Product Description

What if every time you made a choice that had a significant consequence, a new, alternate reality was created--the life that would've been had you made the other choice? What if those new realities were in danger? What if it fell to you to save all the realities? Atticus Higginbottom, a.k.a. Tick, is an average thirteen-year-old boy until the day a strange letter arrives in his mailbox. Postmarked from Alaska and cryptically signed with the initials "M.G.," the letter informs Tick that dangerous--perhaps even deadly--events have been set in motion that could result in the destruction of reality itself. M.G. promises to send Tick twelve riddles that will reveal on a certain day, at a certain time, at a certain place, something extraordinary will happen. Will Tick have the courage to follow the twelve clues M.G. sends to him? Will he be able to solve the riddles in time? Will Tick discover the life he was meant to live? The first volume of an outstanding new children's fantasy series, The Journal of Curious Letters is filled with adventure, humor, riddles, and, oh, yes--danger... As M.G. warns Tick, Very frightening things are coming your way. Will you join Tick and his friends on an amazing journey through the Realities? What will your choice be?

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #56621 in Books
• Published on: 2008-03-03
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 432 pages

Review
THE JOURNAL OF CURIOUS LETTERS A boy . . . a mysterious letter . . . twelve clues . . . a girl . . . a dad . . . two very strange strangers. These are just the basic ingredients in this adventure served up by Dashner in what is the start of a series that will capture the imagination of young and old alike. Atticus Higginbottom (Tick to all who know him) is smart, well-adjusted and something of a loner at school, preferring his family, the library and the Internet to his classmates. So he s surprised to receive a letter postmarked in Macadamia, Alaska, from someone he s never even heard of. But he s intrigued and makes a commitment to join with his correspondent to save many lives. Though there are chunks of text that are overwritten, the telling is generally laced with a strong sense of humor and a sure hand at plot; the author is plainly in tune with today s fan base. Let the adventure begin! (Science fiction. 10-12) --Kirkus Reviews

The 13th Reality: The Journal of Curious Letters (Shadow Mountain, 978-1-59038-831-0) accesses mind-boggling notions from quantum physics (kyoopy as Mothball calls it) and comes up with a tree called Prime Reality, with twelve branches, or alternate realties, or versions of Prime, growing off it. Master George and Mistress Jane both have instruments that make travel between the realities possible, but only one of them supports diversity. Mistress Jane believes that the world would be a much better place if it were all yellow, and she must be stopped. Author James Dashner claims the influence of Dean Koontz, Tad Williams, and Orson Scott Card in his writing. His four-part Jimmy Fincher saga sold over 20,000 volumes. This new series is wonderful for kids of middle school age: the characters are smart, they try hard not to make stupid mistakes, they take risks for others, their parents are helpful without controlling. Not to mention, of course, the book is a page-turner, the dialogue is snappy, and it ends with a cliffhanger. Expect readers to ask for more. --ForeWord Magazine

Customer Reviews

Even Better the Second Time Around
I read this book twice - once on my own, and again with my daughters. While I thoroughly enjoyed it the first time through, I was pleased to find that everything held together the second time. So often re-reading a book will expose plot holes and character inconsistencies, but I found very little of that here.

As a father, I was particularly impressed by the way Dashner portrayed the parent/child relationship. In YA fiction, the kid characters need to be free to resolve the story's problems on their own. This is too often accomplished by writing dysfunctional parents or removing them all together. In The Journal of Curious Letters, Tic's father is present and helpful, making a conscious, difficult decision to let his child do what needs to be done on his own.

I also like that this story works hard to be believable, and doesn't ask the reader to suspend disbelief to the limit.

As a family, we're excited to get our hands on the next volume.

Riddle-Solving Fun!
THE 13TH REALITY is the first volume of THE JOURNEY OF CURIOUS LETTERS by James Dashner. I found it a complete delight.

Tick (short for Atticus) is your ultimate unlikely hero. He has a birthmark on his neck that he hates so much that he wears a scarf year-round. The school bullies call it the "barf scarf" and when we meet him, he is in the midst of being bullied. That very day, he receives the first in a series of curious letters, each with have a clue (or two). What are they clues for? Well, if he solves the riddles in time, they will "reveal on a certain day, at a certain time, at a certain place, something extraordinary will happen."

This novel is about a kid finding courage and learning that he is stronger than he thinks.

One problem that authors of children's novels have is how to get rid of the parents. In order for a child to have dangerous adventures, the author must somehow get rid of the parent or render them impotent. So we therefore have children at boarding schools, dead parents, absent parents, incompetent parents, stupid parents, kidnapped kids, runaway kids, kids vanishing into other worlds, etc.

James Dashner hit on a solution that I loved. I don't want to give it away, because it was a truly magical moment in the story. Tick has an excellent relationship with his excellent father, whose only fault appears to be that he is very overweight. His mother is a bit more distant in the story, but since this story is as much about a father-son relationship as it is an adventure story, I found it appropriate.

Along the way, Tick uses the Internet to find other kids who got letters as well. Unfortunately, his activities online also attracts the attention of someone who works for the enemy. The enemy's attempt to hurt Tick ends up with Tick unexpectedly meeting one of his fellow riddle-solvers. Her name is Sofia and she's a somewhat Hermione-like brainy girl, except she's Italian. Later in the story, Tick meets the wonderfully refreshing Paul, who is, in his own description, "fourteen years old, six feet tall (yes, six feet), African-American, and drop-dead handsome. I love to surf, I play the piano like freaking Mozart, and I currently have three girls who call me every day, but my mom always tells them I'm in the bathroom." I can't imagine Paul being anyone's sidekick.

A fourth youth turns up once the "extraordinary" thing happens, but I won't say too much about him. The extraordinary thing involves many secrets being revealed to both the reader and to Tick, after which the four youths embark on an adventure similar to Dorothy having to steal the Wicked Witch's broomstick.

It's a rousing adventure story. Once I started reading, I had a difficult time putting it down. I really enjoyed the father-son relationship and the oddball characters who assist the mysterious riddle-writer. Some of the riddles were easy to solve, but most would have involved significant brain work. Two of them would have involved me getting out a piece of paper and doing lots of math, but I wasn't that ambitious and I just let Tick solve those riddles for me. But all were solvable by the reader.

It is a fun book and I can definitely recommend it for children of any age (including adults), but it would probably most appeal to kids between the ages of ten and fourteen.

Cute story for kids
Tick is a nearly normal 13-year old. He's a bit nerdy and loves solving puzzles, and never takes off the scarf which covers his birthmark (even in the summer).

Then one day he receives a mysterious letter in the mail which changes his life forever.

"The Journal of Curious Letter" is amusing, and I think I will be reading the rest of the series as it is released in paperback, but I did have some issues with it.

I know that my copy was an unproofed ARC, but there were several typos and/or omitted words. The author also tries too hard in places to be funny, and has an unnatural obsession (it seems) with the number 3.