Allreaders.com

Midnight for Charlie Bone Book Summary and Study Guide

Detailed plot synopsis reviews of Midnight for Charlie Bone


Charlie Bone's life is normal until one day when his mother comes home with a photo that he had enlarged at Kwik Foto. The only thing is that it isn't his photo. Instead of his photo of his friend's dog which he was going to use as a birthday card, he finds a photo of a man, a woman, a baby and a cat. Worst of all, he can hear their voices talking. The man is persuading the woman to take the baby, but the woman is refusing. Charlie tells his Grandma Bone and mother and Grandma Bone is immediately pleased. Charlie's family is descended from the Red King, a powerful magician and some of his descendants got passed on some of his powers. These people are called the endowed. So far, most of Charlie's family on his dad's side have gotten these powers, but Grandma Bone and her sisters, the Yewbeam Aunts, were convinced that Charlie was normal. Grandma Bone calls the Yewbeam Aunts, Lucretia, Eustacia and Venetia, to give Charlie a test to see whether he is endowed or not. He passes. They send him to Bloor's Academy, a school for the endowed or talented. Charlie is miserable. He does make friends, two boys named Fidelio Gunn and Billy Raven and a girl named Olivia Vertigo. But aside from that, nothing much is going well. From the help of 3 odd cats and a mysterious man named Mr. Onimous, Charlie was able to return the photo to the right owner in exchange for his own. The woman who gave the photo to him was the woman in the picture who rejected the baby, but now she wishes she had it. She gives a box which inside it, has the only thing that can wake the baby (who is now a 10 year old girl) from the deep sleep that she has been put under. Supposedly, the girl is at Bloor's Academy...
Click here to see the rest of this review...

The review of this Book prepared by Lucy




Charlie's aunts had given up all hope that he would show signs of having some of the mysterious and magical powers of the Red King, which are passed down through his descendants. Some of the gifts are evil and some are good. Some of them turn up unexpectedly...as in the case of Charlie Bone. After years of living life as a normal little boy, he begins to hear people talking in photographs. His horrible aunts are delighted to discover that he takes after their side of the family. They immediately enroll him in the gloomy Bloor's Academy for gifted children, forcing Charlie to leave his best friend behind. Still, Charlie tries to make the best of it and is able to make some new friends at his academy. But Charlie quickly becomes embroiled in the search for a stolen baby whom no one wants him to find. As Charlie struggles to master his magical gifts and to fit in with his fellow classmates, he begins to uncover old clues to more than one mystery...

Midnight for Charlie Bone was an absolutely delightful children's book following in the wake of Harry Potter's popularity. I am not saying that it is a Harry Potter copycat, no indeed. The plot is quite fresh and original and Charlie was a great character. Jenny Nimmo did such a wonderful job at capturing how a little boy thinks and it was really fun to see how Charlie felt about everything that was going on and how he puzzled through old clues. All of the characters were well developed and the plot was intriguing. If you are looking for a book that you will love almost as much as Harry Potter then this is the book for you! (If you don't want to pay extra for the library binding, look for it at your local school's book fair in paperback.)


The review of this Book prepared by Debbie



Chapter Analysis of Midnight for Charlie Bone

Click on a plot link to find similar books!

Plot & Themes

Composition of Book Descript. of chases or violence 15%planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives 45%Feelings, relationships, character bio/development 25%Descript. of society, phenomena (tech), places 15% Tone of book    -   very upbeat    -   suspenseful (sophisticated fear) FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION?    -   fantasy story on current Earth Coming of age    -   Yes Youngster becomes    -   a powerful magician Is this an adult or child's book?    -   Kid's book (ages 7-14) Family relations    -   Yes

Main Character

Identity:    -   Male Profession/status:    -   student Age:    -   a kid    -   a teen If magical mental powers:    -   can cast many different spells

Setting

Earth setting:    -   20th century    -   current (early 21st century) Takes place on Earth?    -   Yes

Writing Style

Accounts of torture and death?    -   no torture/death    -   generic/vague references to death/punishment How much dialogue?    -   roughly even amounts of descript and dialog

Books with storylines, themes & endings like Midnight for Charlie Bone

Jenny Nimmo Books Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s).
2 Ways to Search!
Or



Our Chief Librarian