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Island of the Aunts

by Eva Ibbotson, Kevin Hawkes (Illustrations)

3.92 of 5 stars 3.92 · rating details · 3,819 ratings · 220 reviews

When the kindly old aunts decide that they need help caring for creatures who live on their hidden island, they know that adults can't be trusted. What they need are a few special children who can keep a secret-a secret as big as a magical island. And what better way to get children who can keep really big secrets, than to kidnap them! (After all, some children just plain...more

Paperback, 304 pages

Published September 10th 2001 by Puffin (first published 1999)

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Community Reviews

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Jul 17, 2010 Ann rated it 4 of 5 stars

Recommended to Ann by: Kathryn

Shelves: animals, fantasy, katie-and-annie-bookclub, middle-grade, fairytales

I'm still not entirely sure what I thought of this book... part of me really liked it, and part of me didn't. I suppose if half stars were allowed, I’d award this 3 and a half, but since there aren’t, I’ll err on the plus side.

First of all, I very much enjoyed Ibboston's style of writing. She definitely has a flare for words and a wonderful way with unique descriptions. She's also able to give one a feeling of a character in just a few phrases, something it seems few authors are able to do. I th...more I'm still not entirely sure what I thought of this book... part of me really liked it, and part of me didn't. I suppose if half stars were allowed, I’d award this 3 and a half, but since there aren’t, I’ll err on the plus side.

First of all, I very much enjoyed Ibboston's style of writing. She definitely has a flare for words and a wonderful way with unique descriptions. She's also able to give one a feeling of a character in just a few phrases, something it seems few authors are able to do. I think this lead to some of my disappointment, however, when after some great initial introductions to characters, there really wasn't follow-up or growth. And, sometimes Ibbotson's wonderful descriptions were redundant and got in the way of the flow.

Also, while this was a fun book about various creatures (both mythical and not) that gravitate to the Island of the Aunts for care, the book was still not entirely what I'd expected. Like "Fablehaven" I hoped that this would be a book about caring for magical creatures, and (like "Fablehaven") while it this was one aspect of the book, it wasn't the focus (though I enjoyed this book much more than I did "Fablehaven").

Some of this book was incredibly predictable, and some of it wasn't at all. Most of my concerns arise from the premise of the book, that the Aunts kidnap the children. Now, I feel Ibbotson tried throughout the book to justify this, and to show that the Aunts were not bad, and that they were actually doing a good thing. And while some of this may be true, I could never get over the fact that they did take three children without their explicit consent. I also wasn't pleased that the one child that did his best to escape was portrayed as mean and that he should have wanted to stay. Unfortunately, the good messages Ibbotson seemed to want to convey were undermined because of these two issues (at least for me).

Also, many of the messages seemed inconsistent (especially a parent's love for his/her child).
And one of the most disconcerting issues came when what we were supposed to think was one of the best characters, was going to leave our other heros to perish because he had failed to acquire correct information (and didn't seek it out either)... hrm....

I'm still really not sure which messages Ibbotson wished to convey, but I did enjoy the book and her style. The book created many wonderful visuals, and overall I'd recommend it - just with a few cautions attached.
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Mar 03, 2009 Blessing rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Easy read and fun to imagine it being real today.

Recommended to Blessing by: I got it from my mom's house

I got this book at mom's house when she was letting us pick 5 books out.
This is a real story - meaning not fantasy, but it actually has some things that wouldn't be classified as "real". It has mermaids that have been in an oil spill and selkie seals that when you look in their eyes you can see a human spirit. There is also the Kraken....you have to read the book to find out why this Kraken is so beautifully created by the author.
Taking place from England, there are 3 aunts (they have a nephew...more

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May 17, 2011 Namratha Kumar rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: childrens-fantasy, eva-ibbotson-gems

Island Of The Aunts is Eva Ibbotson's magical, sea-side fantasy with an environmental message.

Three oddball aunts; Etta, Coral and Myrtle live on a secret island.....caring for a wide variety of animals ranging from ordinary chickens to mystical creatures like selkies, boobries and even a family of abandoned, oil-slick mermaids. But managing the ever-increasing menagerie is a full-time job and the aunts aren’t getting any younger.

So the best option seems to be to kidnap some children and bring...more Island Of The Aunts is Eva Ibbotson's magical, sea-side fantasy with an environmental message.

Three oddball aunts; Etta, Coral and Myrtle live on a secret island.....caring for a wide variety of animals ranging from ordinary chickens to mystical creatures like selkies, boobries and even a family of abandoned, oil-slick mermaids. But managing the ever-increasing menagerie is a full-time job and the aunts aren’t getting any younger.

So the best option seems to be to kidnap some children and bring them to the island. Without any malice whatsoever in their hearts, the three aunts capture a child each. Initially two of the children (Fabio and Minette) are scared, but the magic of the island and the multitude of animal life soon drives away their fears. They grow to love the island as their own and are as fiercely protective of each creature as the aunts themselves.

The aunts on their part, treat the children with affection and a firm hand. But the black spot in the whole scenario is the third captive, an obnoxious brat called Lambert who refuses to chip in and generally buzzes around like a irritating wasp. Things take an ugly turn when Lambert manages to get in touch with his father Mr.Sprott, whose money grubbing nature views the island as a golden egg waiting to be exploited. A struggle between good and the downright nasty ensues.....with many an unpleasant surprise.

This is an ideal book for animal lovers and the plea for environmental protection is slipped in without any sanctimonious preaching. Eva Ibbotson’s delicious writing style is loaded with her usual nuttiness and charm. The unlikely heroines (the aunts) are lovable in their eccentricities. The animalia is rich and varied and exhibit emotions so diverse that it’s hard not to empathise . As for the villians.....they are black through and through with not a smidgen of grey. You absolutely love to hate them and can’t wait to see justice meted out.

In all…a simple story with a deep message. One of Ibbotson’s finest and a definite must-have for all you nature-friendly people out there.(less)

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May 19, 2007 Abby Johnson rated it 4 of 5 stars

Sisters Etta, Cora, and Myrtle are getting older and they know that they're going to need some help taking care of the creatures that reside on their island. What they need are a couple of strong, open-minded children. Children nobody seems to want. Children who will grow up on the island and learn to love and care for the creatures that come there for help. There doesn't seem to be any other way to get such children except to kidnap them. So that's what the sisters decide to do.

When Minette and...more

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Mar 24, 2013 Von Fritz rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: childrens, sci-fi-and-fantasy

Island of the Aunts is the second book I read from Eva Ibbotson. Which makes me pity myself for discovering the author this late. The book didn’t fail my expectations, for Ibbotson makes bizarre things out of common, of creating wonderful and unforgettable characters without being far-fetched from reality.

The book tells the story of the three aging sisters who live in a remote island somewhere in Greenland. Along with their father who decided to stay in the island and started everything, the thr...more Island of the Aunts is the second book I read from Eva Ibbotson. Which makes me pity myself for discovering the author this late. The book didn’t fail my expectations, for Ibbotson makes bizarre things out of common, of creating wonderful and unforgettable characters without being far-fetched from reality.

The book tells the story of the three aging sisters who live in a remote island somewhere in Greenland. Along with their father who decided to stay in the island and started everything, the three sisters took care of the wonderful creatures who are washed ashore with problems of their own. Such as the boobrie, a huge bird who can’t release her eggs. A stoorworm who is confused. A mermaid family with oils in their tails. A kelpie who wants to be human. And the epicness of all, the Kraken.

Now the three sisters feel they are growing old and no one will look after the creatures they are protecting if ever something happens to them. So they decided one day to go to London and kidnap three children to replace them in the island soon. Minette and Fabio are the good ones and they learned the value of taking care of the sick creatures. But the third one, Lambert, is aggressive enough being such a spoiled child. And when Lambert’s evil father finally intervened, it was up for the aunts and Minette and Fabio to rescue the creatures and save the island.

I found The Island of the Aunts as interesting as when I was reading The Secret of Platform 13. And I’ll say it again, if this book becomes a movie, it should be an animation by Hayao Miyazaki. The book is filled with enough humor, life, lessons…and well, environmental concerns.

I really like the way Ibbotson creates her characters. They’re funny and cool…and yet, so real. I really can’t deny that lately, I’ve been writing stories in the style of Ibbotson.

What I loved most in story is the presence of the Kraken. And I only knew the kraken as that gigantic sea monster in Clash of the Titans. Haha. In the book, the Kraken is a misunderstood creature of the sea. In fact, he is the soul of the sea and heals everyone, everything whenever he appears and hums.

Lambert’s father was cruel enough. He reminded me of Count Olaf from A Series of Unfortunate Events.

Hmmm…so which Ibbotson book shall I read next?(less)

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Jan 08, 2012 Brittany Hale rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. This book was weird… lovely but weird. The whole concept of the story was brilliant. Reading about all the creatures normal and mystical was very interesting especially the Kraken and how he balances the world. The only Kraken I know of is the horrible monster from the movie Clash of the Titans. It was a nice little spin that the author gave it, I do wonder though; how the very male Kraken had a son, lol…I guess it’s an animal thing. Why the sisters discovered a “magical” island but didn’t have/...more

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Jul 15, 2011 Matilda Peck rated it 3 of 5 stars

"Island of the Aunts" is a fabulous story of an island filled with the most extraordinary creatures. Selkies, mermaids, stoorworms, and broobies are just the beginning. Two children are kidnapped and taken to the island, but they soon love the island as much as the aunts do. They help to defend the island against the outside world and they don't want to leave their new special friends. Eva Ibbotson (the author) has created a children's paradise as she describes the island: "The children ran out...more

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Feb 27, 2011 Marfita rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: children-s

I see a lot of objections in the reviews of this book to the "kidnapping" device of the story. Adults are having a big problem with the concept of kidnapping - but not the fantasy. I think we often stint on giving credit to children's intelligence. You only have to look at the cover of this book (with the giant eye of the Kraken and the mermaid) to see this is a book of fantasy. The first sentence tells you what you already know, that kidnapping children is not a good idea. Nor, I might add, is...more

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Jul 13, 2010 Mike (the Paladin) rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ya-fantasy

Once again I find myself in a "startlingly small" minority about a book. I find myself wondering if it's something generational here? Now, my children are all grown, but given the opportunity, I'd probably not have read this one to them... (but to quote on of the Aunts in the book "you know how men are." Really? What would be the reaction if I said "you know how women are"? That's a phrase we don't use anymore because it's deemed to be demeaning. Apparently "men" can't be demeaned. To be fair, t...more

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Nov 17, 2012 Jackie rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012-read, 2012-tbr-challenge, books-i-own, young-adult, fantasy

So far this is the 3rd story I’ve read by Eva Ibbotson, but unfortunately it’s my least favorite. It starts charmingly enough with the Aunts explaining that kidnapping is bad, but in this case it needs to be done. They need someone who will continue on with their legacy of caring for the magical and regular creatures that come seeking help to their far off island. Since neither of the three has children kidnapping is the only way. I know some reviewers had a problem with the kidnapping part, but...more So far this is the 3rd story I’ve read by Eva Ibbotson, but unfortunately it’s my least favorite. It starts charmingly enough with the Aunts explaining that kidnapping is bad, but in this case it needs to be done. They need someone who will continue on with their legacy of caring for the magical and regular creatures that come seeking help to their far off island. Since neither of the three has children kidnapping is the only way. I know some reviewers had a problem with the kidnapping part, but I thought it was handled rather well and it did not bother me. What did bother me were some of the unexpected adult themes that were thrown in.

Looking at the book and from the description I was expecting a charming, fairy tale like story with maybe an environmental theme. The 3 quirky aunts, a mermaid and giant bird are featured on the cover, there are some funny illustrations inside and it’s what I know Ibbotson produces from reading some of her previous books. But to my surprise she threw in a mermaid with an abusive, cheating husband, another mermaid who was manhandled and possibly sexually assaulted by a Lord, villains who are strapping some serious guns and are implied to do drug runs and carry whores on their yacht and a bratty kid who smiles while “thinking about: all the people he hated lying dead in their own blood” (p. 61).

Not at all what I expected.

I don’t know what age group this is geared towards, but these themes didn’t seem appropriate for children’s literature especially one that won a literary award. I don’t know. Maybe it’s just me being an “adult” or a “prude” even though I normally don’t let things like this bother me it did with this book. I felt like it could’ve been a better book if Ibbotson hadn’t thrown those things in and had concentrated more on the environmental theme of the book. Maybe children reading it will glaze over those details and get distracted by the funny illustrations, but for me I just found it jarring.

I did enjoy parts of the story though. The aunts for the most part were hilarious and quirky. I liked the illustrations. This one in particular had me laughing:

I also enjoyed the magical creatures…even the mermaids. I loved that the kraken makes an appearance and it’s not the typical mythological creature we are used to seeing. Overall, it is a creative story and I think any child or adult, for that matter, would love to visit the magical island. I’m only marking it two stars because the adult themes bothered and distracted me from the story.
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Nov 04, 2012 Julie rated it 4 of 5 stars

I read this book with my 8-year old daughter, and we both enjoyed it thoroughly! On an isolated island off the coast of England, three "aunts" (aka, old women) take care of injured and unusual creatures, away from the prying eyes of the world. It occurs to them that they are aging, and need to find youngsters who can take over the work after they die. These typically kind, if a bit kooky, ladies head to London and commence their kidnapping adventure. Once the children are snatched, and wake up o...more

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Jan 06, 2012 Amalie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: children-s-books, humour-comedy-satire, fantasy

"Aunts" Etta, Coral and Mytle live in a secret island with Captain Harper who loves to tell stories again and again and again.... For the sake of the island and for those who live there, the three aunts must kidnap children: a boy and a girl. Minette and Fabio become the "chosen" children and, yes, also Lambert gets kidnapped by a mistake.

In the island they meet the strangest creatures one can never imagine. Queenie and Oona, the twin mermaids; Herbert the Silkie (Silkies are seals but they are...more

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Jun 04, 2012 Sheila Beaumont rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: action-and-adventure, fantasy, funny, kids-middle-grade, myth-and-legend, paranormal-supernatural

Etta, Coral and Myrtle are three eccentric aunts who dwell on an island where they take care of the creatures who live there, including some very unusual ones: selkies, a boobrie (a sort of cousin of the dodo), mermaids, and a stoorworm (an Icelandic wingless dragon).

Since the aunts are getting old, they need some younger people to help out and take over when they're gone, so they decide to kidnap, or "choose," three children who are unappreciated by their families.

As usual with Eva Ibbotson's b...more

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Aug 15, 2009 Treasa rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: chapter-books, children, fantasy, grades-3-5

I am wavering between 3 and 4 stars. I really like Eva Ibbotson's writing, so I would like to give it 4 stars. But I just wasn't that excited about the book. I think the thing that bothered me most was that the aunts kidnapped children. Sure, I know why they did it. But I still didn't like it. And I didn't feel particularly tied to any of the characters, which is disappointing. The aunts were the best-developed characters, but they were also kidnappers, so I couldn't get too emotionally attached...more

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May 01, 2011 Jessica rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult

Island of the Aunts came in a boxed set with Which Witch, which I had read as a child and wanted to re-read. While I thoroughly enjoyed Which Witch?, it's a rather predictable story geared toward relatively young readers. Island of the Aunts features a higher reading level and a more complicated plot. In it, three aging women who care for an island of magical creatures realize that they have to find and train someone to care for the island after they die. Unable to come up with a better plan, th...more

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Nov 07, 2009 Kasha rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This was a very different and imaginative book. I must say I enjoyed the writer's style. She incorporated quite a bit of humor into the story, and I was surprised how funny some situations turned out to be. The only part I didn't care for was that a ship captain in search of his kidnapped son comes to an island where everyone is nude (a nudist colony). It was written that way for humor, and it is kind of funny, but I would be embarrassed reading that part aloud to my son. I think maybe someone a...more

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Apr 21, 2010 Laura Ramon Galva rated it 5 of 5 stars

Well I'm in Chapter 2 right now. Island of the Aunts is a funny, interesting, curious, intriging, wonderful, and creative.This book makes you turn the page to find what is going to happen next. There's 3 aunts in this book that think that kiddnaping is good and allows lonely kids that aren't likeable by their parents come to them and live at this magical and faraway island that nobody knows about.The aunts are Aunt Etta, Aunt Coral and Aunt Mirtle.They want have this kids in their island because...more

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Nov 01, 2009 Haley rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: grade-8-ir-books-sam

Aunt Etta, Aunt Coral and Aunt Myrtle are getting old and can no longer keep up with all of the creatures of they're island like they used to - after all, mermaids, selkies, and boobries take a lot of work. However, they know that they cannot trust other adults to take care of the island the way they do. So they decide that they need some children. There is only one problem - they don't have any. Eventually the aunts decide that the only way to get some kids is kidnapping. After all, some child...more

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Aug 11, 2011 Beth Bonini rated it 4 of 5 stars

Unlike some of Ibbotson's children's books, this one is not just for fun. There is an important message about how we treat the oceans underneath the imaginative plot and unusual characters. I couldn't see how Ibbotson was going to make everything come out right in this one, especially since the plot hinges on the kidnapping of several children, but she does.

One of my daughter's favourites when she was 10-12. I think that she has reread it numerous times.
She is passionate about NOT eating anythin...more

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Jan 24, 2011 Suna rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Anyone in need of a comfort read

Shelves: eva-ibbotson

Wonderful. In the most literal sense of the word.

Three children get kidnapped out of their ordinary lives to help three aging aunts, who run a forgotten island for wounded sea creatures.
These creatures vary from oil-slicked gulls to oil-slicked mermaids, and two of the children very quickly come to realize that their presumed kidnapping has been the best thing that's ever happened to them.
The third kid is a spoilt, screeching nightmare who ends up betraying the island and the legendary sea creat...more

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Jul 16, 2012 Josie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Minette and Fabio had a pretty boring life till they were kidnapped by the Aunts. Then, not only did they get to take care of seals, pelicans, squid, and more, they also took care of mermaids, broobries, silkies, and even the most important animal in the ocean: the kraken. Life going swell except for one thing: Aunt Myrtle made a mistake: instead of a kid willing to help, she chose a kid of complete worthlessness and through even more mistakes, he called his dad, told him of the animals, and cre...more

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Jul 08, 2010 Kathryn rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: fantasy fans, those seeking books on protecting the environment or on broken homes

Shelves: annie-and-katie-bookclub, fantasy-sci-fi

Having read and loved Ibbotson's The Great Ghost Rescue, I had high hopes for my journey to the Island of the Aunts. And I must now consider myself an Ibbotson fan! I love her style. For me, it is the closet thing to JK Rowling's that I've found in terms of characterization and humor and blending magic with "the real world" but Ibbotson also has her own flare and it just makes me smile to read her work.

That said, I must say I was a little disappointed with "Island of the Aunts" Maybe my expectat...more Having read and loved Ibbotson's The Great Ghost Rescue, I had high hopes for my journey to the Island of the Aunts. And I must now consider myself an Ibbotson fan! I love her style. For me, it is the closet thing to JK Rowling's that I've found in terms of characterization and humor and blending magic with "the real world" but Ibbotson also has her own flare and it just makes me smile to read her work.

That said, I must say I was a little disappointed with "Island of the Aunts" Maybe my expectations were too high, as I know it's one of her most popular titles, but I finished the book feeling a bit unfulfilled. I felt it walked the line between being a book about fantastical creatures and being a book about the real-world problems faced by the characters and I'm not sure either was fully developed in consequence. It's fun to meet all the "magical creatures" on the island and I love the idea of taking care of them but again there wasn't too much focus on that. I also think it's important to show a story where children don't have a happy family life but somehow find fulfillment through the natural world, through other people who care about them, and through becoming more aware of their own potential and worth--which Ibbotson does. But I also didn't feel that the children grow as much as they could have. And there were some plot threads that never quite cleared up what is "right" and "wrong"--not that I think all kids' books should be clearly black and white, but again I think stories like Harry Potter do a wonderful job of showing the variations in people (such as Dumbledore not always being "perfect" but ultimately choosing to do right) while still allowing that there are universal truths, "good" and "bad" ways (if we must label them) of dealing with situations and I felt that was lacking in "Island of the Aunts" I was left a bit unsure of how I was supposed to feel; again, I appreciate a story that doesn't put a neat little bow on a Hallmark card moral-of-the-story, but, I just felt it could have been a bit stronger since it seemed to be a book with a "message."

Complaints aside, this is still a charmingly written, humorous story that should appeal to both boys and girls. There is an underlying message of caring for the natural world, and especially its creatures, and this is a great novel if you are looking for books with an environmental theme. And, oh how I wish that the Kraken could swim past our shores these days, spreading his message of peace and harmony!(less)

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Sep 23, 2012 Kay rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: re-read

2009 review (see 2012 review following):
Children's lit, but total delight to read. Very well written, detail exquisite--never gets "purple" but paints a clear picture of a fabled island. I still have a little problem with the "kidnapping" part, even though for a good cause and bettered the children's lives when they were returned to their families, but it keeps bothering me a bit.

The four aunts aren't individually memorable to me, except I do know Aunt Myrtle is the one who plays her cello to t...more 2009 review (see 2012 review following):
Children's lit, but total delight to read. Very well written, detail exquisite--never gets "purple" but paints a clear picture of a fabled island. I still have a little problem with the "kidnapping" part, even though for a good cause and bettered the children's lives when they were returned to their families, but it keeps bothering me a bit.

The four aunts aren't individually memorable to me, except I do know Aunt Myrtle is the one who plays her cello to the selkie (seal) and other seals. All of them are certainly intrepid! Fantasy animals--boobries and skoorworms and pangolins, etc. are fun, but what kept the book impossible to put down was the sheer delight of the good writing. Herbert, the selkie: "The clothes felt prickly on his skin and his soul felt prickly, too."

Minette and Fabio are the stars, and the horrid, spoiled Lambert who shrieks for his mobile phone day and night, are memorable and fine characters for kids to read about.

Thoroughly good read!

2012 review:
Read this a few years ago for a book group, and now chose it for a themed book group meeting (YA/Juvenile). Often I don't remember reading a book, but this one was memorable--the three aunts, Herman the seal, the mermaids, the selkies, especially Herbert, who shape-changes, as selkies can, into a heroic man, the awful parents of the "kidnapped" children, the humming kraken who is saving the oceans, an ocean spirit for a healing world, the boobrie, the stoorworm--I learned about real and mythical sea creatures with fascination. The punchy plot kept me turning pages, the descriptions put me there on the Island, even though there is a map in the book, I feel I could hike it easily, finding all the landmarks. I did have a hard time swallowing the camel of the kidnapped-children theme: I can see the need for it, the benefits of it, but the connotative horror of it bothers me a lot. How else could the three children, miserable and abused, be brought to the island? How else could the magical, mythical sea creatures be cared for and healed? Once I accepted the premise and kept reading, the delights on every page kept me in a happy trance: de-oiling the mermaids, wrapping the stoorworm around the proper tree, the tragedy of the Selkie of Rosnay, Herbert's mother, whose sealskin was stolen by a man, making her human until one day, years and seven children later, she finds her sealskin, put it on and is a selkie again, forever pulled by both the land and the sea. Making the third child be the awful, spoiled, whiny, nasty Lambert spices things up. The attack-in-the-name-of-rescue, the scare, and the resolution work quite well, and the whole book is a complete delight. It's going on the re-read list!
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Jul 31, 2012 Rose rated it 4 of 5 stars

A delightful, but quirky story of three aunts who take care of an island with all sorts of magical creatures. I read this story out loud to a group of children. It took a little while for them to get into the story, but by the end, they were loving it! Some of the vocabularly and expressions were a little "British" for the kids, and there were even some words that I had to skip or substitude: mainly "h---". Overall, though, I thought the story was very well written, funny, and original!

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Sep 08, 2009 Christine rated it 5 of 5 stars

I read this on vacation after Taylor had finished it and I really enjoyed it. A fun novel of an island of spinster aunts that take care of some fantastic creatures and are desperate to find someone to continue their legacy. I loved the way the author wrote the book, with unexpected things happening (and being said) throughout the story. It reminded me of the Ronald Dahl books I loved growing up. Very fun, and very funny. I would reccommend it for probably 4th or 5th grade on up.

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Aug 24, 2011 Shannon Karoly rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Island of the Aunts was a good book. I think it was interesting how the animals on the island were described as nice, sweet, caring creatures. I thought the beginning of this book was a little slow. The beginning of this book did not have much detail. This book was confusing at parts. I liked how all of aunts had good intentions throughout the book. The end of this book was not very surprising and not very exciting. Overall, I thought this was an okay book.

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Feb 22, 2013 Ilana Waters rated it 4 of 5 stars

I admit to having a bit of a problem with the way the children were drugged and kidnapped in the beginning of the story. And they did seem to be essentially enslaved by the aunts, when I feel they deserved a surfeit of love and a real childhood of their own. However, the overall message of environmental responsibility--along Ibbotson's usual humor and tenderness--makes Island of the Aunts a classic of children's literature.

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Feb 14, 2009 Dian rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasyworld

ada sebuah pulau dimana penuh dengan hewan-hewan aneh, kek monster getu. para penjaganya adalah empat kakak beradik yang semuanya perempuan. mereka sebenernya udah kewalahan ngurusin hewan-hewan aneh itu, sampai akhirnya mereka musti cari jalan dengan menculik anak-anak kecil buat bantuin mereka di pulau itu. kebayang hebohnya waktu mereka pura-pura jadi nanny trus nyulik anak-anak kecil buat dibawa ke pulau. di pulau pun anak-anak yg tadinya ga betah jadi kerasan. nah, ada cerita tentang legend...more

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Sep 25, 2011 Leslie rated it 3 of 5 stars

This was a hard book for me to rate. I think I would do 3 1/2 stars if I could. As it is, I thought the story was creative and fun and if I was 12, I would probably have given it 5 stars. So for a child reader, this would still be a great book. My 32 year old self was a little disappointed at the flatness of the characters. They are very interesting characters and it took me a long time to figure out what was lacking in the book, but I think it was some depth to the characters and also a little...more

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May 15, 2010 Megan Gil rated it 5 of 5 stars

I loved this book. It's adventurous and one of those books every kid wishes would come to life. The kids in the book get kidnapped and have to learn about the island and how to take care of the magical creatures because the aunts that live there are too old to do it themselves. I read this in middle school (when I actually had time to read my own books) and couldn't put it down.

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About Eva Ibbotson

Eva Ibbotson (born Maria Charlotte Michelle Wiesner, 1925, Vienna, Austria) was a British novelist specializing in romance and children's fantasy. Eva Ibbotson was born in Vienna, Austria, in 1925. When Hitler came into power, Ibbotson's family moved to England. She attended Bedford College, graduating in 1945; Cambridge University from 1946-47; and the University of Durham, from which she graduat...more Eva Ibbotson (born Maria Charlotte Michelle Wiesner, 1925, Vienna, Austria) was a British novelist specializing in romance and children's fantasy. Eva Ibbotson was born in Vienna, Austria, in 1925. When Hitler came into power, Ibbotson's family moved to England. She attended Bedford College, graduating in 1945; Cambridge University from 1946-47; and the University of Durham, from which she graduated with a diploma in education in 1965. Ibbotson had intended to be a physiologist, but was put off by the amount of animal testing that she would have to do. Instead, she married and raised a family, returning to school to become a teacher in the 1960's. Ibbotson was widowed with three sons and a daughter.

Ibottson began writing with the television drama Linda Came Today, in 1965. Ten years later, she published her first novel, The Great Ghost Rescue. Ibbotson has written numerous books including The Secret of Platform 13, Journey to the River Sea, Which Witch?, Island of the Aunts, and Dial-a-Ghost. She won the Nestlé Smarties Book Prize for Journey to the River Sea, and has been a runner up for many of major awards for British children's literature. The books are imaginative and humorous, and most of them feature magical creatures and places, despite the fact that she disliked thinking about the supernatural, and created the characters because she wanted to decrease her readers' fear of such things. Some of the books, particularly Journey to the River Sea, also reflect Ibbotson's love of nature. Ibbotson wrote this book in honor of her husband (who had died just before she wrote it), a former naturalist. The book had been in her head for years before she actually wrote it. Ibbotson said she dislikes "financial greed and a lust for power" and often creates antagonists in her books who have these characteristics. Some have been struck by the similarity of "Platform 9 3/4" in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter books to Ibbotson's The Secret of Platform 13, which came out three years before the first Harry Potter book.

Her love of Austria is evident in works such as The Star Of Kazan and A Song For Summer. These books, set primarily in the Austrian countryside, display the author's love for nature and all things natural.

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Trivia About Island of the Aunts

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Quotes from Island of the Aunts

“one of the sisters started shaving her legs and marrying tax inspectors, so she was no good.” — 16 people liked it

“One can always bear what is right.” — 2 people liked it

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