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Library | Item Barcode | Call Number | Material Type | Item Category 1 | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Searching... | 30000010039067 | PZ7.C677475 W57 2000 | Open Access Book | Creative Book | Searching... |
Searching... | 30000010039066 | PZ7.C677475 W57 2000 | Open Access Book | Creative Book | Searching... |
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Summary
Summary
Meg Finn is in trouble. Unearthly trouble. Cast out of her home by her stepfather after her mother's death, Meg is a wanderer, a troublemaker. When she ends up in a sticky situation, her only chance for salvation is the wish list.
Author Notes
Eoin Colfer was born in Wexford, Ireland on May 14, 1965. After taking a three-year degree course in Dublin, he qualified as a primary teacher in 1986. Returning to Wexford he began teaching in a local primary school by day and wrote at night. In 1991, he left Ireland and spent the next four years working in Saudi Arabia, Tunisia and Italy. Resettling in Wexford after his arrival back in Ireland, he recommenced his teaching career, continuing his habit of writing after school. His first book, Benny and Omar, was published in October 1998. His other works include Benny and Babe, the O'Brien Flyers series, and the Artemis Fowl series. He became a full-time author following the success of Artemis Fowl. The Wish List won a Bisto Merit Award in 2001.
In 2015 he won an Irish Book Award in the children's category with his title Imaginary Fred.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews 3
School Library Journal Review
Gr 7 Up-This unusual fantasy takes on heaven, hell, and the limbo in between and is populated with all manner of demons, angels, and familiar key players like Satan and St. Peter. Bringing them to life is the voice of James Wilby who provides a tour de force performance. His talented reading enriches our understanding of the characters and plot. Eoin Colfer's novel (Hyperion/Miramax, 2003) will garner instant attention from his legions of Artemis Fowl fans. Told with much dry wit and black humor, Meg Finn's short, sad life is brought to a sudden end by the bungling of Belch Brennan. On the way to a Final Reckoning, Meg turns out to have a one-in-a-million soul, exactly balanced between good and evil. Belch, on the other hand, goes straight to a hell peopled with techies and film stars who enable Satan and his sleazy assistant Beelzebub to continue their evil ways. An odd arrangement between St. Peter and Beelzebub sends Meg back to Earth to help Dublin pensioner Lowrie McCall carry out his final wishes, with a Belch-and-dog soul blend trying to thwart her every good deed. If only she can earn enough points to get to heaven and see her beloved mother, Meg will be saved. Wilby brings a different accent, tone, and pitch to every character, whether ordinary or bizarre, helping listeners to sort them all out. Colfer's teen fans will be challenged, entertained, and amused. Taking conventional religious ideas about the soul and good and evil and placing them in a fantasy setting brings up the only potential downside; some may find this unconventional view of the afterlife to be offensive. Barring that, this compelling audiobook will appeal to those with a taste for the quirky.-Jane P. Fenn, Corning-Painted Post West High School, NY (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
"The author of Artemis Fowl turns his keen wit to the afterlife in this darkly humorous tale," wrote PW in a starred review of this novel, about an Irish girl who embarks on a journey to help the man she tried to rob before she was killed in an explosion. Ages 10-up. (July) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Booklist Review
Gr. 6-9. The author of the Artemis Fowl books offers a cheeky look at life after death and how the ethical decisions made on earth influence one's ending up in heaven or hell. Within the first few pages, 14-year-old Meg Finn and her partner, Belch, along with his pit bull, are blown to smithereens while attempting to rob elderly Lowrie McCall. Belch and his dog meld into one unearthly creature headed straight to hell, but Meg's good deeds and bad are of equal weight. St. Peter and Beelzebub agree to give her a last chance; they arrange for her to help old McCall complete his wish list. But Beelzebub isn't about to play fair; he sends Belch after Meg to make sure she screws up. A dying curmudgeon's wishes may not be the most compelling plot device for young readers, and the narrative is so breezy that it's sometimes hard to follow--especially when the characters are often inhabiting one another's bodies. Yet the moral underpinnings of the story--why people do bad things and the idea of obtaining redemption--are presented in an interesting, amusing way. Surprisingly thought-provoking. --Ilene Cooper Copyright 2003 Booklist
