don't really mind what condition their in, as long as I can read them :)
I also enjoyed how she put qoutes from other books at the beginning of each of the chapters. Gave me a lot more books to look up and read.(less)

Like this review? yes (6 people liked it)

1 comment

03/08/09

Weni rated it:

(review of other edition)

Read in April, 2009

Kalo kamu bisa memunculkan benda2 atau tokoh2 dari buku yang kamu baca, buku apa yg akan kamu pilih dan apa atau siapa yang akan kamu munculkan?

Mortimer (Mo), ayah Meggie, punya kemampuan ajaib, ia bisa mengeluarkan tokoh2 dari buku yang dibacanya (dibaca dg suara, bukan dlm hati). Kejadiannya sering tanpa sengaja dan awalnya Mo hanya mengeluarkan benda2 mati dari bukunya. Sampai akhirnya 9 thn lalu Mo membacakan Tintenherz untuk sang istri dan tanpa sengaja mengeluarkan Capricorn - ...more Kalo kamu bisa memunculkan benda2 atau tokoh2 dari buku yang kamu baca, buku apa yg akan kamu pilih dan apa atau siapa yang akan kamu munculkan?

Mortimer (Mo), ayah Meggie, punya kemampuan ajaib, ia bisa mengeluarkan tokoh2 dari buku yang dibacanya (dibaca dg suara, bukan dlm hati). Kejadiannya sering tanpa sengaja dan awalnya Mo hanya mengeluarkan benda2 mati dari bukunya. Sampai akhirnya 9 thn lalu Mo membacakan Tintenherz untuk sang istri dan tanpa sengaja mengeluarkan Capricorn - sang tokoh jahat, Basta - tangan kanan Capricorn, serta Staubfinger - si pemain bola api, sementara ibu Meggie masuk ke dalam buku. Sejak itu, Mo tidak mau lagi membacakan buku untuk Meggie, takut anaknya masuk ke dalam buku :D

Petualangan pun dimulai. Capricorn dan anak buahnya terus mengejar Mo dan buku Tintenherz miliknya demi kepentingan jahat. Mo sendiri berusaha menyembunyikan buku itu di rumah Elinor (bibi ibu Meggie) karena ingin mengeluarkan ibu Meggie. Sementara Staubfinger sangat ingin kembali ke dalam buku itu.

Capricorn berhasil menangkap Mo, Meggie dan Elinor, lalu memaksa Mo membaca Pulau Harta Karun dan mengeluarkan harta karunnya. Capricorn sebenarnya punya pembaca lain sbg tawanan selama ini, namanya Darius, tapi Darius blm dpt menyamai Mo sehingga tokoh2 yang keluar dari buku sering tidak sempurna. Stlh mengeluarkan harta karun, Mo dipaksa membaca Kisah 1001 Malam, tapi yang muncul adalah anak muda bernama Farid, sementara salah satu anak buah Capricorn menghilang.

Mo, Meggie, Elinor dan Farid berhasil kabur, berkat bantuan Staubfinger. Buku Tintenherz milik Mo telah dirampas Capricorn dan dibakar. Capricorn memang mencuri dan membakar semua buku Tintenherz yang ada, kecuali satu, agar tidak ada yang bisa mengembalikan dia ke dalam buku. Mo dan Meggie lalu menemui Fenoglio, sang penulis Tintenherz, sedangkan Elinor kembali ke rumah dan mendapati seluruh koleksi bukunya telah diacak2 dan dibakar oleh anak buah Capricorn.

Meggie kembali tertangkap Capricorn, kali ini bersama Fenoglio (yang terkagum2 melihat tokoh2 ciptaannya hidup). Maksudnya sbg umpan agar Mo datang. Tapi ternyata Meggie pun punya kemampuan yang sama. Tanpa sengaja dia mengeluarkan Tinker Bell dari buku Peter Pan. Maka Capricorn pun menyiapkan upacara, dimana Meggie harus membaca Tintenherz dan mengeluarkan anak buah Capricorn yang sangat menakutkan, Sang Bayangan. Sang Bayangan akan bangkit di bawah kaki tuannya dan menunggu tuannya menunjuk mangsa berikutnya. Capricorn menciptakan Sang Bayangan dari abu orang2 yang mati dibakar olehnya.

Bgmn cara Meggie dan Fenoglio mengatasi Sang Bayangan? Bgmn cara Mo dan Farid menyelamatkan Meggie? Dan bgmn nasib ibu Meggie? Baca sendiri bukunya :D

Buku tentang buku. Kisahnya berpusat pada sebuah buku (Tintenherz), tokoh2nya adalah makhluk2 yang keluar dari buku dan para pencinta buku (Mo adalah 'Dokter Buku', Meggie pergi kemana2 selalu membawa kotak berisi buku, Ibu Meggie selalu membaca buku, Elinor adalah kolektor buku).

Buku fantasi yang sangat menarik (menurut saya). Saya pasti akan membeli buku lanjutan Trilogi Inkworld ini dan menonton filmnya (ngomong2 dah maen blm sih filmnya?). Tokoh menarik dalam cerita ini adalah Elinor. Judes, pemarah. Rumahnya digambarkan penuh dg buku. Perpustakaannya luar biasa. Buku adalah anak2nya. Bayangkan perasaannya ketika koleksinya dibakar oleh Capricorn hehe.
Ada percakapan menarik antara Meggie dan Elinor, di rumah Elinor:
"Kenapa seluruh rumah dibiarkan begini gelap?" tanya Meggie.
"Karena aku lebih suka memakai uangku untuk membeli buku daripada membayar biaya listrik yang berlebihan !" jawab Elinor sambil mendelik.

Jadi... buku apa yang akan kamu baca dan siapa yang akan kamu munculkan? hehe(less)

Like this review? yes (5 people liked it)

19 comments

02/08/08

Maia rated it:

(review of isbn 0439709105)

bookshelves: fantasy

recommends it for: People against the world domination of FedEx

Okay, I'm at hundred pages, and I'm like: someone just kill that loser Capricorn, and then FedEx the rest of the gang home! PLEASE! I'll pay Preferred!
It goes like this: go here, go there, go back here, go back there, return to here, and so on...
Also, this story was kind of scary, which doesn't rate high in my book (pun intended).
The idea was excellent, but poorly executed.

Like this review? yes (5 people liked it)

1 comment

02/17/08

♥ Brigid ♥ rated it:

(review of isbn 0439709105)

bookshelves: books-that-stink

Has a copy to sell/swap

Snore. I feel like I've read this story a million times before: a guy reads a book, and it comes to life. The unoriginal story manages to drag out for almost six hundred pages. The main character is pathetic and uninteresting. I don't understand why so many people like this book.

Like this review? yes (5 people liked it)

21 comments

07/06/08

Richard rated it:

(review of isbn 0439709105)

A young adult novel, published in Germany and translated to English. River Kikkert recommended this book. A man discovers he has the ability to make people become real when he reads about them aloud from a book. Some villains from another time are brought into this world and they cause great problems .Takes place in modern day Italy in the country side. All the characters are described and given personalities in the book. It would be along the lines of the Lord of the Rings series in terms ...more A young adult novel, published in Germany and translated to English. River Kikkert recommended this book. A man discovers he has the ability to make people become real when he reads about them aloud from a book. Some villains from another time are brought into this world and they cause great problems .Takes place in modern day Italy in the country side. All the characters are described and given personalities in the book. It would be along the lines of the Lord of the Rings series in terms of tenseness and conflict with villains. A 12 year old girl is one of the lead characters. Very complex story, not a cutsie children’s book; best read by a late teenager. Lots of tense times I “read” the book on audio cassette, unabridged, read by Lynn Redgrave. She does an excellent job in the reading, bringing life to the characters. I would recommend the book and the audio cassettes because of the author’s and Redgrave’s ability to transport me to the scene of action. At one tense moment I actually thought I was watching a movie of the action rather than listening to someone read to me out of a book. The writing and reading were so vivid I finally realize that it was words that were creating the movie in my mind. That is the sign of good author and good reading.

Following are some quotes from the book; taken out of context they seem to be gentle encouragements to read but they were actually at some very tense moments of the book: Again, this is a very tense book.

And one night, when she couldn’t get to sleep, she sat down at the desk in front of her window and began to write while the fairies played in Eleanor’s garden and the trolls rustled in the bushes. For Meggie had a plan. She wanted to learn to make up stories like Finolio. She wanted to learn to fish for words so that she could read aloud to her mother without worrying about who might come out of the stories and look at her with homesick eyes. So Meggie decided words would be her trade. And where better could she learn that trade than in a house full of magical creatures, where fairies built their nests in the garden, and books were put on the shelves by night. As Mo had said, writing stories is a kind of magic, too.
Cornelia Funke from Inkheart

Is there anything in the world better than words on a page. Magic signs. The voices of the dead. Building blocks to make wonderful worlds better than this one. Comforters, companions in loneliness. Keepers of secrets. Speakers of the truth. All those glorious words. Taste every word, . . . savor it on your tongue. Do you taste the colors? Do you taste the wind in the night? The fear and the joy and the love. Taste them and everything will come to life.
Cornelia Funke Extracted and slightly paraphrased from Inkheart

Meggie stroked its binding as she always did before she opened a book. She had seen Mo doing the same. Every since she could remember she had known that movement, the way he would pick up a book, stroke the binding, almost tenderly, then open it as if he were opening a box full to the brim with precious things. Cornelia Funke from Inkheart

(less)

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06/27/08

Kirsty rated it:

(review of isbn 1904442099)

bookshelves: fantasy, young-adult

Read in August, 2008

Oof... it took me 12 days to finish this book. Not like me at all.

I liked the storyline. I love the fact that it is a book about books, and that is what initially made me want to read it. I read the blurb on the book and it sounded like a really fun read.

I was wrong.

The book was VERY long-winded. Whilst the plotline was good, and the characters were nicely built, the actual story dragged on most of the time. The best part of the book is the last few chapters, ...more

Like this review? yes (3 people liked it)

2 comments

07/30/07

Wednesday rated it:

(review of isbn 0439852706)

bookshelves: booksilove, childrens, highestrecommendation, youngadults

Read in July, 2007

recommends it for: Lovers of all things books

This book is everything I ever wanted. It's a book about a book and lovers of books. It's very self-affirming for me. Now I don't feel like a COMPLETE goober for 1) smelling books 2) learning Elvish or 3) bringing at least 5 books with me everywhere I go.

Note: just because I don't FEEL like a complete goober, does not mean I am not one.

"Inkheart" is the first in a trilogy. "Inkspell" is already out, and "Inkdeath" will be out in 2008.

...more

Like this review? yes (5 people liked it)

2 comments

01/20/08

Thomas rated it:

(review of isbn 3791504657)

Read in April, 2007

Die zugrundeliegende Idee ist toll, leider macht Cornelia Funke dann eigentlich zuwenig daraus. Das Buch liest sich zwar angenehm (gut, es ist ein Kinder- / Jugendbuch, aber trotzdem keinesfall anspruchslos geschrieben), aber von Zeit zu Zeit scheint die Geschichte anzuhalten und die Autorin muss sie dann relativ bemüht wieder in Fahrt bringen.

Trotzdem ein durchaus schönes, empfehlenswertes Buch, wenn man Sinn für intelligente Fantasy hat.

Like this review? yes (3 people liked it)

2 comments

02/24/09

Bookczuk rated it:

(review of isbn 0439709105)

bookshelves: bookcrossing, books-about-books

My reading soul was battered and bruised, and a friend offered this book to me to help soothe the hurt. A lovely fantasy tale, with just enough villains and heroic folks to keep it balanced. You root for a happy ending and keep reading. Each chapter starts with a quote from a beloved children's classic, so you get to visit old friends on the journey through the story.

A few passages helped assure me how much the author really does love books and all they represent. Meggie, tired a...more

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02/21/09

Ayu Palar rated it:

(review of other edition)

bookshelves: children-books

Read in February, 2009

recommended to Ayu by: Tyas Palar
recommends it for: Dini Yulianti

Tentu saja saya mencintai buku, kalau tidak buat apa saya ikut Goodreads? Tapi mempunyai kekuatan seperti Mo, ayah Meggie? Tunggu dulu, kayaknya saya akan berpikir ratusan kali untuk mempunyai kekuatan Lidah Ajaib. Sepertinya menyenangkan ya kalau ketika membaca sebuah buku tokoh-tokoh di dalamnya bisa keluar dan muncul secara fisik di hadapan kita. Kalau yang keluar tokoh yang baik seperti Harry Potter, ya tidak masalah. Tapi kalau yang keluar tokoh antagonis? Oops, di situlah konflik Inkheart ...more

Like this review? yes (2 people liked it)

9 comments

10/10/07

Michelle rated it:

(review of isbn 0439709105)

Read in October, 2007

Hoo boy did I love this novel. Firstly, it's a book about books and the people who love them. You really can't go wrong starting from there.

For a young adult novel, it has several interesting quirks. Maybe it's because I'm used to reading about American and British heroes and heroines in my YA novels, and this book is translated from the German, but it was a nice change to have a different setting ... from what I could tell, this book takes place mostly in Italy.

And i...more

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04/14/08

Ankita *************************************** rated it:

(review of isbn 0439709105)

Read in October, 2004

This book was the best book ever! It reminds me of when I thought I could go into a book by jumping into it (I got that idea from Blues Clues, hey, you can't blame me for being immature!)I literally jumped into one of those encyclopedias (I was looking at the pictures)and ended up getting my mom really mad at me...
Inkheart, however, casts an enchantment upon you that really does pull you into the book to follow Meggie and her friends on a quest to attempt to defeat Capricorn.
Though ...more

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04/10/08

Claudia rated it:

(review of isbn 0439709105)

bookshelves: ya-books

Read in November, 2008

recommended to Claudia by: Bri, Kirsten, Alex, Katie...
recommends it for: well read fantasy fans

What an interesting idea: a book about books, and characters coming to life in the 'real' world. People 'reading' characters into and out of books. What fun to meet Tinkerbell and the Steadfast Tin Soldier. Every character is deeply involved with books in some way. The climactic scene was as full of suspense as any I've read. I think my favorite parts of the book were the exerpts from OTHER books at the beginning of each chapter...Princess Bride, Wind in the Willows, Once and Future King, LOTR. ...more

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04/10/09

Helna rated it:

(review of other edition)

bookshelves: novel

Judul Buku : Tintenherz: Inkheart
Penulis : Cornelia Funke
Alih Bahasa : Dinyah Latuconsina
Tebal : 535 hal.
Tahun Terbit : Januari 2009
Penerbit : Gramedia Pustaka Utama
Harga : Rp. 58.000,-

Inkheart adalah buku pertama dari Trilogi Inkworld buah karya penulis asal Jerman, Cornelia Funke. Sebelumnya Funke telah menulis Herr Der Diebe (Pangeran Pencuri).

Sembilan tahun yang lalu, saat Mo membaca Tintenherz. Tanpa sengaja ia memunculkan be...more

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12/07/08

Queezle rated it:

(review of isbn 0439709105)

I have no idea why people like this book. Where is the character developement, the intrigue, the plot? It's like a lump. After I read it, I thought back and couldn't even remember the storyline - it was too jumpy and mumbled. Not a good work of fiction.

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01/13/09

Rachel rated it:

(review of isbn 0439852706)

Read in January, 2009

I have little doubt that Inkheart is a magical read for children. As for myself, I wasn't particularly enchanted and can most simply describe my reaction to this book with a shrug of the shoulders and an indifferent "Ho-hum."

The writing style seemed rather stilted; I got to feel like I was reading the same paragraph over and over, but with different words. This, admittedly, is most likely the fault of the translator, but until I learn to read German, there is not much I ca...more