Otto and the Flying Twins

The Karmidee #1

by Charlotte Haptie

Otto is our endearingly bewildered young hero whose world suddenly becomes very odd. Going with his father, Albert, to the FireBox Launderette, Albert is called to help with 'failing machinery' and is seen by Otto calming a purple dragon in the back room. When his baby sisters start to fly, his grandmother becomes a unicorn, and street waifs fly along the street at night on magic carpets pursued by the new Normal Police force, life becomes odder and scarier. Otto learns - often riotously - that his city and his family are very special indeed. Here the last remaining magical people - the Karmidee - are living as an underclass of pedlars and tinkers, known as the 'magicos'. But legend tells of a King, birthmarked with a butterfly, who will save the Karmidee from extinction. Particularly from the new Minister for Modernisation, Councillor Elfina Crink. With her Impossible List and Normal Police, she is determined to stamp out the Karmidee spirit. As repression intensifies, the Karmidee and their powers go underground, but their magic bursts out in the most unexpected places as a bid for freedom, with surprising, hilarious and extraordinary results.

Genres: Fantasy, Childrens, Middle Grade, Magic, Fiction, Adventure, Young Adult

Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

Reviews

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was hoping this book would become Harry Potter-esque in popularity, but alas...

[Rad · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a terrible book!


No, wait. What a terrible COVER. What a WONDERFUL story inside!

Seriously though, what's up with that 60s-looking cover?




Also, my local library recommended this book to me. Hooray for the library!

[Steph · Rating 3 out of 5]

A meaningful, magical, and at times silly, middle grades book that covers some serious themes like imprisoning people different, abandonment, etc. It kept me guessing and despite being geared for a younger audience I was surprised by some of the plot twists. Recommended.

[Literary Strawberry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am fully aware that nostalgia is contributing a lot to this rating, but gosh, this book

[Marion · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was amazing, I especially enjoyed the part where Elfina was at the concert where she turned into a tiger.

[Alexandra_ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing children/young teen fantasy, I wish it was more popular but unfortunately it was published in the era of the Harry Potter frenzy (2003). Remains one of my all time favourites, and should definitely become a movie.

[нєνєℓ ¢ανα · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful written, so entertaining, fantastic and lovely...

[Pranjyoti Saikia · Rating 1 out of 5]

Full of magical tropes and cliches. Unicorn, flying carpets, shape shifting animals, merpeople etc.

[Vanessa Dargain · Rating 2 out of 5]

Text and title don't jibe . I was expecting a different story . The twins aren't really the central theme .

[Erin]

Excellent YA fantasy. I am always eager to see what fantasy writers will created in their magical world, and Charlotte Haptie did not disappoint. The Karmidee - all the magical peoples and creatures and races - have an interesting architecture, both literally and figuratively. They conform generally to the fantasy genre canon (if there is such a thing?) while also introducing some new nuances to the "how" of magical being. The author challenges her reader to consider what is "normal", what is "impossible", and why do people love or fear those things they don't understand. I really liked the family story, the search for understanding who one is and where one comes from. Haptie also deftly handles issues of prejudice and exclusion. Anyone who enjoys Harry Potter or The Chronicles of Prydain should read Otto and the Flying Twins. A wonderful book, can't wait to read the others in the series.

[Erica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this ten years ago, and was entranced by the quirky world and the mysterious way the characters and history of their world fit together. It's thrilling to imagine young readers getting absorbed & engaged in a story with a magic yarn-shop and a talented knitter. Flying, powerful magical objects, hidden rooms in the library, a misty river delta, and crooked, carved vernacular architecture. Otto Hush and Mab make good team.

[Fadilah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sebuah kisah fantasi menarik yang memiliki jalinan cerita unik. Berkisah tentang bangsa Karmidee yang ingin diberantas oleh calon walikota baru. Raja kaum Karmidee harus segera ditemukan! Sementar itu, Otto mulai menyadari hal-hal aneh yang terjadi di sekelilingnya, terutama kedua adil kembarnya yang bisa terbang..

[W W · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was ma ma hu hu. The plot had no depth to it and was very predictable. The end was very abrupt and uninteresting (since I had already predicted it). I won't read any other books in the series.

[Martha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Picked it up at the library because I liked the name Otto. I was so very surprised at how delightful a book it is and really enjoyed it. Easy and fast read. It has short chapters and will be perfect to read to my kids at night. Really just cute.

[Charly Voelkel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought it was a really good book where everything fit into something else. It was well thought out!!!

[Ketutar Jensen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like these a lot though they are hard to read - emotionally… I really hate persecution… *brr*

[Debrarian · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Young Otto comes to the rescue when he discovers that his family and city are the last remnants of an ancient magical world now under threat from the Normal Police.”

[Elly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this one a lot when I was a kid. It's a beautifully written story about a world that I wanted to live in, where hardly anything was Normal and almost everything was highly Impossible.

[Nora Aini · Rating 2 out of 5]

nice...

[Crystal · Rating 3 out of 5]

didn't care fur it all that my much

[Ochie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The second best fantasy book after the Harry Potter series.Charlotte Haptie is definitely one of my favorite author.

[Pradyuman Garg]

idk

[Rachel]

Overall enjoyed as a children's book. E read age 10 and put it on her top 10. One concern - the word b* is used a few time toward women and girls as a slur.

[Diego · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book about a kid named Otto that tries to save his city.