The High Road (Elf Realm Series)

by Daniel Kirk

Overview

In The High Road, Matt and his sister Becky must work with the elves and Tomtar the troll to save the Cord and the human and elf worlds. After forming an uneasy alliance, Matt, the elf Tuava-Li, and Tomtar start on a quest to restore the tree whose roots make up the Cord at the northern pole, in order to bring well-being to all the realms.


Meanwhile, Becky accompanies Asra to free Becky’s parents, held captive in the elfin kingdom of Helfratheim. To their horror, both groups discover that Brahja-Chi has begun kidnapping human children for a mass sacrifice to appease the goddess. In addition to their tasks, they must also stop the fiendish Brahja-Chi and her accomplice, Jardaine, from continuing this atrocity.

 

Daniel Kirk’s trademark illustrations—including maps, character portraits, and other scenes—bring to life the riveting and engaging story.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781613120071
Publisher:	ABRAMS
Publication date:	12/01/2011
Series:	Elf Realm Series
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Lexile:	810L (what's this?)
File size:	7 MB
Age Range:	10 - 14 Years

About the Author

Daniel Kirk is a graduate of Ohio State University and is the bestselling author of the beloved Library Mouse series, as well as a range of picture books and novels for young readers, including The Thing About Spring, ’Twas the Night Before Christmas, and the Elf Realm trilogy. He currently lives with his family in Glen Ridge, New Jersey. While researching Rhino in the House, he visited Lewa Downs Conservancy in Kenya where he went on a photo safari, saw Anna Merz’s home, and interviewed those who had known her and who are carrying on her work.

Editorial Reviews

Gr 5–8—Matt, 14, and his younger sister Becky have been living on the edges of the Elfin city Ljosalfar while their parents and baby sister are held captive. The elves have been preparing Matt for a quest to the North Pole that's supposed to help him rescue his family; what they haven't told him is that if done correctly, it will also cost him his life. Accompanied by Tuava-Li (an Elf) and Tomtar (a Troll), Matt heads back to the human world to search for maps. Meanwhile, Becky and Princess Asra start off on their own journey, stalked by Asra's presumed-dead former fiancé, Prince Macta. At the same time, an evil entity named Jal-Maktar has agreed to impersonate Macta and help gather a thousand human children for a grand sacrifice, for the small payment of a human soul every day, and the odd internal organ of almost-Mage Jardaine. Complicated, dark, and filled with strange illustrations in which it's hard to tell the humans from the otherworldly beings, this second book in the trilogy doesn't stand alone and probably won't attract many new readers. Buy only if the first is popular.—Mara Alpert, Los Angeles Public Library

School Library Journal

Following The Low Road (2008), this equally wide-body middle volume pitches teenager Matt and his nine-year-old sister Becky into the midst of a rogue mage's mad scheme to foment war between Faerie and all humanity. As the veil between worlds weakens, Matt and two pint-sized nonhuman companions set out in search of his captured parents and also a certain magical seed. First stop: the elven city of Argant (aka Pittsburgh), where the Faerie population is near anarchy. Meanwhile Becky ends up in Helfratheim-a center for munitions manufacture, where demagogic Mage Brahja-Chi is gathering 1,000 stolen human children for mass slaughter. Kirk creates a turbulent Faerie at odds with itself but united in its extreme hatred and fear of Humans. He also casts Matt with such a chip on his shoulder that it's a wonder he has any allies-though, indeed, even they have ulterior motives. The central plot is thin for the page count and the climax passes too quickly after all the buildup, but the ambitious tale's array of supernaturals may attract fans of all things fey. (Fantasy. 11-13)

Kirkus Reviews