Book Description

Sailing toward dawn, and I was perched atop the crow's nest, being the ship's eyes. We were two nights out of Sydney, and there'd been no weather to speak of so far. I was keeping watch on a dark stack of nimbus clouds off to the northwest, but we were leaving it far behind, and it looked to be smooth going all the way back to Lionsgate City. Like riding a cloud. . . .

Matt Cruse is a cabin boy on the Aurora, a huge airship that sails hundreds of feet above the ocean, ferrying wealthy passengers from city to city. It is the life Matt's always wanted; convinced he's lighter than air, he imagines himself as buoyant as the hydrium gas that powers his ship. One night he meets a dying balloonist who speaks of beautiful creatures drifting through the skies. It is only after Matt meets the balloonist's granddaughter that he realizes that the man's ravings may, in fact, have been true, and that the creatures are completely real and utterly mysterious.

In a swashbuckling adventure reminiscent of Jules Verne and Robert Louis Stevenson, Kenneth Oppel, author of the best-selling Silverwing trilogy, creates an imagined world in which the air is populated by transcontinental voyagers, pirates, and beings never before dreamed of by the humans who sail the skies. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Superb Adventure!!
Wow, what a fantastic adventure. I was a little skeptical to read it as the cover didn't seem very interesting, but after I started reading Airborn, I was enthusiatically entralled. Airborn brings together the ideas of Treasure Island and Treasure Planet for a gripping adventure. The descriptive, vivid writing of Kenneth Oppel makes the reader feel they are there expereincing all the ups and downs of the characters. I enjoyed accompanying Matt and Kate aboard the airship, Aurora, as they search for an uncharted species that Kate's grandfather had briefly documented before he died aboard a hotair balloon. Pirates, a shipwreck, a typhoon, jumping snakes, and a beautiful yet deadly uncharted species makes the book hard to put down. Bravo Mr. Oppel! Well done!

Not your typical Treasure Island
"Sailing toward dawn, and I was perched atop the crow's nest, being the ship's eyes." This is a normal occurrence for Matt Cruse, cabin boy aboard the Aurora, a luxury class passenger and cargo ship, and a fitting beginning to this book. What should be a normal voyage becomes an exciting adventure as the Aurora is boarded by pirates, caught in a typhoon, and shipwrecked on an uncharted tropical island where Matt and his friends make an amazing discovery.

This book isn't your typical Treasure Island, however. The Aurora is an airship (think the Good Year Blimp with a full crew and rich passengers) that sails the skies 800 feet above the ocean surface. The airplane has never been invented, and the airships are powered by a light-weight gas called hydrium (a mango-scented gas than all other molecules and pushes any other air out of the space it is in) and propellers to guide the ships through the air.

In this tale, the Aurora, and more specifically Matt Cruse, rescues a stranded balloonist over the Pacificus. One year later, the balloonist's granddaughter, Kate, appears as a passenger on the ship, intent on finding a mysterious creature her grandfather saw on his final voyage. Kate shares her grandfather's story with Matt, who aids her in her quest. Together they face many dangers, including the wrath of Kate's overbearing chaperone, Miss Simpkins, who does not feel that proper ladies should associate with the crew of an airship.

This book is very well written. Kenneth Oppel describes the events, people and places fully, without letting potentially gruesome incidents get to graphic. All of the plot lines intertwine gracefully throughout the narrative until they connect in the book's climax. The characters are interesting and multi-dimensional. For example, Matt's overwhelming sense of duty and single-minded protectiveness of the Aurora contrasts with his sense of adventure and his new friendship with Kate in which he often must choose between her and the ship. Kate is willful and adventurous. She can take care of herself, but is not beyond asking for help when she needs to do so. Even the "villains" in this book have multiple sides. Captain Szpirglas of the pirate ship loots every ship he can, but is only violent when he needs to be in order keep the crew and passengers under control. He also has a soft and caring side that no one would suspect.

The places in this book make it realistic despite the fantasy element of airships instead of airplanes. For example, the Aurora is traveling from the west coast of North America to Sydney, Australia, and the Air Academy where some people study to be airship crew is located in Paris. The book has a historical feel to it, with the oceans called the Atlanticus and Pacificus, the women in long dresses and jewelry aboard the ship, and the notion that women should not have adventures or go to university. The characters, however, have a more modern feel to them, especially Kate, who does not buy into the ideals of her society and intends to make great discoveries of her own and make sure that no one else takes the credit.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys historical fantasies, pirate stories, adventures or teenage heros.

Interesting Addition to the Teen Fiction Genre
Matt Cruise is a cabin boy on a tremendous airship that sails hundreds of thousands of feet above the ocean, ferrying enormously wealthy passengers from city to city. The airship is known as the Aurora, and Matt is ecstatic to have the chance to fly upon this ship day in and day out. It's what he's always dreamed of, as he often images himself as the gas that powers the ship. One night while aboard the Aurora, Matt meets a dying balloonist, who tells Matt about all kinds of beautiful creatures that drift through the skies. Matt, knowing that this sounds crazy, ignores what the man says. But later, when he meets the man's granddaughter, Matt realizes that the man's ravings could very well have been true. And that the creatures in which he spoke about, are completely true.

As a fan of Kenneth Oppel's SILVERWING trilogy, I was ecstatic to hear about his newest addition to the literary world, AIRBORN. Let me tell you, I was not disappointed in even the slightest way. AIRBORN is an exciting thrill-ride of an adventure, that takes the reader through space, and clouds, where we get to meet up with pirates, voyagers, and all types of other humans and creatures who tour the sky day and night. Matt was an exciting character, who will be loved by readers, as he is very optimistic, and intelligent, and his imagination is much like a childs, what with his constant fantasies about sailing through the sky, and being the gas that powers the airship. Fans of Oppel's SILVERWING trilogy will find it hard to put down AIRBORN.

Erika Sorocco ... Read more

Book Description

The forest heaves and splits in a terrible quake, and Griffin, a newborn Silverwing bat, is sucked down a fissure deep into the earth. Shade, Griffin's father, soon realizes that his son has been drawn into the Underworld, and embarks on the most dangerous of journeys to rescue him. Shade knows he must find Griffin quickly -- legend dictates that if the living stumble into the land of the dead, they have only a short time before death claims them, too. But something else is hunting Griffin -- a deadly foe Shade hoped he would never see again. Who will find Griffin first? And who will survive to embark on the perilous journey back to the land of the living?

In this riveting companion to the acclaimed novels Silverwing and Sunwing, Kenneth Oppel creates a story that will resonate with readers of all ages -- a glorious fantasy adventure in which the living and the dead struggle for the sake of eternity. ... Read more

Reviews (18)

AN AWESOME BOOK!
"He was still stunned when Goth struck, slamming him down to the floor, pinned him on his back." Kenneth Oppel countinues to please the fans with another action packed novel of "Firewing", the companion to Silverwing and Sunwing. Shade and Marina have a son named Griffen, and the generation of silverwing bats move on. When Griffen a silverwing gets sucked into the underworld, Shade his father, goes to recue him. With Goth sill in the picture, and cama-zotz trying to take over the upper world, the plots get confusing. But this book has such great detail it paints the images into your mind. This book is filled with wonderful suspence and action, Oppel makes this a "don't stop until you finish it" book. It dosen't matter if you don't like bats this book draws you in with it's description and cunning detail. If you haven't read any of this series, go out and start reading now!

AGHHHH!!
The book is great. Just great. Except for the ending. I can't believe so many reviewers actually liked the ending. It was the most disappointing thing ever. Don't read it if you love happy endings. There had better be a fourth book to resolve this feeling of being cheated in me ><

the best book ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This book was fantastic!!! I really like how it mostly takes place in the underworld. You've problely read other reviews so you know the story,but I'm not going to blab. This book was so good durring a club meeting I went to the batheroom and read it there!!! I think you should read the book your self. Now if you have read the first two (this is the 3 one) and you know that the main charecter is shades son, you'll be surprised to know that he isn't like his parents. also you'll see Frieda again. (...)BR>bye happy reading

Wow............
Firewing is just as good as the other two books by Kenneth Oppel. The only thing that disappointed me a little was that Goth got away with Griffin's life and Shade did something that disappointed me even more, but of course I'm not disappointed how bad the book was or anything, it was great. Only the part I was talking about made me a little sad. I wonder what the next book will be called..........

Firewing
Firewing by David Oppel is a great book there is nonstop action and has a very exitingplot. This is a story has love and adventure and the consequences of a lifetime. When a young bat is sucked into the underworld he has to make decisions of who and who not to trust. He is faced with grueling tasks and long journeys so he can escape with his life. The characters a so exiting Griffin, a young bat that is not very brave and thinks way to much. Luna, is brave, daring, strong, and does not think at all before she plunges into any wild ideas she comes up with. Shade is Griffins father who is like Luna a lot but he is very famous and is known all over the forest. This is a book that will really keep you on the edge of your set. It has a lot of adventure that will entertain you even if you hate toread. The author has also written these must reads Silverwing and Sunwing. This book is intended for ages 10-15 it is pretty easy to read but is about 270 pages long. ... Read more

Book Description

Shade, a young Silverwing bat in search of his father, discovers a mysterious Human building containing a vast forest. Could his father be there? Home to thousands of bats, the indoor forest is warm as a summer night, teeming with insect food, and free from the tyranny of the deadly owls. But Shade and his friend Marina aren't so sure this is paradise. Shade has seen Humans enter the forest and take away hundreds of sleeping bats for an unknown purpose. And where is Shade's father?

Before long Shade and Marina are on a perilous journey to the far southern jungle, where the Vampire bat Goth rules as king of all the cannibal bats. Now Shade must use all his resourcefulness to find his father -- and stop Goth from creating eternal night. ... Read more

Reviews (25)

Sunwing: A fantastic sequel to a fantastic book
This is the story of Shade, a young silverwing bat. As in "Silverwing," nothing is as it seems. When he and his family and friends are trapped in a human-made paradise, everyone else seems content except for Shade, who questions the humans' motives. It is not long before hundreds bats start disappearing. Shade and his Brightwing friend Marina once again embark on a journey that takes them far south to the home of the Vampyrum Spectrum and the homeland of the evil batgod Cama Zotz. What follows is a non-stop adventure that will keep you reading through the night, but I'm not going to spoil the ending for you. You'll have to read it, yourself.

Sunwing Review
This book is one of the best books I have ever read in my life. There is never a dull moment. In the book, cannibal bat Goth, who was struck by lightning in 'Silverwing', flys off in search of the jungle, his homeland. Southern bat god Cama Zotz heals his scars and burns, and tells Goth to go back to the Humans. At this place, Goth and enemy Shade meet again. When Goth gets back to the jungle, he finds out he been crowned King of all the Vampyrum Spectrum (cannibal bats). An eclipse is coming up, and sun-lover Shade Silverwing must come up with a way to stop Goth from stealing the sun forever.
It is a beyond amazing book, so don't delay and read it now! I stayed up all night reading it, and it was all I could think about. Don't hesitate! Read 'Sunwing' today!

Sunwing rules!!
Even though I never read "Silverwing", I picked this up and school, and decided to read it. I loved the book, and at the end, was shocked that the "exploding-disc" thing had really happened. I was glad that the author decided to share that with us.
I have plans to read "Silverwing" and "Firewing" next. I thought this was a truly awesome book.
I give it five stars for everything in it, an I recommend it to ages 8 and above.

A very good read, but a bit intense for kids, IMO
I read this book right after Silverwing, and while the plot is very well put together and paced, and I read it almost non-stop, I do think that it is too intense for kids. My son loved Silverwing, although he said that "it went up and down a lot", but I think this will be too much for him to read on his own. The live sacrifices and cruelty to living creatures by humans and other animals are quite rough going for the 9 - 12 crowd that this book is aimed at.

Sunwing Rocks!
I just bought Sunwing Earlier Today and I am a third of the way through. IT IS THE GREATEST BOOK OF ALL TIME!!! I can't stress this enough! Why Isn't there a rating higher than five stars? I bought Silverwing earlier this week and read it in four hours (You wouldn't believe how hard it is to put this book down long enough to shower)! Buy this book people! It is DEFINATELY worth the money!!! ... Read more

Book Description

Shade is a young Silverwing bat, the runt of his colony. But he's determined to prove himself on the long, dangerous winter migration to Hibernaculum, millions of wingbeats to the south. During a fierce storm, he loses the others and soon faces the most incredible journey of his young life. Desperately searching for a way to rejoin his flock, Shade meets a remarkable cast of characters: Marina, a Brightwing bat with a strange metal band on her leg; Zephr, a mystical albino bat with a strange gift; and Goth, a gigantic carnivorous vampire bat. But which ones are friends and which ones are enemies? In this epic story of adventure and suspense, Shade is going to need all the help he can find -- if he hopes to ever see his family again. ... Read more

Reviews (68)

Silverwing an epic story!!!
I would most definitely recommend this book to any reader who likes stories with adventure drama and a little mystery, when it comes to one of Shades friend. The story goes like this, a bat, named Shade is the runt among all of the other bats in his tree colony. Every year Shade the rest of his colony travel to the south to their winter cave where they hibernate until spring. The journey is a long, treacherous and unfortunately Shade gets separated from all of the other bats. He has no choice but to find his way to his winter cave (Hibernaculum) meet his family there. On his way he meets a few interesting bats who seem to be friendly and want to help but you never can tell when it comes to bats. They teach Shade a few tricks about surviving alone and....... well lets not ruin the ending for you. I guess you will just have to read the book for yourself. Hope you enjoy the book as much as I did.

A REAL Page-Turner
If you're a Harry Potter and Series of Unfortunate Events type of person, you're sure to love Silverwing. Silverwing is mixed with the mystery and suspense of Harry Potter, and the heart-pounding events in Series of Unfortunate Events. This book is a real and I mean a REAL page-turner! I didn't want to go down the shore with my friend because it was so interesting (and my mom wouldn't let me take my book). I'd rather miss a trip to Disney World than not read this book. Shade, the runt of his colony, goes on an adventure to find out what really happened to his father. Along the way he meets a bright, cocky, and very adventurous Brightwing, two carnivorous vampire bats, and a blind, really wise Albino bat. Copious amounts of events happen to Shade. At one point Shade gets separated by his colony by a terrible storm. Does Shade ever find his colony? Does he live? If you want to know you'll have to read the book. I rate this book an excellent five stars!
By: AM, a fifth grader from WMA, PA

get inside the mind of a bat in this standard adventure
Shade is a young sliverwing bat. He wants to see the sun, something forbidden to bats by ancient animal law. He gets separated from his colony during their winter migration and meets another bat who tries to help him find his colony while evading canabalistic jungle bats intent on stirring up warfare among birds, animals, and bats. For any bat lovers or bat-fearers this is an unconventional look into the life of bats, one that makes you want to take a second look at the furry little creatures...Otherwise, it's fairly standard fantasy adventure.

If you are lookong for action
Hey, for me, most books start out boring, and work up to suspense. I usually don't like books like that becuase i can't concentrate on the beginning of the book becuase it's so boring. But this book, the action started on practicaly the first page! I got sucked in; reading on, and on about the adventures of Shade, not caring about anything else. I think that this is an EXTREMELY good book. I read it all in one day because i absoulutely couldn't put it down! Read about the aventures of Shade, a little runt in his Silverwing colony, as he meets friends- and enemys.

My Summary
RECOMMENDATION
I recommend this book to everyone that is 10 years and older. This book is very well written and suspenseful. In one part when Goth is chasing Shade. Shade says," I see you" then Shade sees Goth and runs. It also has a lot of action like the second part he fights the owl. Shade sees it and he screamed " This time you will die." So he went up to it and killed it. If you like action and suspense read this book. ... Read more

Book Description

Peg was born upon the bright blue sea.

A big, strapping lass, she isn't one to do things in half measures. Anything she turns her hand to, she's good at. But she wants more than that. She wants big, she wants better, she wants best. She wants to be the world's best fisherman....

Now that Peg's pushing seven, she figures it's high time she caught herself a whale. So she packs up her fishing rod and signs on with the whaling ship Viper. Peg is ready to catch a whale. But is the whale ready for Peg?

In this humorous nautical tall tale, Kenneth Oppel and Terry Widener have created a feisty, independent child hero for the ages. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Energetic and fun
This engaging, infectious tall tale is lots of fun.It's a rollicking story about a girl who sets out to be the world's best fisherman and catch a whale.Undeterred by the fact that it's a mammal, she hooks one with her fishing rod, and ends up taken for a ride.She makes herself at home in the whale's belly, keeps warm in the Arctic by singing sea shanties, and eventually steers the whale home.The tale's outrageous tone never falters and Peg is so brash and insistent that she's believable, despite the outlandishness of her story. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Great Read, But Not Oppel's Best
Dead Water Zone is a short read, with a very original plot and contains unique characters. I personally love Oppel's work, but others work of his is much better, such as the Silverwing Trilogy. This book's plot is very bizarre, and I found it easy to follow it. But, I can see some of my friend [and other people] getting lost in it's uncannyness. If your a teen, and want a good short read, this is the book you want.

I love this book I recomend you get it
I'm 14 and I have to read for school you have to get a certin amount of points to gaduate. I hate reading but after I read this book I love reading. So I recomend you get this book or Journy to the center of the Earth ... Read more

Book Description

Emma is contest crazy. The only problem is, she never wins anything. Then one day a huge crate arrives on her doorstep.

This must be the best prize ever, thinks Emma

Breathless with excitement, she opens the crate to reveal -- an emu!

What will Emma do with her remarkable new pet? And what on earth will her mother say? ... Read more

Reviews (1)

He Saw Angel Mist...
Zach is tending to his flock of sheep down the hill when angels appear to his brothers and tell them to go to Bethlehem. When Zach returns to the campfire, he finds a note telling him where his brothers went, and that they saw angels. Zach doesn't believe them, but then he looks up and on the tree is angel mist. Now Zach must go to Bethlehem too, he wants to see angels. But he has one problem, he can't leave his sheep alone, they're the stupidest sheep in the world. So Zach starts to make his way to Bethlehem with the sheep. Along the way, he meets up with several problems - sheep thieves, a river, and a hill that his sheep can't climb. At each test of his patience with his sheep, there is always someone who comes to Zach's rescue. And strangely, each rescuer resembles one another. Could this be the angel Zach was looking for? ... Read more