What do you think?
Rate this book
Artifact Inspector #1
The Monster in the Mudball
A monster is loose in England!
And it’s kind of Jin’s fault that Zilombo got loose.
Jin tracks the monster, but he can’t figure out how to get her back into the artifact from which she hatched. Then Jin meets Chief Inspector of Ancient Artifacts A. J. Zauyamakanda—Mizz Z, for short—who has arrived to inspect the artifact. She and Jin team up to find Zilombo.
Joining them is Frankie, Jin’s older sister, who has lost their baby brother—and Zilombo is the most likely culprit for his disappearance. Zilombo gains new, frightening powers every time she hatches. Now the monster is cleverer than ever before . . . and she likes to eat babies!
Will Jin’s baby brother be next on Zilombo’s menu? As the monster’s powers continue to grow, Jin, Frankie, and Mizz Z must find a way to outsmart Zilombo!
And it’s kind of Jin’s fault that Zilombo got loose.
Jin tracks the monster, but he can’t figure out how to get her back into the artifact from which she hatched. Then Jin meets Chief Inspector of Ancient Artifacts A. J. Zauyamakanda—Mizz Z, for short—who has arrived to inspect the artifact. She and Jin team up to find Zilombo.
Joining them is Frankie, Jin’s older sister, who has lost their baby brother—and Zilombo is the most likely culprit for his disappearance. Zilombo gains new, frightening powers every time she hatches. Now the monster is cleverer than ever before . . . and she likes to eat babies!
Will Jin’s baby brother be next on Zilombo’s menu? As the monster’s powers continue to grow, Jin, Frankie, and Mizz Z must find a way to outsmart Zilombo!
224 pages, Hardcover
First published September 17, 2012
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
October 6, 2013
First Paragraph(s): Madalitso dragged a chair over to her wardrobe. It took almost all her strength. Shakily she climbed up onto it. Her legs were as thin as sticks. But her eyes blazed with fierce determination.
Her lips began to move. “Are you listening, Zilombo?” she whispered. “I know you can hear me in there.”
She was talking quietly. There were only two things on top of her wardrobe. One was a battered cardboard suitcase—the one she’d brought with her sixty years ago, when she came to England from Africa. The other was a ball of dried mud, slightly bigger than a football and covered in dust and cobwebs.
“I have kept you shut up here for twenty years,” said Madalitso. “This is a harsh punishment. But what else could we do after the terrible thing you did?”
Here's a fun read for us to discuss, Esteemed Reader, and author S.P. Gates will be here Thursday to face the 7 Questions. It's going to be a good week.
First, let's talk about that opening. It's unusual to open a middle grade novel with the actions of an adult rather than a child protagonists, despite that being the exact way Harry Potter and the Philosopher Stone opens (S.P. Gates is English, so I'm using their title this week). The trick to opening a book for children by discussing the actions of an adult is to intrigue the reader. This is a good idea when opening any story, but essential when opening with a grown up.
We meet Jin Aaron Sparks, our eleven-year old protagonist, soon enough. Actually, we meet him in chapter one. But first there's this business with Madalitso, grown-up. She's not in the story for long, but we open with her and for the time she's present, her job is to introduce the conflict that will plague Jin.
What I like about this opening is that it raises questions. Why is Madalitso talking to a ball of mud? Keen readers may pick up on the significance of a ball of mud in a book titled The Monster in the Mudball:)Why has this ball of mud been shut up for twenty years and what terrible thing did it do to deserve this harsh punishment. When Madalitso exits stage left, which she does soon after this scene (not by getting killed, don't worry), she will be leaving behind a mystery and source of conflict for our heroes.
One of S.P. Gates great gifts is introducing interesting characters who feel real as a result of the specific characteristic she assigns them:
It was his big sister Frankie, lounging along the towpath toward him. Frankie was slight, bird-boned like Mum and Grandma Tang. But she'd inherited their dad's height. She looked, as usual, like a fairy at a funeral. Except for those thick woolly black tights and clomping biker boots.
Fankie bought party frocks from charity shops. Frothy, fancy frocks with big skirts, dripping with lace and net layers and frills and sequins. But she always dyed them deepest black to match.
"You a Goth" Jin had once asked her.
"I'm not anything" Frankie had fumed, insulted. "I'm me, right? Just me, Frankie."
Contrast that description with this introduction of a magical character not grounded in ordinary, everyday details:
Jin stared at her, his eyes popping. He'd seen inspectors before, in his school. But they mostly sneaked around silently, wearing gray suits, blending into the background. They said things like "Pretend I'm not here."
This inspector was nothing at all like that. Everything about her shrieked, I have arrived!"
She'd burst like a firework display into this quiet little cul de sac of gray, pebble-dashed bungalows. She had a wrap wound into a high crown around her head. Her head wrap and skirt were the same pattern--sizzling-hot red, flaming orange, and scorching yellow zigzags.
A.J. Zauyamakanda, or Mizz Z for short, is the Chief Inspector of Ancient Artifacts, which is like being a Man in Black for fantasy creatures rather than UFO inhabitants. Her job is to inspect ancient artifacts, of course:
"Madalitso knew her artifact might be dangerous," Mizz Z told Jin. "But he was a exception. Most owners of the things I inspect have no idea. They don't know what power is hanging on their walls, or stored, forgotten, in trunks in their attics."
"Don't you tell them?" asked Jin.
"Of course not," said Mizz Z with a scathing look. "Why scare people if you don't need to? Besides, many owners don't even know I have visited. I do many of my inspections under cover of darkness."
So getting back to that mudball we were discussing. Is there any chance there could be a monster in there? Any chance that monster Zilombo who just needs to get wet like a Gremlin to become a terrible beast not unlike a crocodile, but worse? Esteemed Reader, the could be such a chance. Worse yet? Zilombo, the terrible beast from the sewers that reminded me of the Korean horror film The Host (a Ninja favorite), has a taste for babies, as Mizz Z knows all too well. Babies such as Jin's baby brother Smiler!
I loved The Monster in the Mudball. It's interesting characters in pursuit of a monster from page one to the end. What's not to like? Also, it's effortlessly multicultural, by which I means it features a cast of characters from different cultural backgrounds without ever making it a thing, which is the best way to do it. At no point does S.P. Gates slow the story down to comment on how neat it is that such diverse folks are all getting along. Instead, she throws the characters together and focuses on kids chasing baby-eating monsters, which is what we paid for.
The book closes with a blatant promise of a book two and one of the best uses of an epilogue I've ever seen. "Here, here," I say. Bring us more like this and right quick:) The Monster in the Mudball is a fun read for kids and parents alike and the start of what looks to be a great series.
As always, I'll leave you with some of my favorite passages from The Monster in the Mudball:
A gull this big could swoop off with your pet Chihuahua. A gull this big couldn't just kill a pigeon. It could rip it wide open, shake it inside out, and gobble its guts.
But he felt just as mixed up as before. There were so many things he wanted to know. Like why she was wearing an eye patch. So he asked her.
"Why are you wearing that eye patch?"
"Excuse me, but is not spraying dragons everywhere illegal?" commented Mizz Z.
Frankie's eyes immediately blazed defiance. She got enough of that kind of talk from Mum. This stranger should mind her own business! Frankie sprayed her answer on the wall in a few quick, furious blasts. "SO WHAT?" it said, in huge, spiky red capitals.
Smiler didn't know, but it was called a slime mold, a kind of fungus that glows in the dark. It flowed down the wall like green ice cream. It threw its eerie green light on Smiler's face. He grinned at it, tried to grab it. But it was high above him. Never mind. There were more slime molds ahead of him, growing inside the pipe like a sinister midnight garden. One dripped neon orange. One, far ahead, was white and glimmered in the dark like ice crystals.
Gurgling with pleasure, Smiler headed for it. He had a very fast crawl, especially when it was to grab something he wanted. With his spiky hair, he looked like a running hedgehog as he scuttled along in the gloom, lit only by the slime mold's creepy glow.
Her lips began to move. “Are you listening, Zilombo?” she whispered. “I know you can hear me in there.”
She was talking quietly. There were only two things on top of her wardrobe. One was a battered cardboard suitcase—the one she’d brought with her sixty years ago, when she came to England from Africa. The other was a ball of dried mud, slightly bigger than a football and covered in dust and cobwebs.
“I have kept you shut up here for twenty years,” said Madalitso. “This is a harsh punishment. But what else could we do after the terrible thing you did?”
Here's a fun read for us to discuss, Esteemed Reader, and author S.P. Gates will be here Thursday to face the 7 Questions. It's going to be a good week.
First, let's talk about that opening. It's unusual to open a middle grade novel with the actions of an adult rather than a child protagonists, despite that being the exact way Harry Potter and the Philosopher Stone opens (S.P. Gates is English, so I'm using their title this week). The trick to opening a book for children by discussing the actions of an adult is to intrigue the reader. This is a good idea when opening any story, but essential when opening with a grown up.
We meet Jin Aaron Sparks, our eleven-year old protagonist, soon enough. Actually, we meet him in chapter one. But first there's this business with Madalitso, grown-up. She's not in the story for long, but we open with her and for the time she's present, her job is to introduce the conflict that will plague Jin.
What I like about this opening is that it raises questions. Why is Madalitso talking to a ball of mud? Keen readers may pick up on the significance of a ball of mud in a book titled The Monster in the Mudball:)Why has this ball of mud been shut up for twenty years and what terrible thing did it do to deserve this harsh punishment. When Madalitso exits stage left, which she does soon after this scene (not by getting killed, don't worry), she will be leaving behind a mystery and source of conflict for our heroes.
One of S.P. Gates great gifts is introducing interesting characters who feel real as a result of the specific characteristic she assigns them:
It was his big sister Frankie, lounging along the towpath toward him. Frankie was slight, bird-boned like Mum and Grandma Tang. But she'd inherited their dad's height. She looked, as usual, like a fairy at a funeral. Except for those thick woolly black tights and clomping biker boots.
Fankie bought party frocks from charity shops. Frothy, fancy frocks with big skirts, dripping with lace and net layers and frills and sequins. But she always dyed them deepest black to match.
"You a Goth" Jin had once asked her.
"I'm not anything" Frankie had fumed, insulted. "I'm me, right? Just me, Frankie."
Contrast that description with this introduction of a magical character not grounded in ordinary, everyday details:
Jin stared at her, his eyes popping. He'd seen inspectors before, in his school. But they mostly sneaked around silently, wearing gray suits, blending into the background. They said things like "Pretend I'm not here."
This inspector was nothing at all like that. Everything about her shrieked, I have arrived!"
She'd burst like a firework display into this quiet little cul de sac of gray, pebble-dashed bungalows. She had a wrap wound into a high crown around her head. Her head wrap and skirt were the same pattern--sizzling-hot red, flaming orange, and scorching yellow zigzags.
A.J. Zauyamakanda, or Mizz Z for short, is the Chief Inspector of Ancient Artifacts, which is like being a Man in Black for fantasy creatures rather than UFO inhabitants. Her job is to inspect ancient artifacts, of course:
"Madalitso knew her artifact might be dangerous," Mizz Z told Jin. "But he was a exception. Most owners of the things I inspect have no idea. They don't know what power is hanging on their walls, or stored, forgotten, in trunks in their attics."
"Don't you tell them?" asked Jin.
"Of course not," said Mizz Z with a scathing look. "Why scare people if you don't need to? Besides, many owners don't even know I have visited. I do many of my inspections under cover of darkness."
So getting back to that mudball we were discussing. Is there any chance there could be a monster in there? Any chance that monster Zilombo who just needs to get wet like a Gremlin to become a terrible beast not unlike a crocodile, but worse? Esteemed Reader, the could be such a chance. Worse yet? Zilombo, the terrible beast from the sewers that reminded me of the Korean horror film The Host (a Ninja favorite), has a taste for babies, as Mizz Z knows all too well. Babies such as Jin's baby brother Smiler!
I loved The Monster in the Mudball. It's interesting characters in pursuit of a monster from page one to the end. What's not to like? Also, it's effortlessly multicultural, by which I means it features a cast of characters from different cultural backgrounds without ever making it a thing, which is the best way to do it. At no point does S.P. Gates slow the story down to comment on how neat it is that such diverse folks are all getting along. Instead, she throws the characters together and focuses on kids chasing baby-eating monsters, which is what we paid for.
The book closes with a blatant promise of a book two and one of the best uses of an epilogue I've ever seen. "Here, here," I say. Bring us more like this and right quick:) The Monster in the Mudball is a fun read for kids and parents alike and the start of what looks to be a great series.
As always, I'll leave you with some of my favorite passages from The Monster in the Mudball:
A gull this big could swoop off with your pet Chihuahua. A gull this big couldn't just kill a pigeon. It could rip it wide open, shake it inside out, and gobble its guts.
But he felt just as mixed up as before. There were so many things he wanted to know. Like why she was wearing an eye patch. So he asked her.
"Why are you wearing that eye patch?"
"Excuse me, but is not spraying dragons everywhere illegal?" commented Mizz Z.
Frankie's eyes immediately blazed defiance. She got enough of that kind of talk from Mum. This stranger should mind her own business! Frankie sprayed her answer on the wall in a few quick, furious blasts. "SO WHAT?" it said, in huge, spiky red capitals.
Smiler didn't know, but it was called a slime mold, a kind of fungus that glows in the dark. It flowed down the wall like green ice cream. It threw its eerie green light on Smiler's face. He grinned at it, tried to grab it. But it was high above him. Never mind. There were more slime molds ahead of him, growing inside the pipe like a sinister midnight garden. One dripped neon orange. One, far ahead, was white and glimmered in the dark like ice crystals.
Gurgling with pleasure, Smiler headed for it. He had a very fast crawl, especially when it was to grab something he wanted. With his spiky hair, he looked like a running hedgehog as he scuttled along in the gloom, lit only by the slime mold's creepy glow.
January 20, 2018
3.5 stars. Well-written, great to have Asian and Malawian main characters, good pacing, and an interesting story. Written to have a sequel, but there isn't one.
Want to Read
March 29, 2021Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss.
March 14, 2014
Reviewed by Avery, age 10, for San Francisco Book Review
I found this book really hard to get through and I had to put it down and pick it up a lot as the story didn’t really fit me. All I could think about was this is what it must be like to read a fake story of Pokemon like when Cars came out and someone copied it trying to make people think it was the same thing. I think kids who really like Dragon Ballz and Pokemon might like this book. Sometimes it seemed the author spent too much time describing stuff and putting so many verbs and adjectives in every single sentence; it just made it hard to get into the story.
Its feet were half-frog, half-human and nearly killed a seagull. Strangled it with its feet, and it had yellow toenails, like sharp claws…
I think it would have been a much better graphic novel to tell the story more with pictures and to not have so many sentences overflowing with description. It would easily catch people’s attention and tell a story even without words so even kids who are just learning to read could read it. I don’t think I would spend my money on this book and would have just checked it out from the library instead.*This book was provided in exchange for an honest review*
*You can view the original review at San Francisco & Sacramento City Book Review
I found this book really hard to get through and I had to put it down and pick it up a lot as the story didn’t really fit me. All I could think about was this is what it must be like to read a fake story of Pokemon like when Cars came out and someone copied it trying to make people think it was the same thing. I think kids who really like Dragon Ballz and Pokemon might like this book. Sometimes it seemed the author spent too much time describing stuff and putting so many verbs and adjectives in every single sentence; it just made it hard to get into the story.
Its feet were half-frog, half-human and nearly killed a seagull. Strangled it with its feet, and it had yellow toenails, like sharp claws…
I think it would have been a much better graphic novel to tell the story more with pictures and to not have so many sentences overflowing with description. It would easily catch people’s attention and tell a story even without words so even kids who are just learning to read could read it. I don’t think I would spend my money on this book and would have just checked it out from the library instead.*This book was provided in exchange for an honest review*
*You can view the original review at San Francisco & Sacramento City Book Review
July 23, 2016
I love fast paced books and finally I ran into a book that was way too fast for my taste. Well, "a bit too fast" is more accurate.
I enjoyed the premise. How brilliant the concept is and how well the author managed to fit a Chinese family with an Malawi legend (turned reality).
The dialogue was another great aspect. It made me laugh many times, usually at the expense of the main character Jin. And that brings me to my one and only issue with the book: it was too fast paced. I wanted to know more about Jin. I was made aware of his struggles but too soon he had to go in chase of a terrible monster and predator in London. His sister Frankie was a great addition but I didn't get to know her on a deeper level either. Ironically I cared more about the toddler Smiler than anybody else.
Oh, let's not forget Miss Z. She was in and out like a gust of wind. Just when issues were supposedly resolved? She was gone as quickly as she showed up. I was like "What?"
However I am looking forward to a book two, in hopes that I will get to know these characters a lot better, and possibly learn much more about the RAAAA (the special organization Miss Z belongs to).
I was happily entertained but I wanted more.
I enjoyed the premise. How brilliant the concept is and how well the author managed to fit a Chinese family with an Malawi legend (turned reality).
The dialogue was another great aspect. It made me laugh many times, usually at the expense of the main character Jin. And that brings me to my one and only issue with the book: it was too fast paced. I wanted to know more about Jin. I was made aware of his struggles but too soon he had to go in chase of a terrible monster and predator in London. His sister Frankie was a great addition but I didn't get to know her on a deeper level either. Ironically I cared more about the toddler Smiler than anybody else.
Oh, let's not forget Miss Z. She was in and out like a gust of wind. Just when issues were supposedly resolved? She was gone as quickly as she showed up. I was like "What?"
However I am looking forward to a book two, in hopes that I will get to know these characters a lot better, and possibly learn much more about the RAAAA (the special organization Miss Z belongs to).
I was happily entertained but I wanted more.
January 24, 2014
Jin, a young boy who suffers from dyspraxia (clumsy child syndrome) must face a truly terrifying monster after his baby brother inadvertently sets it loose after a 20-year imprisonment. But what can he do against a creature with increasingly dangerous abilities that continue to develop. With the help of Mizz Z, a chief inspector of ancient artifacts of power, and his sister, Frankie, Jin must find a way to get the monster back in her ball of mud or face losing their little brother forever.
The Monster in the Mudball provides quite an entertaining read for middle graders or anyone who enjoys a good monster story. Zilombo, the monster, is a creepy and dangerous antagonist, but Jin, Frankie, and Mizz Z are pretty awesome protagonists and Smiler (the baby) provides plenty of exasperating humor. What I especially liked though were the cultural elements sprinkled through the story that play a rather critical role in what happens. Jin's Chinese grandparents make Chinese dragons for a living which I found fascinating as well as the idea of dragon dancing. I never really thought before about the fact that operating one of those big dragons is much more of an art than a science. Overall, a great multicultural fantasy that I truly enjoyed and can recommend.
The Monster in the Mudball provides quite an entertaining read for middle graders or anyone who enjoys a good monster story. Zilombo, the monster, is a creepy and dangerous antagonist, but Jin, Frankie, and Mizz Z are pretty awesome protagonists and Smiler (the baby) provides plenty of exasperating humor. What I especially liked though were the cultural elements sprinkled through the story that play a rather critical role in what happens. Jin's Chinese grandparents make Chinese dragons for a living which I found fascinating as well as the idea of dragon dancing. I never really thought before about the fact that operating one of those big dragons is much more of an art than a science. Overall, a great multicultural fantasy that I truly enjoyed and can recommend.
July 30, 2016
If your kid is a fan on monsters and action, you will want to check out this book. Jin and his sister, Frankie, join forces with the magnificent Mizz Z to defeat a giant monster. This monster goes through periods of hibernation and then hatches from her mudball. Each hatching makes the monster more powerful than before.
The story is quick and easy to read, so even reluctant readers will have no trouble enjoying it. The main character, Jin, is a likable and easy protagonist to relate to. Although he is clumsy, he is good at reading people's emotions, which helps him tremendously throughout the book. Mizz Z is a delightful character surrounded by mystery. She puts on a good front of staying calm and almost detached in moments of crises.
This book is great for kids ages 8 and up. It will probably appeal most strongly to boys, but most middle grade kids will enjoy it.
Content: Suspense. Fights with the monster. Some kids may find the monster scary, but clean otherwise.
My blog: Batch of Books
The story is quick and easy to read, so even reluctant readers will have no trouble enjoying it. The main character, Jin, is a likable and easy protagonist to relate to. Although he is clumsy, he is good at reading people's emotions, which helps him tremendously throughout the book. Mizz Z is a delightful character surrounded by mystery. She puts on a good front of staying calm and almost detached in moments of crises.
This book is great for kids ages 8 and up. It will probably appeal most strongly to boys, but most middle grade kids will enjoy it.
Content: Suspense. Fights with the monster. Some kids may find the monster scary, but clean otherwise.
My blog: Batch of Books
January 15, 2014
Jin (11) finds himself tracking down a monster that's escaped from a mudball prison with the help of his older sister Frankie and Mizz Z, a Chief Inspector of Ancient Artifacts. Fantasy adventure.
The book's done with good will. I won't attack it for that. It is overly silly, and not in ha ha terms. But like I said, harmless G fun. If kids stick with it (the start with Madalisto almost lost me) I think they'll think it's fine. For some reason, The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm kept running through my mind as I read this.
There's a few odd pov shifts. So, so, so many similes. So many.
Jin's half-Chinese. Mizz Z and the Zilombo are from Malawi.
Likely start of a series about various artifacts, which is a good move. I wouldn't classify a mudball as an artifact, but such is life. This is a JLG's high interest middle selection, but I'd say upper elementary is a better fit.
The book's done with good will. I won't attack it for that. It is overly silly, and not in ha ha terms. But like I said, harmless G fun. If kids stick with it (the start with Madalisto almost lost me) I think they'll think it's fine. For some reason, The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm kept running through my mind as I read this.
There's a few odd pov shifts. So, so, so many similes. So many.
Jin's half-Chinese. Mizz Z and the Zilombo are from Malawi.
Likely start of a series about various artifacts, which is a good move. I wouldn't classify a mudball as an artifact, but such is life. This is a JLG's high interest middle selection, but I'd say upper elementary is a better fit.
May 31, 2015
I think that The Monster in the Mudball by S.P. Gates is a decent book,but I wasn’t real crazy about it. The story begins in the house of Madalitso, an elderly woman who takes care of her neighbor’s children but she also takes very close care of this mudball that she keeps on top of her wardrobe which she brought from Africa many years ago. When she goes to check on the mudball in preparation for the inspector’s visit, Madalisto is startled and falls off the chair she is standing on. The dried mudball also falls to the floor. When the baby crawls to the mudball, the drool from his mouth softens the hardened mud and the monster hatches and runs off. As the monster is terrorizing the town, the inspector, Miss Z, and the kids try to hunt down the monster before it eats their baby brother.
I thought the book was unrealistic and I didn’t really enjoy it that much.This is not to say that the book wasn’t good, I just didn’t enjoy the plot. I think that if you like suspenseful, mysterious monster stories you will like this book.
I thought the book was unrealistic and I didn’t really enjoy it that much.This is not to say that the book wasn’t good, I just didn’t enjoy the plot. I think that if you like suspenseful, mysterious monster stories you will like this book.
January 29, 2016
Monster In The Mudball by S.P. Gates was a good book, although it was super hard to understand. Monster In The Mudball is about Jin, his brother Smiler, and his sister Frankie. Jin descovers that his neighbor has been keeping a ancient artifact in her house for years. When smiler drools on it, it hatches a monster. Miss.Z is an inspector who has come to inspect the mud ball. Only it's gone. The book is about the adventures of these four people and trying to get the mud ball back.
My favorite part was when the mud ball strangled a poor bird with its legs. Then the bird flew off stunned, yet Jin still chases the mud ball.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes monsters and science fiction also anyone who likes suspense. I would recommend this book to both boys and girls.
My favorite part was when the mud ball strangled a poor bird with its legs. Then the bird flew off stunned, yet Jin still chases the mud ball.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes monsters and science fiction also anyone who likes suspense. I would recommend this book to both boys and girls.
Read
April 24, 2015The book I read was the Monster in the Mud Ball. This story takes place in England downtown. There is a family the has an old lady form Africa that brought a mud ball but the family does not know what it is and don't want to know. The kids let their baby play with the ball but the baby starts to droll on the ball and the ball comes to life and takes the baby and try's to escape . Now the family must find their baby an put the monster in its mud ball.
My opinion on this book is that it was really slow in the beginning of the book and piled up really fast and was existing all the way to the end.
I would recommend this book to people who like monster and ancient artifacts
My opinion on this book is that it was really slow in the beginning of the book and piled up really fast and was existing all the way to the end.
I would recommend this book to people who like monster and ancient artifacts
October 1, 2015
My book that I'm doing a review on is zilombo the author that wrote this amazing book is Susan gates.
The genre of this Book is fiction obesely because of the mister the book based of . The setting of this book is in London with the main characters being Jin, his sister and a women inspects artifacts.the book is about a boy that and an artifact inspected chasing around a mysterious shadow that has taken something precious of there's . The reason I gave this book a five out of five because it left cliff hangers that maid you want to read more and also the format was nice the story was very Interesting to me.
The genre of this Book is fiction obesely because of the mister the book based of . The setting of this book is in London with the main characters being Jin, his sister and a women inspects artifacts.the book is about a boy that and an artifact inspected chasing around a mysterious shadow that has taken something precious of there's . The reason I gave this book a five out of five because it left cliff hangers that maid you want to read more and also the format was nice the story was very Interesting to me.
July 20, 2013
A fun and different adventure for kids as an ancient African artifact comes alive in London, and young Jin, his graffiti-scrawling sister, and a strange woman who oversees magical artifacts hunt down the monster in the mud ball. I enjoyed the threads of Malawi and Chinese culture woven into the story, and loved the (very accurate) portrayal of Jin's toddler brother, known as Smiler. I also loved the sister, Frankie, with her black-dyed prom dresses and big boots, and would be interested in further books about the family and the Chief Inspector.
October 21, 2013
When Zilombo, a monster that has been trapped inside a mudball for decades, escapes into the London streets and underground drains, it's up to Jin to save the day. As he works with the mysterious Mizz Z, Chief Inspector of Ancient Artifacts, to keep Zilombo from devouring his baby brother, Smile, the creature grows ever-stronger and more powerful in many ways, even being able to regenerate lost limbs. I liked how Jin's family members are depicted as well as how he himself gains confidence over the course of the book. It will be fun to read the next books that follow the artifact inspector.
November 30, 2013
Perhaps I am simply the wrong audience for this book. Middle grade is something I sometimes struggle to get into...I sort of feel like this would have worked for me as a cartoon. (For some odd reason, the story reminds me of Pokemon -- maybe it's the fact you have to get the monster/creature back into its ball for safe keeping?).
March 15, 2015
This is a multicultural book with a Chinese family living in London dealing with a monster from Malawi. It's packed with action and the whole book is about events that happen within less two days. I found it to be a lot of fun with a bit of tension. Readers who enjoy wild and crazy monsters will enjoy this one.
February 3, 2014
This is first in a new, highly multicultural series. There's an ancient African river monster, Chinese dragon dancers, and a London graffiti tagger. And there's the chief inspector of a secret organization -- I love Mizz Z!
June 28, 2016
Lots of action and adventure, some danger but not too intense, interesting characters with problems (fighting with mom) and flaws (clumsy) and bad habits (graffiti). I thought this was going to have a science element, but it's more of a strong sense of truth in old folk lore.
July 9, 2013
Fun read for the adventurous reader! Combines multiple cultures and makes them accessible.
http://www.leeandlow.com/books/505/hc...
http://www.leeandlow.com/books/505/hc...
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews