Imagine this: Someone you love, who has always been a part of your life, tells you that they’re moving far away. But before they go, they give you a gift. Not just any gift. They give you a wooden castle that’s big enough to fill an entire attic. With the castle comes one, single Silver Knight.
How would you feel?
Now imagine the first time you explore the castle and touch the Silver Knight, he comes to life! He’s from an enchanted kingdom that’s under the curse of an evil wizard. In the the knight’s hand is a gold medallion that can shrink any living thing (rats, cats, bugs, even humans!) and make the toy castle look like it’s a real castle.
What would you do?
These are the questions that 10-year-old William faces in The Castle in the Attic by Elizabeth Winthrop. The book was first published in 1985, but this one of those rare stories that does get old!
Like me, William is considered small for his age. That works to his advantage in gymnastics, which he’s been practicing at since he was six. Mrs. Phillips is a long-time family friend who has taken care of William since he was born and has been the one who spots William since he first started his sport.
So, when she tells him she’s moving back to England to be with her family, he’s crushed. Hoping to make things easier for him, Mrs. Phillips gifts him with her favorite childhood toy: a wooden castle and a Silver Knight. These end up being exactly what William needs to convince Mrs. Phillips not to go—or so he thinks.
The only way for William to correct his mistake and save Mrs. Phillips is to go on a quest to find and defeat the wizard holding the Silver Knight’s kingdom hostage. Just like any adventure, he’ll face many tests and trials along the way. If he makes it back home, his life will never be the same.
Why we like it
The Castle in the Attic is perfect for weekends that are so drippy outside you don’t even want to look out the window. It’s fun to read alone, curled up with cocoa, or taking turns reading it out loud with your best friend, brother, or sister (if they’re not in a grouchy mood from the rain)!
I give it 5 dark chocolate eggs because I could read this book over and over and still like it. (I would give it more than 5 dark chocolate eggs, but I ate the rest already.)
We found copies of the book online at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and on Apple’s iBooks. We also found out that you can get an audio version read by the author. One of the places we found it was on iTunes.
Don’t forget to check your library and local book store. If they don’t have a copy, you can request that they order it.
Note: No goods or services were exchanged for this review. The opinions belong solely to the reviewer.
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