After she mails an unaddressed, and unstamped, birthday request to an uncle she never met, Kate is taken aback to find Uncle Herbert and his massive present in her family’s front yard the following morning. Her parents want him to return the real life steam engine locomotive, despite it belonging to the daughter they mostly ignore, which causes a short fight between the birthday girl and her parents. Tom, Kate’s younger brother, checks in on her later, sulking in her room, and tells her that the train is actually on fire.
The siblings sneak aboard, and against their Uncle’s warnings, stay on the train when it begins moving and magically heading into the woods. Instead of feeling frightened though, Kate is enjoying the adventurous turn of events until a massive cliff comes into view. Rather than crashing, both Kate and Tom are surprised as the train transports them into a snowy forest where they encounter animals awaiting with tickets on a platform and their uncle working at the rail yard. Ready to go with multiple cars now attached, Kate and Tom get a taste for being conductors of the magical train that travels all over the world. And maybe even beyond…
This story, like a real train, picks up with speed as the reader dives deeper into the pages. I really enjoyed the morals of the story line and how Kate’s eyes are opened to a world that is simultaneously adventurous, scary and complicated. There is a meaningful connection to environmental awareness the author has woven into this magical tale, providing hope in the form of an individual’s light. I also noted several places where the author was having fun spewing off trivia facts on numerous animals, and found it not distracting at all as it was tastefully added into the dialogue. I would recommend reading this book and I am looking forward to the next one, The Golden Swift.
To find out more on the author of The Silver Arrow you can check out Lev Grossman's website. Thanks for reading and I shall see you on the next book review! #books #adventurebooks #middleschoolbooks #kidsbooks #bookreview