Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians (Alcatraz, #1)

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Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians (Alcatraz #1)

by Brandon Sanderson (Goodreads Author)

3.86 of 5 stars 3.86 · rating details · 5,484 ratings · 1,178 reviews

A hero with an incredible talent...for breaking things. A life-or-death mission...to rescue a bag of sand. A fearsome threat from a powerful secret network...the evil Librarians.

Alcatraz Smedry doesn't seem destined for anything but disaster. On his 13th birthday he receives a bag of sand, which is quickly stolen by the cult of evil Librarians plotting to take over the wor...more

Paperback, 308 pages

Published November 1st 2008 by Scholastic Paperbacks (first published October 1st 2007)

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Nov 02, 2008 Kathryn rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: anyone looking for a zany and slightly philosophical look at a world ruled by evil Librarians!

Shelves: childrens-picture-books, fantasy-sci-fi, middle-grade

We met Brandon Sanderson at a book reading/signing yesterday. Such fun! He seemed very nice and thoroughly excited about his creations. Younger than I'd expected and also very "normal" but fun. Most people were there for his other (adult fantasy) books and the majority of the Q&A revolved around his taking over the "Wheel of Time" series now that its original author has passed away. I think, for this reason, he was extremely excited when we showed up with a copy of "Alcatraz" for him to sign...more We met Brandon Sanderson at a book reading/signing yesterday. Such fun! He seemed very nice and thoroughly excited about his creations. Younger than I'd expected and also very "normal" but fun. Most people were there for his other (adult fantasy) books and the majority of the Q&A revolved around his taking over the "Wheel of Time" series now that its original author has passed away. I think, for this reason, he was extremely excited when we showed up with a copy of "Alcatraz" for him to sign! :-p I told him I originally found a copy IN THE LIBRARY, which is, of course, a most amazing feat! ;-> We chatted for a few minutes. He said that the idea just sort of came to him after he got the opening sentence in his head. He wrote the book just on a whim, a very personal endeavor, kind of a break from his heavier, lengthier (i.e., 300,000 words!) fantasy novels. He just wrote without really having a preconceived notion of what would happen and he had a great time. He wasn't sure if anyone else would enjoy the zaniness but, tada!, it got published and did find some loyal fans. I told him that my husband and I appreciated the "deeper levels" of the philosophy and political aspects and he seemed to get really excited about that--perhaps he is more used to kids who haven't really studied Thomas Aquinas yet, haha. So, we had a good time and it was so nice to meet him.
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What a wacky, wise book! I really don't know how to describe it. It's not exactly the sort of book you cozy down with and I'm not sure how attached I really felt to the characters (One chapter begins with Alcatraz asking the reader, "Are you annoyed with me yet?" and he constantly asserts that he is not as heroic or as nice as the Free Kingdomers have made him out to be.)

AND YET, I was completely absorbed in it! Despite all the goofy, fantastical sorts of things going on, Sanderson makes some philosophical and political forays (Plato's allegory of the cave is even mentioned!) Consider these quotes, "People go along with what they're told. Even intelligent people believe what they read and hear, assuming they're given no reason to question."

I think the best way to give any sort of description of the book is to include a few quotes to give you a sense of the writing style--which could be maddeningly annoying to son:

"Hushlanders [that's us], I'd like to take this opportunity to commend you for reading this book. I realize the difficulty you must have gone through to obtain it--after all, no Librarian is likekly to recommend it, considering the secrets it exposes about their kind.

Actually, my experience has been that people generally don't recommend this kind of book at all. It is far too interesting. Perhpas you have had other kinds of books recommended to you. Perhaps, even, you have been given books by friends, parents or teachers, then told that these books are the type you 'have to read.' Those books are invariably described as 'important' -- which, in my experience, pretty much means that they're boring. (Words like 'meaningful' and 'thoughtful' are other good clues.)

If there is a boy in these kinds of books, he will not go on an adventure to fight against Librarians, paper monsters, and one-eyed Dark Oculators. In fact, the lad will not go on an adventure or fight agaisnt anything at all. Instead, his dog will die. Or, in some cases, his mother will die. If it's a REALLY meaningful book, both his dog AND his mother will die. (Apparently most writers have things against dogs and mothers.)

Neither my mother nor my dog dies in this book. I'm rather tired of those types of stories... To combat such silliness, I've written the volume you hold now--a solid, true account. Hopefully it will help anchor you in reality."

There are so many little gems of hilarious-wiseness in the book; so many "Ah, well, that is because the Librarians rule the Hushlands and so things are this way." (Consider, for example, why we use PAPER for our big currency; what else would Librarians choose!?) But, finding them is the whole fun of the book so I'll keep quiet! :->

(less)

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Dec 18, 2008 Ann rated it 5 of 5 stars

Recommended to Ann by: Katie and Tyler

Shelves: actionadventure, comedy, fantasy, sci-fi, young-adult

What an incredibly delightful book!
A fast-paced, easy-to-read, first person account of Alcatraz Smedry, a foster kid who has a knack for breaking things. But we soon learn that this "knack" is really a Talent - a Smedry Talent - and powerful one at that!
Alcatraz's world is turned upside down (or maybe right-side up) when he learns that the world we live in (the world of the Hushlanders) is actually run by evil librarians from the Free Kingdoms (where they know the truth...). Alcatraz must help...more

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Dec 18, 2008 bookczuk rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: bookcrossing, books-about-books, home-library, met-the-author, somewhat-disappointing, kids-of-most-ages

I'm so bummmed....I've been wanting to read this book since I first heard about it about a year ago. I really wanted to like it because:

1. it's got a great title
2. I've met the author and think he's delightful and a nice guy to boot
3. children's literature is due another winner
4. did I mention I really like the title?
5. the bits I'd read seemed good
6. the concept held promise
7. (I don't really have a seventh reason, but the number 6 seemed icky to end on. Seven has such strength and balance that...more I'm so bummmed....I've been wanting to read this book since I first heard about it about a year ago. I really wanted to like it because:

1. it's got a great title
2. I've met the author and think he's delightful and a nice guy to boot
3. children's literature is due another winner
4. did I mention I really like the title?
5. the bits I'd read seemed good
6. the concept held promise
7. (I don't really have a seventh reason, but the number 6 seemed icky to end on. Seven has such strength and balance that I much prefer it.)

So anyhow, at the beginning, I was smiling when reading. Alcatraz's style of narrative was amusing. The refrain of "I'm not a nice person" a nice twist. But, for me, it quickly wore thin, and I found myself doing a lot of eye-rolling. It's not that Sanderson is a bad writer. The style just wore thin rather quickly. The pace was rather frenetic, almost as if there were all these good, or clever ideas that he wanted to cram into the book and shoved them into the story plot. But still, every time I'd get annoyed, Sanderson would slip in an allusion that would really make me smile, some that only Monty Python fans, or philosophy students might get. Bravo!

Having said all that, I didn't dislike the book. I've certainly read many far worse. I was just disappointed. I suppose that if I didn't hold Brandon (who is finishing the Wheel of Time series after the death of Robert Jordan) to such high standards and high hopes, I might have been more satisfied. It also doesn't help that I read the book during what was a contender for "worst day ever" award. (I kid you not: bad news, traffic violation, flat tire, no $$ in wallet at cash register, dead mobile phone, tension headache and run out of gas all within a half hour.) The jury is still out on if I'll read a sequel, though. Ask me again when my headache goes away.

PS A friend just reminded me about a part of the book I, too, really liked. She said, " The part that has stuck with me, and that I laughed and laughed about was the part where Alcatraz was talking about the books that were required reading: they always involved the death of a dog, or the death of a mother, or in some the death of both. "(less)

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Feb 23, 2012 Sandi rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I'm reading this out loud to my son. I'm not sure why I'm doing it. Oh yeah, I decided I would start reading first chapters to him to get him interested in books. He wanted to make my reading out loud a nightly tradition. Oh, and this is the first book he wanted me to read. (A friend loaned it to him.) I think the only reason it appealed to him was that the word "Alcatraz" was in the title and he is fascinated by anything that has to do with Alcatraz Island. This book is not about Alcatraz Islan...more

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Dec 24, 2007 Trina rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: everyone interested in knowing about the evil plot by librarians to rule the world

Shelves: youngadultbooks, fantasy, urban-fantasy

I now understand: Alkatraz Smedry is trying to save us all from a plot by the Evil Librarians to rule the world and keep all the magic in it for themselves.

Alkatraz is a great hero with a wonderful talent for breaking things, but he has been brought up by foster families in Inner Libraria who are unable to appreciate him.

When he receives his inheritance (a bag of sand), his life begins to get more exciting. An evil case worker steals the sand, Grandpa Smedry arrives (late, as usual) and off th...more

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May 08, 2008 Krista the Krazy Kataloguer rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-childrens-books, read-goodreads-authors

First of all, Brandon Sanderson is obviously trying to imitate the style of Lemony Snicket, and he does it well. The story line was a tad confusing in the beginning, but then it was confusing to the main character, Alcatraz, through whose eyes we were viewing the story. Eventually it all came together, as Alcatraz began to accept and learn. The idea of librarians as controllers of knowledge is intriguing, although no true librarian would be so censorous as to manipulate civilization's view of it...more

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Mar 10, 2009 Maria rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, children, fantasy, series, utah-author, sr-2012-book-talks

I was hooked from the first sentence. Not many books start with "So, there I was, tied to an altar made from outdated encyclopedias, about to get sacrificed to the dark powers by a cult of evil Librarians." I've had several career goals in my life; two of the most enduring have been to be a librarian and to be a Disney villain. This true story (published as young adult fiction to avoid the censors) helped me realize that my dream of combining the two is closer than I thought.

This delightful book...more

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Nov 02, 2011 Jacob rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011, reviewed

This is a fun children's book that doesn't take itself too seriously. A quick easy read, although if you are not very good at imagination (or if your child has a hard time following a very off the wall story) then this book may be a bit hard to follow, as it is an "off the wall" type of story. The magic system is cool, with special powered lenses/eyeglasses that certain people can look through and do cool stuff with. This is not Brandon Sanderson's best work, but since it is actually written by...more

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Sep 19, 2008 Jenny rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Despite Sanderson's attempt at humor and literary allusions, I just don't think he quite pulled it off with this book. I realize that the off the wall, wacky, and even silly feel of this book is part of its appeal for kids. Unfortunately, Sanderson's literary creativity often came off as annoying instead of funny.

Sanderson does have some good ideas for fantasy and my kids did somewhat enjoy listening to this book. But they did not like Alcatraz's negative tone at all. I see a lot of potential in...more

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Jul 18, 2012 J.A. rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: autographed, ut-authors, stories-for-boys

I gave Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson to my son for Christmas and recently had the chance to read it myself. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed reading Brandon’s adult fiction and was curious to see how he would adapt his style for children’s literature. The pacing and descriptions are appropriate for his 13-year-old narrator, but his hallmark originality is still intact! Alcatraz (the narrator) goes to great lengths to stress that he is not a nice person and proves it with some h...more

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Nov 16, 2007 Susan rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: librarians! fans of funny fantasy

Shelves: booktalkers

Librarians rule the world 'cause they control the knowledge! What a concept. So far, this one has me laughing out loud!

Alcatraz suffers from terminal klutziness--little does he know that his clumsiness is really a "talent" characteristic of his family. On his 13th birthday he receives a mysterious package from his parents (he always assumed his parents were dead, since he has spent his life in foster homes--until he breaks something, anyway). The package contains a bag of sand (which gets stole...more

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Jun 11, 2007 Summer rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2007, juvenile-literature

I really wanted to like this more, but it rubbed me the wrong way, I assume because I'm becoming one of those humorless librarians that Nancy Pearl talks about. Marketing pushes this book in the Harry Potter direction with the bespectacled "magical" kid on the cover, but the prose is more in the Lemony Snicket metatextual tradition - rather annoyingly so in some cases. Too much of the book is taken up with the author's asides, there's just not enough actual story, and it isn't done as gracefully...more

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Jun 26, 2008 Scribs rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Just to add to my review below...I just finished this today and I loved it. What a great book for middle-grade boys but also for any one who loves a really creative read. Honestly. I thoroughly enjoyed it. The narrator Alcatraz is just so off the wall. It reminded me a bit of Artemis Fowl, but even more so. Very unique. I can't wait for the sequal!

This author was at the conference I attended also - he usually writes epic fantasies (He was chosen to finish Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series), b...more

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Apr 03, 2008 Elynn rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: children-fantasy, personal-favorite

I really liked this book. I usually don't like the writing style of addressing the reader with comments, but most the time it was so humorous I didn't mind. It reminds me of the style used in writing The Princess Bride. The basic story is very typical (orphan boy learns he can do magic, is practically royalty or both) but it has a couple of twists. The "magic" in the book is so creative and different it made me laugh all throughout. Its light-hearted, quick read, and looks like the first in a se...more

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Oct 29, 2008 JoAnna rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book is definitely written for kids and the kid in all of us. It was so silly that I almost put it down, but I'm glad I hung on. The author reveals to us that all the facts we know have been fed to us by librarians, who secretly control the world through our perception of reality. Alcatraz learns this truth the day after his thirteenth birthday after a librarian steals his inheritance - a bag of sand. It's the only link Alcatraz has to his unknown parents. One very fun thing that Brandon Sa...more

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Mar 27, 2009 Samuel rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: bailey peters

Shelves: science-fiction

a very funny book, made me think

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Feb 12, 2009 David rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: kids-books

If you've ever asked yourself "What would the Harry Potter books be like if they were written by a professional author?" then this is your series. Especially in this first book, Brandon really makes the parallels apparent. See if this sounds familiar:

A young wizard (of sorts...) is raised in foster care, never knowing that he was special, but always feeling like he didn't belong. One day an old, bearded wizard comes to save him from his foster family and take him to a magical world, where it tur...more

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Dec 01, 2008 Amy rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is not a great book. Ben and I were just talking about YA or junior books have really slipped in quality, and while I had low expectations to begin with, this story really disappointed me. There is a fascinating skeleton of a fantasy here, two worlds, one of which is ruled by the Librarians, who control everything by controlling information, and another world that is free. I love the fact that the most powerful folks have "talents" like falling down, breaking things, speaking gibberish, and...more

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May 18, 2013 Susie rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I checked out two different audio versions of the book, listened to the beginning of both, then selected the other one to listen to. Alas, as often happens, the other version had a bad scratch on the final CD and skipped, but I fortuitously still had this version to finish it off. After I had finished with this one, I decided I preferred it after all.

I'm not sure who would appreciate the humor of this book the most; any book with the term "librarian thugs" has to be unique! I think a gifted inte...more

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May 17, 2013 Shrike rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I have read several of Sanderson's books, but this is a difference genre. And it is bizarre! I don't even know how to express how annoying, frustrating, intelligent, captivating, original, and clever it was. I still don't know how I feel about it.
It is a preteen adventure book, Harry Potter started out as the same genre. I would also include the Percy Jackson series as well as the Septimus Heap books. They are all about 12 year old boys (who all act older) who find out something amazing about t...more

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Mar 18, 2013 Giant Bolster rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is a children’s novel, written by one of my favourite fantasy writers. If there were more children’s books like this, I think more kids would be interested in reading.

Deliriously wacky, yet entirely internally consistent (as Sanderson’s magic systems always are), the novel is both entertaining and educational at the same time. Entertaining because of the humour on every page, educational because the book – although targeted at children – is surprisingly self-reflexive about the writing proc...more

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Feb 12, 2013 Stacey rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: books-to-reread-again

Alcatraz, yes that’s actually his name, has an interesting problem with his parents. One is obviously his name; the next is his inheritance that he receives on his thirteenth birthday. A whole bag of sand. And lastly he has no idea who they even are. Moving through the foster care system he has never known a family until his Grandpa Smedry shows up, late, for his birthday speaking of evil librarians and is followed by a gun-wielding foster care agent. All of sudden his grandpa’s ramblings seem t...more

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Jan 22, 2013 Bradley Hartman rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Everyone

This book I ordered from Amazon.com who did not mention it was a Young Readers book put out by Scholastic. So when it arrived I was a little worried, after all Scholastic was the ones that had a hand in putting out Hunger Games, a story where kids are pitted against other kids in a death match, not my idea of good young people reading. But I liked Brandon Sanderson's adult tales that took place in a steampunk world (kind of) and figured what the hell, I'll give it a chance. To my surprise, once...more

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Jan 17, 2013 Azure rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: books-1-12

Alcatraz has a talent for breaking things. After being moved from foster home to foster home for his entire life, he receives on his thirteenth birthday his inheritance from his parents; a small bag of sand. The next day Alcatraz receives a surprise visit from his grandfather- then discovers that his inheritance has been stolen, and is now in the possession of a cult of evil librarians, who want to contain and control the knowledge in the world and extend their reign over the Free Kingdoms. Alca...more Alcatraz has a talent for breaking things. After being moved from foster home to foster home for his entire life, he receives on his thirteenth birthday his inheritance from his parents; a small bag of sand. The next day Alcatraz receives a surprise visit from his grandfather- then discovers that his inheritance has been stolen, and is now in the possession of a cult of evil librarians, who want to contain and control the knowledge in the world and extend their reign over the Free Kingdoms. Alcatraz has to retrieve the sand, before the librarians smelt it into a new pair of Lenses, which would contain some unknown power that they would- no doubt- use for their nefarious purposes.
I have to admit, one of my pet peeves in books, is when amazing and fantastical things happen to an ordinary character, but nobody has time to stop and explain to him what's going on until a fair way into a book. Think like Percy Jackson. Just HOW long did it take him to realize he was a son of the Sea God, when we knew it from reading the back cover blurb? In this book, I didn't have any idea what was going on until it was explained to Al later on in the book. I don't like that- I prefer to understand the setting I'm in. Especially in fantasy-sort of environments, I like to know how the world works and THEN have all of the action and excitement, rather than delaying the explanation until after the main character is shot at. I'm currently having this same problem with Pendragon. Maybe writers do that as some sort of ploy, to get you interested, when really I don't find people shooting at the main character at the beginning of a book all that interesting.
Now that that rant is out, I like the book. The narration is... interesting. Sometimes I find it fun and oftentimes I agree, sometimes I just find it annoying and would rather get on with the story. But over all, not a bad book. The thing is, the parts I was more interested in (Al's parents, and what they're doing) weren't resolved in this book. That was the sequel hook. I'll probably go on to read the others. As for the whole 'Evil Librarians' thing... I wasn't really into it. But if you ignore that and think more about the character development, then the book is more interesting.
Basically, I don't think I would especially recommend it, but I will probably move on to the sequels if I can find them in the library. I get the feeling that with the way the book is organized, I will like it much better now that I'm not in the beginning stuff. I anticipate enjoying the sequels more. We'll see.(less)

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Jan 13, 2013 Dewi Wahyuni rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The cheekiest of Brandon's books, surely. I'm commenting on the whole series instead of just this one book though.

The first book is a must read before you venture in to the sequel books, in my opinion.

The series follows through the adventures of Alcatraz, a boy that has this really bad habit of breaking things, or so we Hushlanders think.
The book is written from Alcatraz's point of view, as it is made to be his autobiography. There is a HUGE amount of monologue by Alcatraz, and one sided conve...more

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Nov 02, 2012 Ryan Anderson rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: goodreads-1-12

this story focuses on a boy by the name of Alcatraz Smedry, a boy that is passed from foster home to foster home as his parents have died before the start of the series. As we read we learn that Alcatraz seems to have an ability for destroying things, and the reason that he's never lasted at a foster home is because he always ends up destroying something that the parents greatly care for. As he moves throughout the story Alcatraz learns that it's actually a power of his, he even learns that his...more

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Aug 16, 2012 Πέτρος rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The world is controlled by sinister organizations and all we know is a lie, thus there is nothing strange in having evil librarians trying to take over the world with a bag of sand while wearing highly advanced sunglasses with various supernatural abilities. There is also nothing strange to facing our heroes, who have the amazing superpowers of tripping on every step of the way, always being late in whatever they do, and breaking whatever they touch.

This is basically your typical kid’s adventur...more The world is controlled by sinister organizations and all we know is a lie, thus there is nothing strange in having evil librarians trying to take over the world with a bag of sand while wearing highly advanced sunglasses with various supernatural abilities. There is also nothing strange to facing our heroes, who have the amazing superpowers of tripping on every step of the way, always being late in whatever they do, and breaking whatever they touch.

This is basically your typical kid’s adventure with a lot of trolling comedy. And by trolling I mean that it’s trying to fool you on every step of the way by poking fun at writing techniques, such as foreshadowing and cliffhangers. Thus it is memorable for its meta-humor than its plot or characters.

Not that there is anything wrong with the story but it sure feels simple if you break it down to its main events. It is the flavoring that takes place in those events which makes it a tolerated read. You basically have the author being dedicated to make fun of every overused stereotype out there without ever actually trying to offer anything out of the ordinary in the final product. It’s surely a nice way for the reader to be reminded of the stuff he expects to find in all such stories. I believe though the target audience is eventually not allowing for the story to delve into some really nasty aspects, as it even mentioned that some things are not done or described because it’s not appropriate for the kids who read it. Thus, despite the author claiming to be going for a more realistic approach to such stories, it still has the villains doing some very big blunders and the heroes surviving impossible situations. If it was for older teens and had a darker ending I believe it could have been far more than a passing satire.

As far as the characters go, we have the usual bunch of a young boy with hidden potential having to save the world by eye-patched villains who laugh maniacally, has an old mentor, a female bodyguard, a fat comic relief, and a bunch of talking animals. They behave in quite eccentric and anti-heroic ways but eventually follow the tropes just fine. As I said, the humor ends up being the one and only element that is making this book an average read instead of a tired predictable kid’s adventure.

As far as the jokes go, they are good for a younger audience, as they have to do with making fun of established truths, without ever succumbing to profanity or idiocy. It is smart meta humor so at least it needs rather smart kids to get it. If there is a warning to be given, is that the humor is rather in your face as the author is constantly reminding you that this is not what you expect and you should always expect something else. It gets rather annoying after awhile, especially when you see that the overall plot is eventually quite typical. Perhaps if he ever makes a sequel and he gets to elaborate more on the world, it won’t feel that much as a rehash of Men In Black.

Not bad for what it is, but surely less than it could have been. (less)

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May 21, 2012 Kevin rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Since Sanderson is rapidly becoming a favorite, I decided to go ahead and dig into his children's series. The story is of Alcatraz Smedry, an orphan who breaks nearly everything he touches. But on his thirteenth birthday, he discovers that this ability to break things is a talent, not a curse. His grandfather, whom he has never met, comes to pull him out of foster care and into the war between the Free Kingdoms and the Evil Librarians. These librarians control what is to all of us the known worl...more

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Mar 05, 2012 Sarah Doyle rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book takes a twist and turn on what is fantasy and what is really non-fiction. The book is written under the pen name of Brandon Sanderson, but is actually written by Alcatraz Smedry, a young 13-year-old who is an orphan that jumps from one foster family to another due to having a not-so-pleasant talent of breaking things. The story is told from Alcatraz’s point of view and throughout the book, he keeps insisting that, although his journey might seem unbelievable and totally fantasy, all of...more

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Jan 13, 2012 Reepacheep rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is the sixth Brandon Sanderson book I have read in the last three months, although I understand there is some dispute about whether or not this book was written by the actual Brandon Sanderson or by some kid named Alcatraz Smedry. This book is marked by interesting characters, ingenious devices and abilities, and talking dinosaurs. Speaking of which . . .

Dear Brandon Sanderson, Sir:

I am embarking on a new career as a proofreader and was horrified to encounter your rendition of the word pter

...more

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About Brandon Sanderson

Brandon Sanderson is an American fantasy author. A Nebraska native, he currently resides in Provo, Utah. He earned his Master's degree in Creative Writing in 2005 from Brigham Young University. He has been nominated twice for the John W. Campbell Award.

Sanderson married on July 7, 2006 and is a member of the LDS church. Sanderson's writing is noteworthy for its epic fantasy tone, unique settings,...more

More about Brandon Sanderson...

Books by Brandon Sanderson

Mistborn: The Final Empire (Mistborn, #1)

The Way of Kings (The Stormlight Archive, #1)

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Quotes from Alcatraz Versus the Ev...

“You see, that is the sad, sorry, terrible thing about sarcasm.

It's really funny.” — 917 people liked it

“By now, it is probably very late at night, and you have stayed up to read this book when you should have gone to sleep. If this is the case, then I commend you for falling into my trap. It is a writer's greatest pleasure to hear that someone was kept up until the unholy hours of the morning reading one of his books. It goes back to authors being terrible people who delight in the suffering of others. Plus, we get a kickback from the caffeine industry...” — 707 people liked it

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BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3537527-alcatraz-versus-the-evil-librarians?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1328843408l/3537527.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3537527-alcatraz-versus-the-evil-librarians?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson[/url]

Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians (Alcatraz #1)

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