Delightful in every way! Peterson's first foray into fiction was even better than expected. Lots of laugh out loud moments, the footnotes were brilliant, the story was great and I can't wait to read the next installment of the Wingfeather Saga.

I've posted an extended review on my blog.

I'll be giving away a copy of the book on my blog between March 17-21. Swing on by to learn more.



More...

This book drew me in with the humor and creativity of names and phrases and situations. Some of it was the silly/eye-rolling kind but in a good way - I smiled and laughed through a huge portion of this book. I was also drawn in by the story and the characters.

I especially liked Peet and how he is crazy, interesting, mysterious, sad, but also good, kind, a protector/hero. I kept wanting to find out more about him. I like when things aren't always what they seem. One of my favorite parts was when More...

One benefit of my new job in the Technical Services department of the library is that I get a look at a lot of the advance reader copies that come in. These are prepublished books that publishers send out to generate interest and hopefully sales. They are usually uncorrected proofs, so you have to swim through some typos, but usually they're pretty good. That's how I got a look at this book, On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness, which won't be out for another month or so.

Wow, I liked this boo More...

From ISawLightningFall.blogspot.com

I always feel a bit apprehensive when a musician decides to try his (or her) hand at writing. It’s one thing to pen short snippets of lyrical verse. It’s another to hold a reader’s attention over several hundred pages. Fortunately, singer/songwriter Andrew Peterson’s On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness more than entertains, despite a few literary failings.

The Igiby family lives on the outskirts of the sleepy hamlet of Glipwood on the continent of Skree in t More...

Peterson's first book in the Wingfeather Saga is a fun read. I enjoyed the characters, the fact that the whole family was the center of the story, not just the children, as most kid's stories these days focus. They each are quirky and add depth to the tale. The actual narrative is well developed in this first book. From the terrain, to the players, to the enemies, to the history, even the food, the songs, the books are all developed.

Some of the things I wasn't wild about were the oft awkward na More...

I have to admit that I was a little skeptical about this one. Andrew Peterson is high on my list of favorite singer/songwriters, but I wasn't sure that his talent would translate well to the novel format. After all, you need more than a couple verses and a hooky chorus to make a storybook sing.

But aside from a few reservations about the sheer ridiculousness of some of the character names, I found the book to be really enjoyable, suspenseful, quite funny, and possessed of its own unique voice.

The More...

*No spoilers*
Andrew Peterson has already proven his prowess as a storyteller through his many music albums. On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness is yet another of Peterson's triumphs. The characters are instantly captivating--Janner, Tink, and Leeli Igiby are children who live in Skree, a land conquered by the evil land of Dang and ruled by the frightening lizard-like Fangs of Dang. The children embark on a complex adventure, looking for a hidden treasure while desperately hoping to protect More...

As the first book of a trilogy, and it really isn't an entire story onto itself, though it has story enough within it. It sets up a world and its characters for an epic adventure. The characters are consistent and full of life, and I very much look forward to seeing where they go from here and uncovering the past mysteries that they have come from. AP ties an entire family into the story he spins in such a way that the adventuring children and the adults are characters with whom the reader can c More...

Are you serious right now? If it's not the odd title that intrigues you, it will likely be the illustrations in the first few pages in the book. What in the world is a toothy cow anyway?

I've found this book abandoned and stripped, with a mysterious odor emanating from it's slightly damp pages, left at a bench in a public park somewhere. I fought fears of contracting contagious diseases, dark curses and other horrible things--what if this was the Necronomicon or Pandora's box itself, disguised as More...

On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness: Isn’t that a delicious title? This is the name of the first book in The Wingfeather Saga by Andrew Peterson. This past week I treated myself by setting aside evenings to read the three-hundred page fantasy and wasn’t disappointed. It’s a fun epic tale with lots of adventures, quirky characters, and a unique setting.

That said, let me caution you that On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness does have a shaky start. For one thing, it has three introductions. More...

They say not to judge a book by its cover, but I've worked in a bookstore long enough to know that this is a lie. Sure, don't just people by their outside appearances, but you can totally judge books that way.

Before even opening Andrew Peterson's book, On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness, I can tell that the author is whimsical and the publisher is savvy. The book is a beautiful blue that's been designed to look weathered by old age and use. The typography clearly says Fantasy, and the image More...

Welcome to Aerwiar, more specifically, to the Glipwood Township in the land of Skree, where the Fangs of Dang make it their general pastime to wreck the lives of the townspeople. Things are generally quiet, though, except during the Dragon Day Festival, when things come alive as people come from near and far to hear the Sea Dragons' beautiful song and awaken a deep longing. That’s where the tale of Janner, Tink, and Leeli Igiby begins. A run-in with Slarb the Fang ensues. Soon, they are tracking More...

Peet the Sock Man <3

Need I say more? Alright, so you may be thinking "What the heck is wrong with that title." If you hate it already, there's still a lot of hope of liking the book itself. It has to be taken as it is, for sure. Comparing it to other books or going into it with a pre-decided standard ruins it... as it ruins any good book. Now, the 'humor' is not as 'humorously used' as you might think. Yes, things are given redundant and sometimes dumb names, but it's more along the lines of More...

It's not often you find a book that combines great, lighthearted whimsy and odd-ness with an epic story imbued with truth.

OTEOTDSOD (even the acronym is ridiculously long!) is a wonderful book, and I was actually surprised at how it drew me in. Andrew Peterson apparently has an talent for making it appear that he's about to lead his characters into some cliche scene, and then doing the opposite of what you're expecting.

The action in this story moves at a fairly breakneck pace, especially from ab More...

It was the subtitle that got me On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness: Adventure. Peril. Lost Jewels. And the Fearsome Toothy Cows of Skree. While you might be scratching your head in confusion, I’m going, “yeah, tell me about those toothy cows”.

I listened to the audio version of the book. Oh, it was everything the title promised and more. I love Peterson’s impish humor, yet there is depth to the book. I longed to be in my car just to listen to the story. It made me want to drive to the end o More...

The Igby children, Janner, Tink, and Leeli, manage to anger a vicious Fang and are thrown into jail. Janner is certain that they will be taken away in the Black Carriage, forever slaves of Gnag the Nameless. But before the carriage arrives, their mother bails them out with a handful of precious jewels.

Janner is curious where the jewels came from, and he’s not the only one. The Fangs come after them again, this time seeking the precious Jewels of Anniera they are certain the Igbys are hiding. Th More...

It's been a long time since I was a little girl listening to stories being read or told to me by my dad, but Andrew Peterson's On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness took me right back to remembering.

This is a story about three children, Janner, Tink and Leeli and their adventure in the town of Glipwood. Other characters include Podo, the ex-pirate Grandfather, Nia, the brave mother, Nugget, Leeli's loyal canine companion and Peet, the mysterious, crazy protector.

Peterson provides a wonderful, More...

Review originally posted here.

A long title, and kind of a ridiculous one, but the book does have a hint of the ridiculous in it. The story takes place in the land of Aerwiar (a name derived from "here we are") and has a variety of odd creatures with odder names. Quirky is the word used to describe it on the back of the book. When I began to read I felt that Peterson had built a tower of quirky so high it was in danger of toppling into the realm of cutesy. I try to avoid cutesy at all costs and a More...

This is like a wholesome fantasy version of Tom Sawyer, or a violent Little House on the Prairie.

The style is light and silly, but tone of the book contrasts that as the kids are CONSTANTLY in danger. Once hi-jinx ensue then all it is just surge after surge of the kids reacting to their environment. It gets a little exhausting having them saved all the time rather than being able to bail themselves out, but honestly unless an outside force comes to their defense, there would be no feasible way More...

A great book in the style of The Chronicles of Narnia and The Lord of the Rings, though The Wingfeather Saga is a bit more lighthearted. It follows the Igiby siblings as they adventure through the land of Skree, dodging Fangs, horned hounds, and toothy cows, with Gnag the Nameless hot on their trail.

This book is hilarious ("...the entire land of Skree is flat and green, except for the mountains, which are neither flat nor green, though if the snow were to melt something green might grow there.") More...

A friend recently recommended this book to me (and then showed up on my doorstep and handed me a copy). I read it last night, sitting in the window seat by the wood stove while rain pattered down outside.

Peterson wrote the book for kids, but I thoroughly enjoyed it, despite my extreme age (43). The story involves three children who live in the land of Skree, a land under the thumb of fairly violent and non-human invaders. Peterson's writing is a mixture of goofiness, lyricism, adventure, and a More...

This book was a very quick, fun read. It's quite humorous. Imagine Christian Monty Python writing a fantasy book. Tons of humor and imagination thrown in. The absolute best part of the book: all the footnotes and appendices that give you "background" on the culture...hilarious.

A really fun read by one of my favorite musicians. Multi-talented Andrew weaves a story stylistically reminiscent of Narnia. This book made my disinterested-reader Colby into a 4-hour-a-day reader. :-) Can't wait for the next installment.

As much as I love Andrew Peterson, and I still believe that the worst song he has ever written is better than 99.9% of the iTunes Top 100 on any given day, I just couldn't get into this story. There were moments when Peterson's ability to use words to paint pictures to ilicit emotions came out, but the characters did not pull me in enough and the story lacked punch, especially in a genre that is chock full of great reads. I have not read the second book in the series, but I am optimistic that Pe More...

I had no idea how wonderful this book would be.
I started reading it because I love fantasy and will give anything a try, but to be honest I wasn't expecting much.
I LOVE IT WHEN I'M WRONG because this was fabulous. I love how Andrew Peterson can make up these magical characters and not over-explain them. He describes them briefly and then leaves the rest up to our imagination.

But my favorite thing about this book was the characters. They are well-developed and I fell in love with this family. More...

A fantastic, fun fairy tale for all ages! Peterson has created a wonderful new world, full of humor and heart.

See my full review here: http://teamredd.blogspot.com/on-edge-...

Courageous Fun! The first chapter puts you in the right frame of mind to enjoy this book-- the author doesn't want you to take everything too seriously! He wants you to enjoy yourself.

He does a wonderful job of humorously building the affection of the Igiby family for one another. Over the top originality with names and crusty critters. Gross but funny gross stuff-- didn't offend my sensibilities and kids love it. We all know it's for fun anyway.

Not only crusty, but Dusty-- dusty old books tha More...

You know those stories that are wildly frustrating about halfway through because there are just so many things that could happen? And then when you get to the end you think, "Yeah, that's the only way this could have happened"?

That's this one. I had to stop about 50 pages from the end since it was late and I didn't want to sleep through my alarm for the third day in a row, but I came home from work and read straight through to the end. I must confess - I doubted in that 18-hour window. I was lis More...

While good for all ages I'd say, this book was the first in a while to keep me up well past my bedtime. Very fun read, excellent critters, and I very much look forward to the next installment.

'On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness' is a wonderfully crafted tale! The characters are so well written that I connected to them immediately. The story moves at such a fast pace, that I was able to this book in one sitting. The 'Jewels of Anniera' are mentioned all throughout the book and I kept wondering "What do they look like?" and "Where are they?". When I reached the end of the book, I finally found out where they were and why they were so important.

There were a couple of times that the More...