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Nick and the Golden Apple
Nick Smith, now eleven, is faced with an unexpected event. Emma, his newest friend, is off to attend an out-of-town boarding school. The summer is almost over and he's spending the last days along. Emma's already gone... on vacation with her family before she heads off to school. Soon after her departure Nick's mother receives a special delivery letter from Professor Jones of The Institute. He'd met the professor during their recent trip to Gran Canaria. He wonders what the letter contains.During dinner that evening his mum and dad reveal the contents of the letter. To Nick's surprise, it contains an invitation for him... he's been invited to attend The Institute's private school. His mum reveals that she attended The School with her twin brother and his aunt who'd died when he was just a baby. His mum tells him that she really enjoyed going there. It was lots of fun, but the schoolwork was difficult. The decision is his to make. His mum shares few details of The School leaving it shrouded in mystery. His mum explains he'll understand should he decide to attend. Nick faced with a tough choice: attending a nearby school or an incredible adventure in a place he knows little about. He consults with his trusted advisor Pecan to no avail. Pecan believes it's Nick's decision to make. After a night's sleep he decides to have the same experience his mum, uncle and aunt had growing up. Even though he'll miss his mum and dad, he thinks the experience will be worth it.Many adventures and surprises await. He'll make new friends... and lifelong enemies. His incredible adventure is about to begin! With a positive outlook and a yearning to make his parents proud, the story of the little boy rescued from the ashes will delight generations of readers.
486 pages, Paperback
Published April 9, 2021
1 person is currently reading
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
March 16, 2022
This book was entered in The Wishing Shelf Book Awards. This is what our readers thought:
Title: NICK AND THE GOLDEN APPLE
Author: Robert Parent
Star Rating: 2 Stars
Number of Readers: 16
Stats
Editing: 3/10
Writing Style: 5/10
Content: 5/10
Cover: 2/5
Of the 16 young readers:
7 would read another book by this author.
4 thought the cover was good or excellent.
10 felt it was easy to follow.
7 would recommend this book to another reader to try.
Of all the readers, 11 felt the author’s strongest skill was ‘plotting a story’.
Of all the readers, 5 felt the author’s strongest skill was ‘developing the characters’.
Of all the readers, 0 felt the author’s strongest skill was ‘writing style’.
3 felt the pacing was good or excellent.
7 thought the author understood the readership and what they wanted.
Readers’ Comments
“I sort of liked this adventure story but at the beginning it was too much like the first Harry Potter book: he’s just turned eleven, a letter inviting him to the school, the mum and dad being very normal with normal jobs. In fact, the first chapter when Mr Smith keeps spotting ‘strange’ things when he’s out and about is an exact copy of the first chapter of Philosopher’s Stone. I like original books. First line of this book: John and Margaret Smith, of central London, were a normal middle-class family with no children. First line of Harry Potter: Mr. and Mrs. Dursley of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much.” Girl, aged 12
“Although the beginning of the story has more than a passing resemblance to the first Harry Potter book, the story gets much better, and I liked the idea of the Institute and The Children of the First. Three children in my class read this book and, for the most part, they liked it. They did spot a large number of punctuation errors which do need to be fixed, but they thought the characters, particularly Nick, was interesting to get to know. There's a strong myths and legends feel to the story which they also enjoyed.” Primary School Teacher, aged 39
“A fun adventure story for 9 – 12 year olds populated with strong, relatable characters and a cleverly plotted story. However, the blurb’s way too long and rambling, and the story is filled with punctuation errors, particularly regarding speech. For example, “Please come in.”, said John. This should read: “Please come in,” said John. Here’s another: “Yes, why thank you.”, she said. This should read: “Yes, why thank you,” she said. The pacing is also a little uneven; I suspect a good editor would cut into it and try to get things moving.” Publisher, aged 55
“This was a bit too slow for me. It took forever for anything to happen.” Boy, aged 10
To Sum It Up:
‘A magical adventure story for 9 - 12 year olds with a cast of interesting characters.’ The Wishing Shelf Book Awards
Title: NICK AND THE GOLDEN APPLE
Author: Robert Parent
Star Rating: 2 Stars
Number of Readers: 16
Stats
Editing: 3/10
Writing Style: 5/10
Content: 5/10
Cover: 2/5
Of the 16 young readers:
7 would read another book by this author.
4 thought the cover was good or excellent.
10 felt it was easy to follow.
7 would recommend this book to another reader to try.
Of all the readers, 11 felt the author’s strongest skill was ‘plotting a story’.
Of all the readers, 5 felt the author’s strongest skill was ‘developing the characters’.
Of all the readers, 0 felt the author’s strongest skill was ‘writing style’.
3 felt the pacing was good or excellent.
7 thought the author understood the readership and what they wanted.
Readers’ Comments
“I sort of liked this adventure story but at the beginning it was too much like the first Harry Potter book: he’s just turned eleven, a letter inviting him to the school, the mum and dad being very normal with normal jobs. In fact, the first chapter when Mr Smith keeps spotting ‘strange’ things when he’s out and about is an exact copy of the first chapter of Philosopher’s Stone. I like original books. First line of this book: John and Margaret Smith, of central London, were a normal middle-class family with no children. First line of Harry Potter: Mr. and Mrs. Dursley of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much.” Girl, aged 12
“Although the beginning of the story has more than a passing resemblance to the first Harry Potter book, the story gets much better, and I liked the idea of the Institute and The Children of the First. Three children in my class read this book and, for the most part, they liked it. They did spot a large number of punctuation errors which do need to be fixed, but they thought the characters, particularly Nick, was interesting to get to know. There's a strong myths and legends feel to the story which they also enjoyed.” Primary School Teacher, aged 39
“A fun adventure story for 9 – 12 year olds populated with strong, relatable characters and a cleverly plotted story. However, the blurb’s way too long and rambling, and the story is filled with punctuation errors, particularly regarding speech. For example, “Please come in.”, said John. This should read: “Please come in,” said John. Here’s another: “Yes, why thank you.”, she said. This should read: “Yes, why thank you,” she said. The pacing is also a little uneven; I suspect a good editor would cut into it and try to get things moving.” Publisher, aged 55
“This was a bit too slow for me. It took forever for anything to happen.” Boy, aged 10
To Sum It Up:
‘A magical adventure story for 9 - 12 year olds with a cast of interesting characters.’ The Wishing Shelf Book Awards
Displaying 1 of 1 review