The Secret of Zoone (Zoone Series #1)

by Lee Edward Fodi

Overview

Welcome to Zoone: crossroads of the multiverse. In this inventive fantasy, fans of Diana Wynne Jones and Lisa McMann will step through an enchanted doorway and into a world filled with infinite portals to new—and sometimes perilous—lands.  

When a bright blue winged tiger appears on his aunt’s sofa, Ozzie can tell he’s in for an adventure. He’s thrilled to follow Tug—a skyger—through a secret door in the basement and into Zoone, the bustling Grand Central Station of the universe, where a thousand doors act as portals to strange and wonderful worlds.

But some doors also hide dangers—and when the portal back to Earth explodes behind him, Ozzie gets more adventure than he bargained for. In a station full of wizards, creepy-crawlies, and the occasional cursed princess, Ozzie has to find a way to repair his door… and possibly save the multiverse in the process.

Brimming with colorful characters, magical mayhem, and endless adventure, this new tween series has a doorway for every reader—just be sure to close the door behind you!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062845269
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	04/09/2019
Series:	Zoone Series , #1
Pages:	352
Product dimensions:	5.60(w) x 8.40(h) x 1.40(d)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Lee Edward Födi is an author, illustrator, and specialized arts educator—or, as he likes to think of himself, a daydreaming expert. He is the author of several books for children, including The Secret of Zoone and The Guardians of Zoone. He is a co-founder of the Creative Writing for Children Society (CWC), a not-for-profit program that helps kids write their own books. He has the joy of leading workshops for kids in Canada, the US, Korea, China, Thailand, and other places here and there. Lee lives in Vancouver, where he shares a creative life with his wife Marcie and son Hiro. You can visit him at www.leefodi.com.

Editorial Reviews

Heartwarming and enchanting, Födi’s vocabulary-stretching portal fantasy is a great fit for readers who want something sweet and fun.” — ALA Booklist

“A sharp sense of humor reminiscent of Rick Riordan pervades the story, and the novel is infused with a sense of magic and wonder.” — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

“Full of colorful characters. A promising start for a new series.” — Kirkus Reviews

“The world-building is detailed and rich; readers will want to travel the tracks to visit different worlds and stroll the magical market.” — School Library Journal

From the Publisher

Heartwarming and enchanting, Födi’s vocabulary-stretching portal fantasy is a great fit for readers who want something sweet and fun.

ALA Booklist

12/01/2018
Gr 4–6—The door looks old and dull, but somehow magical to Ozzie. How could a magical door exist in the basement of the building where his prim aunt lives in apartment 2B? When the very tall lady with a hat full of birds—real birds—and a blue winged tiger named Tug appear on his couch, Ozzie can't help but believe in the magical door that takes him with a bang to the Land of Zoone. Unfortunately, when he arrives in the station that serves as the nexus of access to all magical lands, the door to his earthly world is blasted apart. Ozzie soon finds himself with a porter's job (he learns to not ask what is in the luggage), trying to figure out who he can trust, including a princess and an ornery wizard. Trouble is brewing for Zoone in the shape of the escaped evil wizard Crogus, and Ozzie might just hold the magical key to save it all. The world-building is detailed and rich; readers will want to travel the tracks to visit different worlds and stroll the magical market. The plot is fairly predictable, but there is enough suspense and mystery to keep most readers hooked. VERDICT A solid fantasy for large middle grade collections.—Clare A. Dombrowski, Amesbury Public Library, MA

School Library Journal

2018-12-16

This portal fantasy begins with a door to nowhere.

One uneventful day, a pipe bursts in Apartment 2B, where Oswald "Ozzie" Sparks lives with practical, orderly Aunt Temperance while his high-powered parents travel the world. Imaginative, lonely Ozzie sets off in search of creepy Mr. Crudge, the building's caretaker, and stumbles upon a mysterious door. This door has "an energy about it," and for some reason Aunt Temperance seems to have a key to it. A few days later, Ozzie arrives home to find a blue, curly-eared, winged, tigerlike creature called a skyger waiting for him. Telling Ozzie his name is Tug, he invites the boy to Zoone, the heart of the multiverse, where the Convention of Wizardry is about to commence and the secret of this world between worlds awaits. Using Aunt Temperance's key, Ozzie enters, but the door explodes, leaving Ozzie with no way home. Though he'll have guidance from Lady Zoone, the steward, Ozzie will need to discover the secret on his own. He'll also find out he's much braver than he thinks over the course of this rather contemplative adventure. Like many a magical world before it, Zoone is full of colorful characters. Even Aunt Temperance wasn't always so "mundane," as Ozzie learns. She appears to suffer from depression, which Ozzie understands as sickness. Tug has a disability among those of his kind: His wings don't work. Capt. Cho, head of Zoone security, has brown skin; assume whiteness for other humans.

A promising start for a new series. (Fantasy. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews

A sharp sense of humor reminiscent of Rick Riordan pervades the story, and the novel is infused with a sense of magic and wonder.

Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

A sharp sense of humor reminiscent of Rick Riordan pervades the story, and the novel is infused with a sense of magic and wonder.

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

A sharp sense of humor reminiscent of Rick Riordan pervades the story, and the novel is infused with a sense of magic and wonder.

Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books