Tollins: Explosive Tales for Children
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4.5 • 2 Ratings
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- $1.99
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- $1.99
Publisher Description
These are the first three stories of the Tollins. Yes, they do have wings, but no, they aren't fairies. Tollins are a lot less fragile than fairies. In fact, the word fragile can't really be used to describe them at all. They are about as fragile as a house brick.
In "How to Blow Up Tollins" a fireworks factory comes to the village of Chorleywood and the Tollins find themselves being used as industrial supplies. Being blasted into the night sky or spun round on a Catherine wheel is nowhere near a much fun as it sounds. It's up to one young Tollin to save his people from becoming an ingredient.
In "Sparkler and the Purple Death" our hero looks execution in the face. Luckily, the executioner's mask in backwards.
Finally, in "Windbags and Dark Tollins" Tollin society faces a threat from the Dorset countryside, which, again, is much more frightening and nail-bitingly dramatic than it actually sounds.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
A deliciously subversive vein runs through this story collection not surprising coming from the coauthor of The Dangerous Book for Boys. The protagonist, Sparkler, is a tiny winged creature called a "tollin," which should not be confused with a fairy ("Tollins regard fairies as fluttery show-offs and occasionally use them to wipe out the insides of cups"). Indeed, fairies are a running joke in all three stories in this collection, in which Sparkler's scientific curiosity shakes up stagnant tollin culture. In one tale, Sparkler's ingenuity saves the tollins from being used in fireworks for their combustible "tollin dust." In another, he introduces human medicine, "a sensitive subject. Grunion's father had cured his son's athlete's foot by removing the foot. Grunion senior had also recommended it as a cure for ingrown toenails, tennis elbow and dandruff." Iggulden's flair for the ironic and absurd, which recalls Lemony Snicket, should tickle both kids and adults, who will pick up some basic science concepts, such as how hot air balloons and pumps work. Debuting illustrator Duncan is no lesser a comic talent, composing funny scenes using a seamless blend of illustration and photography. All ages.
