As you read the reviews on Bookshop Talk, you'll notice that every review is positive. No, we're not a bunch of literary
pushovers who love everything we pick up; we just see no point in telling you about a book if we didn't like it.

January 31, 2011

THE SIXTY-EIGHT ROOMS by Marianne Malone, 2010

The Sixty-Eight Rooms (The Sixty-Eight Rooms Adventures)
Almost everybody who has grown up in Chicago knows about the Thorne Rooms. Housed in the Children’s Galleries of the Chicago Art Institute, they are a collection of 68 exquisitely crafted miniature rooms made in the 1930s by Mrs. James Ward Thorne. Each of the 68 rooms is designed in the style of a different historic period, and every detail is perfect, from the knobs on the doors to the candles in the candlesticks. Some might even say, the rooms are magic. Imagine—what if you discovered a key that allowed you to shrink so that you were small enough to sneak inside and explore the rooms’ secrets? What if you discovered that others had done so before you? And that someone had left something important behind? (Amazon product description)

Kim Thacker, writer and mommy

The famous Thorne Rooms at the Chicago Art Institute are 68 miniature rooms made by master craftsmen so that each object in the room is to scale and utterly gorgeous (One inch equals one foot, so a six foot tall garden statue in our world would be six inches tall if it were housed in one of the Thorne Rooms.).  Wouldn’t it be wonderful to be small enough to fit inside one of these intricately detailed rooms?  And what if the painted landscapes beyond the miniature windows in the Thorne Rooms led to real worlds?  Marianne Malone's THE SIXTY-EIGHT ROOMS is about two characters who have a wonderful adventure in the Thorne Rooms...and in the worlds beyond.

THE SIXTY-EIGHT ROOMS was written with careful attention to factual detail; yet it doesn’t read like non-fiction--not in the least.  The story is filled with adventure, friendship, and mystery.  Their are several subplots that enrich the story and make you root for all of the characters.  This is a truly exciting book.  Middle grade readers will gobble it up.

Goodreads suggests that fans of E.L. Konigsburg’s THE MIXED-UP FILES OF MRS. BASIL E. FRANKWEILER check this book out.  I agree!

Click here for images of the real Thorne rooms at the Chicago Art Institute.

Market:  Middle Grade
Language:  Mild, if any
Sensuality:  None
Violence:  Mild to None (adventure peril)

Book formats:
The Sixty-Eight Rooms (The Sixty-Eight Rooms Adventures) (hardcover)
The Sixty-Eight Rooms (Kindle)

7 comments:

Amy Finnegan {BookshopTalk.com} said...

This novel sounds so "fresh." The premise alone is fascinating - totally the kind of book I end up reading as quickly as I can!

Alix said...

Great review Kim, this book sounds do much fun. It made me think of The Borrowers and the great time they'd have in the Thorne Rooms :)

Sarah said...

I finished this book last night. It's not bad. A cute story though (at least to me) it was obvious it's a first book. Very basic format though the first half of the book felt a little disconnected from the last half. On a school grading scale, I'd give it a B.

Lyndee @ A Recovering Craft Hoarder said...

The premise of this book fascinates me. Saw you over at The Idea Room. I'm now a follower and you are on my sidebar. I'm always looking for ideas of books to read. What a great idea!

Connie said...

I think this book looks really interesting. The idea room sent me. I am so excited about your site. I am definitely going to get this book!

said...

Hi! I just found Bookshop Talk through The Idea Room; thanks so much for your review of The Sixty Eight Rooms. I am going to pick it up for my 10 year old daughter -- I think she'd love it!

I'm going to watch for your reviews in the future!

Blessings to you,-- Jill

blessingsofalifetime.blogspot.com

said...

Hi! I just found Bookshop Talk through The Idea Room; thanks so much for your review of The Sixty Eight Rooms. I am going to pick it up for my 10 year old daughter -- I think she'd love it!

I'm going to watch for your reviews in the future!

Blessings to you,-- Jill

blessingsofalifetime.blogspot.com