The Land of Roar (Land of Roar Series #1)

by Jenny McLachlan, Ben Mantle (Illustrator)

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

Eleven-year-old twins Arthur and Rose are growing up and growing apart, until one day, their grandfather disappears. When the twins realize that Grandad has vanished right by the entrance to their old imaginary land called Roar, they team up to return to save Grandad and Roar itself. The Land of Roar is an epic tale of imagination and adventure that young readers will love escaping into.

The new middle-grade fantasy that will make you believe in magic!

When Arthur and Rose were little, they were heroes in the Land of Roar, an imaginary world that they found by climbing through the folding bed in their grandad’s attic. Roar was filled with things they loved – dragons, mermaids, ninja wizards and adventure – as well as things that scared them (including a very creepy scarecrow…)

Now the twins are eleven, Roar is just a memory. But when they help Grandad clean out the attic, Arthur is horrified as Grandad is pulled into the folding bed and vanishes. Is he playing a joke? Or is Roar … real?

The Land of Roar is reminiscent of Peter Pan, The Neverending Story and Jumanji – perfect for readers of Nevermoor and Wizards of Once.

Jenny McLachlan is the author of several acclaimed teen novels including Flirty Dancing, Stargazing for Beginners and Truly, Wildly, Deeply. Before Jenny became a writer, she was Head of English in a secondary school; she now loves visiting schools as an author and delivering funny and inspiring talks and workshops. When Jenny isn’t thinking about stories or writing stories, she enjoys living by the seaside, cycling and running over the South Downs. The Land of Roar is Jenny’s middle-grade debut.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781405293686
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	08/01/2019
Series:	Land of Roar Series , #1
Sold by:	HarperCollins Publishers
Format:	eBook
Pages:	304
File size:	19 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Jenny McLachlan is the author of several acclaimed teen novels including Flirty Dancing, Stargazing for Beginners and Truly, Wildly, Deeply. Before Jenny became a writer, she was Head of English in a secondary school; she now loves visiting schools as an author and delivering funny and inspiring talks and workshops. When Jenny isn’t thinking about stories or writing stories, she enjoys living by the seaside, cycling and running over the South Downs. The Land of Roar is Jenny’s middle-grade debut.

Jenny McLachlan is the author of the Dead Good Detective duology and the bestselling Land of Roar series and is author-illustrator of Stink. Before Jenny became a writer, she was Head of English in a secondary school; she now loves visiting schools as an author and delivering funny and inspiring talks and workshops.

When Jenny isn’t thinking about stories or writing stories, she enjoys living by the seaside, cycling and running over the South Downs.

Editorial Reviews

05/25/2020

Once upon a time when twins Arthur and Rose were younger, they created a make-believe world called Roar, which they accessed through a folded cot in their grandfather’s attic, and where they enjoyed adventures alongside imaginary friends such as Mitch (a mermaid-witch) and Wininja (a wizard-ninja). Then they got older. But when the twins, now 11, help their grandfather clean out his attic to make way for a “proper den,” they find a map that brings back memories. And when an old imaginary foe, a wicked winged scarecrow called Crowky, kidnaps Grandad, the siblings must travel to a far more alarming Roar than they remember, reunite with childhood companions, and stop Crowky from transforming Grandad into a stuffed scarecrow and conquering all of Roar. If, that is, Arthur can convince his sister that she’s not too cool for fantasy games. McLachlan (Truly Wildly Deeply) infuses a traditional portal fantasy with a whimsical logic—the twins’ power of belief influences Roar’s landscape, and their mundane possessions (a fidget spinner, for example) become talismans to its inhabitants—while deftly portraying two modern siblings working to mend their strained friendship. Occasional illustrations by Mantle capture the story’s fantastical feel. Ages 8–12. Author’s agent: Julia Churchill, A.M. Heath. (June)

Publishers Weekly

"McLachlan does an excellent job of establishing the sibling tension before introducing the fantasy elements, and Rose’s desire to grow up and fit in feels as familiar and accessible as Arthur’s yearning to remain a child. This narrative’s sheer inventiveness marks it as distinct. The text and Mantle’s illustrations go wild with creativity. A sweet adventure and a paean to imagination and childhood innocence." — Kirkus Reviews

"Mantle's whimsical black-and-white illustrations enhance this playful, Peter Pan–like tale of sibling rivalry and affection. A series starter with heart." — Booklist

From the Publisher

"Mantle's whimsical black-and-white illustrations enhance this playful, Peter Pan–like tale of sibling rivalry and affection. A series starter with heart."

Booklist

"Mantle's whimsical black-and-white illustrations enhance this playful, Peter Pan–like tale of sibling rivalry and affection. A series starter with heart."

Booklist

2020-03-15
A fantasy world comes to life and lures its young creators back into it in this imaginative middle-grade debut and U.K. import.

Narrator Arthur always loved playing make-believe in Grandad’s attic with his twin sister, Rose. Years ago they dreamed up Roar, a magical land that they entered via an old fold-up cot that acted as a portal. Now that they are 11 and starting school at Langdon Academy, Rose has new friends and wants nothing to do with her brother or their imaginary world. Rose may be done with Roar, but it’s not finished with her. When their grandfather is kidnapped and taken into Roar, Arthur and Rose must team up to mount a rescue mission. McLachlan does an excellent job of establishing the sibling tension before introducing the fantasy elements, and Rose’s desire to grow up and fit in feels as familiar and accessible as Arthur’s yearning to remain a child. While obviously reminiscent of classic fantasy, this narrative’s sheer inventiveness marks it as distinct. The twins’ widowed grandfather, a larger-than-life jokester from Mauritius, is a Peter Pan–like figure whose abduction brings the narrative into Roar, allowing the text and Mantle’s illustrations to go wild with creativity. The use of a wordless double-page spread to depict Arthur’s arrival into the fantasy realm is particularly inventive. Arthur and Rose are depicted as kids of color.

A sweet adventure and a paean to imagination and childhood innocence. (map) (Fantasy. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews