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World in Amber sequence #1
The World in Amber
Tells the stories of King Ambrose, Queen Maldive, and Isme, whose out-of-body experiences teach them about the world beyond Phar-Tracil.
224 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1985
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
January 23, 2012
I don't know how I came upon this book -- back of some second hand throw away shelf no doubt -- but I am glad I did. This book has everything, humor, surrealism, magic swords, and redemption. I loved it, and was always hunting for more books by A. Orr, to no avail. Sigh. This deserves to be remembered.
July 23, 2008
The first of two books. The sequel is In the Ice King's Palace written by Alice Ingram Orr Sprague. The fantasy is set in a drop of amber that contains the whole world and the struggles of the minstrel Isme. Discord has created unbalance but Isme seeks a way to restore the balance.
May 14, 2024
This book wasn't for me. The story felt direct and heavy-handed, and the addition of Christianity felt very off-putting. There was just an overall lack of suspense or page-turnedness. That's my new word that spell check is telling me is wrong. Eat it, spellcheck!
The book had a lightness in the adventure that reminds me of Chronicles of Narnia. I imagined it all as a cartoon if that is any indication. The difference, though, is that I personally didn't feel transported to being a child, full of a sense of awe and wonderment. It just didn't work for me.
The book had a lightness in the adventure that reminds me of Chronicles of Narnia. I imagined it all as a cartoon if that is any indication. The difference, though, is that I personally didn't feel transported to being a child, full of a sense of awe and wonderment. It just didn't work for me.
November 22, 2022
Perfectly fine fantasy that seems to have no idea how to end.
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September 20, 2019A few weeks ago (Aug. 2019) SCBWI announced a small grant opportunity for unpublished authors of MG / YA fantasy and science fiction. It was initiated by Alice Orr Sprague's sister, Michelle Orr, upon A. Orr's death in 2018 after a short struggle with cancer. A. Orr was the author of The World In Amber books in the mid-1980s and part-owner of the historic inn, Alexander's, in Key West, where she wrote the first book.
Visit SCBWI's website to see when grant applications will be accepted and guidelines for submissions. You must be a member to apply.
Before applying for the grant, I felt I needed to read the books. I want to make clear: what follows is NOT a review. It is NOT my opinion about her books, her writing, or the world she created. It's a summary of the plot and the bare-bones writing techniques used, nothing more.
Orr's writing is different from the compact, focused storytelling expected of YA books now. Her vocabulary is quite high. There are pages of dialogue. I remember reading many a book like this when I was a teen and sucking up books like a vacuum cleaner in the 80s, but I hadn't come across this series. In many ways, it's the premise -- an entire universe, randomly caught in a petrified drop of amber -- that piques the reader's interest.
Luckily, my public library was able to find copies of both books, which is a minor miracle! They were still in circulation, but I believe they're considered OP -- out of print -- although you can pick up a few used copies on Amazon (see the links at the end of each review on my blog site).
A very special thank you to the Oregon Institute of Technology Library, in Klamath Falls, and the McAllen, Texas Library for fulfilling my Interlibrary Loan requests, and thanks to my public library for doing such a great job tracking the books down and requesting them for me!
The World in Amber, by A. Orr
This first book in the duology starts with the POV of the king of this world encapsulated in amber, known as Phar-Tracil.
King Ambrose wakes in a forest far from his soft, cushy king's bed and spends the next few months eking out a living with an old crone and an imp, who acts as a sort of memory box for all the things humans have done over the course of history. Along the way, he learns he'd gotten soft 'round the tum and in the brain, and his barons and counselors have conspired with King Halus, in another country, to stage a coup and take over. The physical exertion hardens Ambrose's mind and body (he's rather startled it would do this!) and he's prepared to stop the invasion -- if he can get home in time.
The POV then shifts to his wife, the Queen, Maldive, who also wakes up from the same cushy bed, but as a mangy, thin, starving red cat. She goes down to the kitchens, where she's never been before, learns her servants don't think highly of her, begs for food, taunts the dogs, and also overhears the plot against her husband and her son, Isme. The barons figure while they can imprison Ambrose and Maldive, they'll have to kill Isme to prevent a future uprising, as he's pretty well-loved by everyone.
The book then shifts to Isme's POV. He's stuck in a "world of poets' thoughts and pagan magic," and frolicks (in the adult sense, so this is probably NOT an MG book by today's standards) with a satyr and a fawn, then encounters a beautiful real girl, Severn, who's not at all innocent -- she's frolicked with the fawns and satyrs, too, over the years, and knows a thing or two. They get together more than euphemistically, although nothing is graphic by today's romance writing standards, and therefore are paganly "married."
All three POVs mention the character Judah Hilah, a sorcerer, and it's while you're reading Isme's POV that you learn Judah's goal -- to steal Isme's heart, cut it out of his chest, drain him of blood, and thus make him a sorcerer of wild magic and immortal. Along the way Judah also cleverly has Isme eat an apple of knowledge, so he "knows" everything there is to know, once he becomes a sorcerer.
Judah is the engineer of King Ambrose and Queen Maldive's recent enlightening excursions, and they all wake up at the same moment, six days before King Halus is set to invade. They arrest the barons, find lords loyal to them to meet the invasion force on the beach, and Ambrose uses his new-found muscles and a magic sword (imbued with defensive powers by Isme, depicted on the cover) to fight King Halus for the realm.
King Ambrose knocks King Halus unconscious, wins the fight, and Halus sends his forces home while he and King Ambrose become, if not friends, allies and equals. Judah retires to his wife on the Isle of the Blest, having done his duty to the kingdom -- knocking some common sense into a king and queen and creating his successor sorcerer.
Visit my blog for more great middle grade book recommendations, free teaching materials and fiction writing tips: http://amb.mystrikingly.com/
Visit SCBWI's website to see when grant applications will be accepted and guidelines for submissions. You must be a member to apply.
Before applying for the grant, I felt I needed to read the books. I want to make clear: what follows is NOT a review. It is NOT my opinion about her books, her writing, or the world she created. It's a summary of the plot and the bare-bones writing techniques used, nothing more.
Orr's writing is different from the compact, focused storytelling expected of YA books now. Her vocabulary is quite high. There are pages of dialogue. I remember reading many a book like this when I was a teen and sucking up books like a vacuum cleaner in the 80s, but I hadn't come across this series. In many ways, it's the premise -- an entire universe, randomly caught in a petrified drop of amber -- that piques the reader's interest.
Luckily, my public library was able to find copies of both books, which is a minor miracle! They were still in circulation, but I believe they're considered OP -- out of print -- although you can pick up a few used copies on Amazon (see the links at the end of each review on my blog site).
A very special thank you to the Oregon Institute of Technology Library, in Klamath Falls, and the McAllen, Texas Library for fulfilling my Interlibrary Loan requests, and thanks to my public library for doing such a great job tracking the books down and requesting them for me!
The World in Amber, by A. Orr
This first book in the duology starts with the POV of the king of this world encapsulated in amber, known as Phar-Tracil.
King Ambrose wakes in a forest far from his soft, cushy king's bed and spends the next few months eking out a living with an old crone and an imp, who acts as a sort of memory box for all the things humans have done over the course of history. Along the way, he learns he'd gotten soft 'round the tum and in the brain, and his barons and counselors have conspired with King Halus, in another country, to stage a coup and take over. The physical exertion hardens Ambrose's mind and body (he's rather startled it would do this!) and he's prepared to stop the invasion -- if he can get home in time.
The POV then shifts to his wife, the Queen, Maldive, who also wakes up from the same cushy bed, but as a mangy, thin, starving red cat. She goes down to the kitchens, where she's never been before, learns her servants don't think highly of her, begs for food, taunts the dogs, and also overhears the plot against her husband and her son, Isme. The barons figure while they can imprison Ambrose and Maldive, they'll have to kill Isme to prevent a future uprising, as he's pretty well-loved by everyone.
The book then shifts to Isme's POV. He's stuck in a "world of poets' thoughts and pagan magic," and frolicks (in the adult sense, so this is probably NOT an MG book by today's standards) with a satyr and a fawn, then encounters a beautiful real girl, Severn, who's not at all innocent -- she's frolicked with the fawns and satyrs, too, over the years, and knows a thing or two. They get together more than euphemistically, although nothing is graphic by today's romance writing standards, and therefore are paganly "married."
All three POVs mention the character Judah Hilah, a sorcerer, and it's while you're reading Isme's POV that you learn Judah's goal -- to steal Isme's heart, cut it out of his chest, drain him of blood, and thus make him a sorcerer of wild magic and immortal. Along the way Judah also cleverly has Isme eat an apple of knowledge, so he "knows" everything there is to know, once he becomes a sorcerer.
Judah is the engineer of King Ambrose and Queen Maldive's recent enlightening excursions, and they all wake up at the same moment, six days before King Halus is set to invade. They arrest the barons, find lords loyal to them to meet the invasion force on the beach, and Ambrose uses his new-found muscles and a magic sword (imbued with defensive powers by Isme, depicted on the cover) to fight King Halus for the realm.
King Ambrose knocks King Halus unconscious, wins the fight, and Halus sends his forces home while he and King Ambrose become, if not friends, allies and equals. Judah retires to his wife on the Isle of the Blest, having done his duty to the kingdom -- knocking some common sense into a king and queen and creating his successor sorcerer.
Visit my blog for more great middle grade book recommendations, free teaching materials and fiction writing tips: http://amb.mystrikingly.com/
July 31, 2010
This was an absolutely amazing book, about what it means to be truly noble. I wish I knew who this author was or if he/she ever wrote more.
And OMG there was a sequel..............AMAZON! You kill me.
And OMG there was a sequel..............AMAZON! You kill me.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews