Helpful Score: 4
A good book about an underestimated boy magician growing up. It does try to be completely unlike the Harry Potter books, and it succeeds. I'd reccommend it.
Helpful Score: 2
My son really enjoyed this book,he is 11, and i enjoyed it also. Lots of twists and turns to keep you reading.
Helpful Score: 1
"One of the livelist and most inventive fantasies of recent years" - Booklist (Starred Review)
Annie J. (alaskanannie) reviewed The Amulet of Samarkand (Bartimaeus, Bk 1) on + 63 more book reviews
Nathaniel is eleven years old and a magician's apprentice, learning the traditional arts of magic. All is well until he has a life-changing encounter with Simon Lovelace, a magician of unrivaled ruthlessness and ambition. When Lovelace brutally humiliates Nathaniel in public, Nathaniel decides to speed up his education, reaching himself spells way beyond his years. With revenge on his mind, he masters one of the toughest spells of all and summons Bartimaeus, a 5,000 year old djinni, to assist him. But summoning Bartimaeus and controlling him are two different things entirely, and when Nathaniel sends the djinni out to steal Lovelace's greatest treasure, he finds himself caught up in a whirlwind of magical espionage, murder and rebellion.
Nathaniel is eleven years old and a magician's apprentice. All is well until he has a life-changing encounter with simon Lovelace, a magician of unrivaled ruthlessness and ambition. When Lovelace brutally humiliates Nathaniel in public, Nathaniel speeds up his education for revenge