So glad I decided to get this book. Fun, adventure, magic, dragons, a bad guy, humour and of course, the absolute best part, the magical alternate fantasy world! Arthur und seine Zwillingsschwester Rose verbringen die letzten Ferientage bei ihrem Opa bevor es auf die neue Schule geht. Früher waren diese Tage bei ihrem schrulligen und witzigen Opa die schönsten des Jahres. Die Kinder waren unzertrennlich und haben sich in ihren gemeinsamen Spielen verloren. Besonders toll waren ihre „Ausflüge“ ins Fantasieland Arro, das man nur betreten konnte, wenn man sich zwischen das zugeklappte Gästebett auf dem Dachboden quetschte. Arthur is not sure what to make of their game, could it have been a real place they went to or was it all in his imagination? His sister Rose knows it was all made up and refuses to even think about the possibility that it might not have been in their heads, she is more concerned with her new phone and the teenage girl next door.

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.

The Land of Roar is a fun-filled adventure book for middle-graders set in a magical world filled with mystical creatures, some good, some evil. The residents of Roar have been waiting for the twins to return to the land as Crowky the Magpie has taken over and the world is being destroyed. Nun zur Geschichte und diese ist fantastisch. Wer hat sich nicht schon in eine andere Welt gewünscht? Eine Welt voller Magie, in der es Drachen gibt und Einhörner und vieles mehr. Die Zwillinge Arthur und Rose haben sich so eine Welt erschaffen, nämlich Arro. Als Kinder haben sie diese Welt geliebt und oft in ihr gespielt. Aber nun stehen sie kurz vor dem Teenager Alter und da ist man doch viel zu alt, für solche kindischen Spiele, oder? Jenny McLachlan is the author of several acclaimed teen and middle grade novels. Before Jenny became a writer, she taught English in secondary school. She now loves visiting schools as an author and delivering funny and inspiring talks and workshops. When Jenny isn't thinking about writing stories, she enjoys living by the seaside, cycling and running over the South Downs. 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?

Doch jetzt sind Rose und Arthur 11 und nicht nur Roses Handy hat die Beiden entzweit. Alles scheint nicht mehr richtig und Arthur fühlt, dass er seine beste Freundin verloren hat. Daran ändert auch Opas Vorschlag nichts, den Dachboden mal gründlich auszumisten. Nicht mal Arthur glaubt daran, dass Arro tatsächlich mal existiert haben könnte… bis sein Opa plötzlich in der vergammelten Gästebett-Matratze verschwindet! year old twins Rose and Arthur have grown up spending holidays with their fun loving granddad, but as they have grown older they have started to grow apart. Arthur still wants to play imaginative games whilst Rose would rather be on her phone, now in the final summer holidays before starting secondary school their relationship and imaginations are about to be tested. Leider wird es für den Opa dann aber ziemlich abenteuerlich, denn er wird von Scheuch entführt, einer Vogelscheuche mit Rabenflügeln. Was nebenbei erwähnt, echt gruselig ist. Stellt euch das mal bildlich vor, also ich habe mich da manchmal echt ein bisschen gegruselt. Und ich glaube, junge Leser ab 9 Jahren, haben da bestimmt ihren Spaß mit. 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…) As I’ve mentioned above, this book would be great for a younger class because of the fantasy elements and accessibility, and yet would still fit in brilliantly with an older class, meaning it’ll likely find itself being passed between many children. Thankfully, Egmont put a great deal of effort into printing The Land of Roar properly; the book feels solidly built and should hold up well in a classroom.

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Arthur’s Grandad decides the only way to find out is to venture into the folding bed and see if he comes out the other side, if he does the game obviously wasn’t real, if he doesn’t then he will have found the land of Roar. Arthur watches as his Grandad disappears into the chair and waits, but when he doesn’t come out there is only one thing for it, he has to follow him, but the land of Road has changed and the evil Magpie Crowky has captured his Grandad, there is only one thing for it, Arthur is going to have to travel the land and rescue him, he just wishes Rose was with him but she still doesn’t believe. This is proof, not that it’s needed, that Jenny McLachlan is a writer of enormous heart and versatility. I’m a really big fan’ Phil Earle, award-winning author of Being Billy and co-author of Get Me Out of Here! with Andy McNab Auch wenn ich nicht primär zur Zielgruppe gehöre, fand ich das Buch sehr unterhaltsam und habe das Lesen genossen. Es war eine schöne Reise in eine Fantasywelt, in der es allerlei geniale Ideen gab. Ich meine, ein Minja, eine Mischung aus Ninja und Magier, da muss man erstmal drauf kommen

This is proof, not that it's needed, that Jenny McLachlan is a writer of enormous heart and versatility. I'm a really big fan' Phil Earle, award-winning author of Being Billy and co-author of Get Me Out of Here! with Andy McNab 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? Die Moral der Geschichte kommt ganz leise und ohne erhobenen Zeigefinger… Freundschaft und Familie sind wichtiger als Handy und Youtube. Twins Arthur and Rose have found as they have gotten older that they are growing apart, Arthur is still quite young and wants to play games and be a child, Rose wants to act like a teenager and has no interest in anything except her phone, which she is on constantly.

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On the face of it, The Land of Roar is a traditional fantasy book, providing a fun escape to a far-away world that would appeal to younger readers, especially as the vocabulary is not too challenging; dig deeper though, and you’ll find a number of messages woven throughout that will resonate with older children too. The importance of holding on to your childhood imagination and creativity features fairly prominently as a theme, making it great for children at the end of primary school. For too many people, growing up means leaving behind adventurous stories for those more grounded in realism, which is such a shame as there’s plenty of time for readers to carry on enjoying both types of stories as they get older. Rose ist auf jeden Fall dieser Meinung, aber Arthur, er hat Arro noch nicht ganz vergessen. Und da wäre noch der Opa der beiden, auch er hat sich seine Phantasie erhalten und glaubt noch an Magie. Was auch eine ganz tolle Botschaft in dem Buch ist. Egal wie alt du bist, erhalte dir deinen glauben an Magie. Du bist nie zu Alt für ein bisschen Drachenfeuer und Einhörner. Roar is an exhilarating, hilarious, vividly drawn tribute to the power of the childhood imagination, the love of family and the magic we risk losing as we grow up. If you plan to visit one new place in 2019, make it Roar' Sarah Driver, author of The Huntress trilogy Eine Prise Peter Pan und Narnia mit wundervollen Metaphern für Themen die Kinder in diesem Alter beschäftigen. Der Spannungsbogen ist perfekt und der angenehme Grusel genau richtig um die Leser ernst zu nehmen, aber so, dass man nachts noch einschlafen kann – nur flattern sollte nichts vorm Fenster ;-)