Author: Katrina Charman
Illustrator: Jeremy Norton
© Date: 2017
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
Pages: 90
Chapters: Yes
Illustrations: Yes, every page
Publisher Recommended Age: 6-8 years
Bonus Activities at End of Book: Comprehension questions and creative paragraph writing suggestion
Summary from Book: Only the brightest magic can beat The Shadow.
Tag, Skyla, and Blaze are headed to the Crystal Cavers in search of the next piece of the magical Ember Stone. But Thorn’s dark magic is quickly spreading across Perodia. Thorn wants the powerful stone-and he wants the last firehawk, too! The three friends will have to battle Thorn’s spies to reach the stone. Will they find it in time?
Page Pig Thoughts: Maybe I should have paid more attention to the introduction because this is book two and it took me a bit to figure out who the characters were and what was going on. That being said, I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this one. The action is fast paced for an early chapter book and is definitely a page turner. Blaze learning her magic and how to control it made for an interesting addition to the story. The adventure at the Crystal Cavern comes to an end, but I am curious what happens to Tag, Skyla, and Blaze in the next book.
Use caution with younger or sensitive readers, the storyline may be a bit scary.
Family Unit: Not really sure about the family life. Tag is a small barn owl. Skyla is a squirrel. Blaze is the last firehawk. They meet seals that live in a large group.
Conflict/Social Issues:
- Tag, Skyla, and Blaze need to enter a cavern to find the Ember Stone, but they are warned that the last seal that went in never was seen again.
- Tag, Skyla, and Blaze need to move faster than The Shadow and escape Thorn’s spies, which are ice leopards in this book.
Positive Items:
- Tag, Skyla, and Blaze work together as a team to collect the Ember Stone.
- Tag is gentle and encouraging with Blaze while she learns her magic.
- Tag, Skyla, and Blaze find the lost seal, Coralie, and bring her back to the other seals, including her mother.
Items of Interest:
- Tag has a golden dagger with a super strong blade.
- Skyla shoots acorns with her slingshot. At the end of the story, she fires acorns into the eyes of the ice leopards.
- Blaze is a young firehawk that is developing her magic and learning how to control it.
- The Shadow sweeps over the sky and snow as it follows Tag, Skyla, and Blaze on their quest.
- Coralie is a young seal that entered a cavern and was never seen again.
- Tag, Skyla, and Blaze leave a trail of berries to help them find their way out of the ice cavern, but discover that they are hopelessly lost and all paths have berries on them.
- A frightening howl comes out of the cavern. When Tag, Skyla, and Blaze face their fears and move toward the noise, they discover the lost seal.
- Thorn’s spies are a pair of ice leopards that trap Tag, Skyla, Blaze, and Coralie in the cavern.
- Blaze uses her fire magic to make icicles rain down on the ice leopards from the ceiling. The snow/ice was not holding the leopards for very long.
- Blaze uses her cry to turn the ice leopards away, their teeth are shattered in the process.
- Tag, Skyla, and Blaze emerge from the cavern with the piece of Ember Stone that they were seeking.
- Coralie is reunited with her mother.
- The other seals say that they will help Tag, Skyla, and Blaze whenever they need it because they have seen the damage that The Shadow can cause.
Other Books in Series (At Time of Posting):
- 12 books are in this series
Update:
- I found Book 3 – The Whispering Oak to be in line with The Crystal Caverns for suspense and adventure. So I would hope that other books in the series are along the same lines and don’t have any parental shock items.