Jennifer W. (GeniusJen) reviewed Eyes Like Stars (Theatre Illuminata, Bk 1) on + 5322 more book reviews
Reviewed by Sarah Bean the Green Bean Teen Queen for TeensReadToo.com
Beatrice Shakespeare Smith lives in a theater. She's not an actress, but she knows every part. The Theatre Illuminata is the only home Bertie has ever know. But one mishap too many has the Theater Director determined to send Bertie on her way -unless she can prove that she is a valuable part of the Theater. Now, Bertie must fight for her home while unlocking the secrets of her past...
Ok, I'll try to control my gushing and fan-girliness over this book, but EYES LIKE STARS is amazing!!! This has to be one of the most creative, imaginative, beautiful novels I have read. I loved the setting of the Theatre Illuminata and the idea that all the players of every play lived in the theater and were able to be called upon whenever they are needed (and sometimes when they're not needed!).
Lisa Mantchev has managed to capture the magic of the theater in this stunningly written novel. I honestly can't believe this is her debut. All the characters are so richly drawn and detailed and I could hear various voices for everyone as I was reading. Everything was so vividly written, I could actually see the see the story unfolding as a play in front of me. The fairies offer fun comic relief, whereas the tension between Ariel and Bertie provides plenty of drama. The dialog is witty and snappy and lots of fun. This was a book that I literally had to tear myself away from and force myself to go to work and sleep - I never wanted to stop reading.
Shakespeare does play heavily into the novel, but you don't need to be a Shakespearean scholar to follow along and recognize the characters. Also, Lisa Mantchev does an excellent job filling the reader in on the important details of each part, without it losing the flow of the story. There are several plays and characters that make appearances throughout and discovering each one is part of the joy of reading this novel.
As someone who has been heavily involved in theater, I loved the subtle details about theater life that only theater people really and truly understand - the arguments over props vs. sets, the actor's egos. But even if you've never had any experience in a theater, there is sure to be something you'll love in EYES LIKE STARS.
I highly recommend this to all readers, even readers who typically shy away from fantasy. This didn't feel like a typical fantasy to me, so I'm sure it will attract even those who don't usually read that genre. I'm excited to see this will be a trilogy - I'm looking forward to reading more from this fabulous debut author!
Beatrice Shakespeare Smith lives in a theater. She's not an actress, but she knows every part. The Theatre Illuminata is the only home Bertie has ever know. But one mishap too many has the Theater Director determined to send Bertie on her way -unless she can prove that she is a valuable part of the Theater. Now, Bertie must fight for her home while unlocking the secrets of her past...
Ok, I'll try to control my gushing and fan-girliness over this book, but EYES LIKE STARS is amazing!!! This has to be one of the most creative, imaginative, beautiful novels I have read. I loved the setting of the Theatre Illuminata and the idea that all the players of every play lived in the theater and were able to be called upon whenever they are needed (and sometimes when they're not needed!).
Lisa Mantchev has managed to capture the magic of the theater in this stunningly written novel. I honestly can't believe this is her debut. All the characters are so richly drawn and detailed and I could hear various voices for everyone as I was reading. Everything was so vividly written, I could actually see the see the story unfolding as a play in front of me. The fairies offer fun comic relief, whereas the tension between Ariel and Bertie provides plenty of drama. The dialog is witty and snappy and lots of fun. This was a book that I literally had to tear myself away from and force myself to go to work and sleep - I never wanted to stop reading.
Shakespeare does play heavily into the novel, but you don't need to be a Shakespearean scholar to follow along and recognize the characters. Also, Lisa Mantchev does an excellent job filling the reader in on the important details of each part, without it losing the flow of the story. There are several plays and characters that make appearances throughout and discovering each one is part of the joy of reading this novel.
As someone who has been heavily involved in theater, I loved the subtle details about theater life that only theater people really and truly understand - the arguments over props vs. sets, the actor's egos. But even if you've never had any experience in a theater, there is sure to be something you'll love in EYES LIKE STARS.
I highly recommend this to all readers, even readers who typically shy away from fantasy. This didn't feel like a typical fantasy to me, so I'm sure it will attract even those who don't usually read that genre. I'm excited to see this will be a trilogy - I'm looking forward to reading more from this fabulous debut author!
Erin S. (nantuckerin) reviewed Eyes Like Stars (Theatre Illuminata, Bk 1) on + 158 more book reviews
For me, Eyes Like Stars was a nostalgic romp. I have a background steeped in the theatre, and urge other former stage rats to rush to the bookstore to pick up this wonderful novel. I'm sure you'll enjoy it as much as I did.
However, this book isn't only for former ingenues, stage hands and set designers. Anyone who can appreciate a beautifully written and completely original story should seek out Manchev's work.
In Eyes Like Stars, readers are introduced to Beatrice Shakespeare Smith, a 17-year-old who has lived her life in the theatre since she was abandoned there as a child. But Bertie doesn't just live in A theatre -- she lives in THE Theatre, a magical place home to all the Players ever written for the stage. Here, the Bard's Ophelia drowns herself every night and four mischevious fairies from A Midsummer Night's Dream are Bertie's faithful companions. Shakespeare fans, especially, will delight as these classic characters are humorously brought to life alongside pirates from The Little Mermaid, dangerous props from Alice in Wonderland and other treasures of the stage.
Unfortunately, Bertie is almost a grown woman, and a real person living among timeless and immortal written characters. Her imagination and tendancy to get into trouble concerns the Theatre Manager, and is also having an impact on the Players themselves, making some question whether a life contained in the pages of a script is enough. As Bertie struggles to find her place in the world -- and to discover a way to contribute to the Theatre and continue to live there -- she also discovers secrets about the Theatre, its Players and her own mysterious history -- and future.
I loved the originality of Eyes Like Stars, which is so fresh in a genre where so many stories and themes are recycled, rehashed and reinvented. I can honestly say I've never read anything quite like it. However, the characters (Mantchev's own creations, and those she borrowed from other genius playwrights) are the real stars here.
Readers will enjoy the love triangle between Bertie and Ariel -- a mysterious and charming air spirit from The Tempest -- and Nate, a rough-around-the-edges pirate from The Little Mermaid. Mantchev uses both characters to illustrate the possible directions Bertie could take in her life, as well as to add a nice element of romantic tension. The fairies were also a delightful addition to the plot. Their funny antics and dialogue provided wonderful comic relief in the great tradition of The Bard.
I'm so glad that this is only the first book in the Theatre Illuminata series -- especially sicne Act I concluded with a bit of a cliffhanger. I'll look forward to learning more about Bertie's future and her past (Daddy's identity, anyone?) in future novels. Thanks, Lisa Mantchev, for bringing classic theatre to today's YA audience. Even if readers don't have a love for the theatre when they start Eyes Like Stars, there's a good chance they might be intrigued enough at the end of the novel to seek out the original works and "meet" these wonderful characters again in their natural environments.
However, this book isn't only for former ingenues, stage hands and set designers. Anyone who can appreciate a beautifully written and completely original story should seek out Manchev's work.
In Eyes Like Stars, readers are introduced to Beatrice Shakespeare Smith, a 17-year-old who has lived her life in the theatre since she was abandoned there as a child. But Bertie doesn't just live in A theatre -- she lives in THE Theatre, a magical place home to all the Players ever written for the stage. Here, the Bard's Ophelia drowns herself every night and four mischevious fairies from A Midsummer Night's Dream are Bertie's faithful companions. Shakespeare fans, especially, will delight as these classic characters are humorously brought to life alongside pirates from The Little Mermaid, dangerous props from Alice in Wonderland and other treasures of the stage.
Unfortunately, Bertie is almost a grown woman, and a real person living among timeless and immortal written characters. Her imagination and tendancy to get into trouble concerns the Theatre Manager, and is also having an impact on the Players themselves, making some question whether a life contained in the pages of a script is enough. As Bertie struggles to find her place in the world -- and to discover a way to contribute to the Theatre and continue to live there -- she also discovers secrets about the Theatre, its Players and her own mysterious history -- and future.
I loved the originality of Eyes Like Stars, which is so fresh in a genre where so many stories and themes are recycled, rehashed and reinvented. I can honestly say I've never read anything quite like it. However, the characters (Mantchev's own creations, and those she borrowed from other genius playwrights) are the real stars here.
Readers will enjoy the love triangle between Bertie and Ariel -- a mysterious and charming air spirit from The Tempest -- and Nate, a rough-around-the-edges pirate from The Little Mermaid. Mantchev uses both characters to illustrate the possible directions Bertie could take in her life, as well as to add a nice element of romantic tension. The fairies were also a delightful addition to the plot. Their funny antics and dialogue provided wonderful comic relief in the great tradition of The Bard.
I'm so glad that this is only the first book in the Theatre Illuminata series -- especially sicne Act I concluded with a bit of a cliffhanger. I'll look forward to learning more about Bertie's future and her past (Daddy's identity, anyone?) in future novels. Thanks, Lisa Mantchev, for bringing classic theatre to today's YA audience. Even if readers don't have a love for the theatre when they start Eyes Like Stars, there's a good chance they might be intrigued enough at the end of the novel to seek out the original works and "meet" these wonderful characters again in their natural environments.
Karissa E. (ophelia99) reviewed Eyes Like Stars (Theatre Illuminata, Bk 1) on + 2527 more book reviews
This is the first book in the Theatre Illuminata series by Lisa Mantchev. It is the first book of three; the second book "Perchance to Dream" is supposed to be out in Fall of 2010. I liked this book pretty well, it is a very creative premise. Although I thought the main character Bertie was a bit immature.
This tells the story of Bertie. Bertie lives in The Theatre; her bedroom is a scene and she is constantly going through scene changes. Her friends are the Players of the plays that the Theatre runs and are bound to the Theatre and the plays that they continuously perform. Someone wants Bertie kicked out of The Theatre and Bertie is desperate to stay, it is the only home she has ever known. For as long as she can remember she has never been outside The Theatre. On one side she has the mysterious and breath-taking Ariel pushing her to leave and on the other side the dashing pirate Nate, who is quite the gentleman and is willing to help Bertie come up with a plan to stay. Flitting through it all are Cobweb, Moth, Mustard Seed, and Peaseblossom the fairies who constantly accompany Bertie providing advice, most of it not so helpful. Will Bertie ever find a way to stay in the Theatre? Will she ever figure out her past before she was left to The Theatre's care?
I really wanted to love this story. When I started it I was a bit disappointed. The first couple chapters basically deal with Bertie dying her hair blue and getting in trouble for it...it was not the depth I had been hoping for. I actually put it down for a while and then picked it up when I had a large block of time to read more and get further into the story. As the story went on though it got a lot better. The idea of people being bound to a Theater and only existing in the realm of their characters' personalities was incredibly interesting. I will admit it was a bit tough to keep a picture in my mind of exactly what was happening, with all the scene changes and stuff at the beginning, as the book went on through I got the hang of it and had an easier time with visualizing what was going on. The way everything in the book is set up like a play was also cute and clever and added some to the creativity of the book.
Mantchev's writing style is pretty straight-forward and easy to read. At times I wondered why this book was young adult. The characters are fairly child-like and the plot is easy reading. Which brings me to the biggest thing I didn't like about this book, and that was Bertie. I thought she was very juvenile for her age and very ditsy. I also thought she wasn't really all that likable. Lucky for her the supporting cast made up for her lack. The fairies always provided humorous banter in the background, which managed to never really get annoying and actually added to the story. Nate was written as a wonderful handsome, sincere, and dashing pirate. He was a great character. Ariel was also a wonderful character with his alluring magic and his bouts of temper. Nate and Ariel are the ones who really carried this book.
The book was a very easy read and a humorous read at parts. I enjoyed the concept. If Mantchev had made Bertie and bit less, well stupid, and a bit more mature this book could have been a 5 star-er. For me though Bertie's lack of characterization and the simplistic writing style brought this book down from something wonderful for me. I still liked it a lot and am eager to read the next book. I am curious to see what Bertie will do next. This book was fairly well-wrapped up but enough loose ends were left that I am going to have trouble waiting for the next book!
This tells the story of Bertie. Bertie lives in The Theatre; her bedroom is a scene and she is constantly going through scene changes. Her friends are the Players of the plays that the Theatre runs and are bound to the Theatre and the plays that they continuously perform. Someone wants Bertie kicked out of The Theatre and Bertie is desperate to stay, it is the only home she has ever known. For as long as she can remember she has never been outside The Theatre. On one side she has the mysterious and breath-taking Ariel pushing her to leave and on the other side the dashing pirate Nate, who is quite the gentleman and is willing to help Bertie come up with a plan to stay. Flitting through it all are Cobweb, Moth, Mustard Seed, and Peaseblossom the fairies who constantly accompany Bertie providing advice, most of it not so helpful. Will Bertie ever find a way to stay in the Theatre? Will she ever figure out her past before she was left to The Theatre's care?
I really wanted to love this story. When I started it I was a bit disappointed. The first couple chapters basically deal with Bertie dying her hair blue and getting in trouble for it...it was not the depth I had been hoping for. I actually put it down for a while and then picked it up when I had a large block of time to read more and get further into the story. As the story went on though it got a lot better. The idea of people being bound to a Theater and only existing in the realm of their characters' personalities was incredibly interesting. I will admit it was a bit tough to keep a picture in my mind of exactly what was happening, with all the scene changes and stuff at the beginning, as the book went on through I got the hang of it and had an easier time with visualizing what was going on. The way everything in the book is set up like a play was also cute and clever and added some to the creativity of the book.
Mantchev's writing style is pretty straight-forward and easy to read. At times I wondered why this book was young adult. The characters are fairly child-like and the plot is easy reading. Which brings me to the biggest thing I didn't like about this book, and that was Bertie. I thought she was very juvenile for her age and very ditsy. I also thought she wasn't really all that likable. Lucky for her the supporting cast made up for her lack. The fairies always provided humorous banter in the background, which managed to never really get annoying and actually added to the story. Nate was written as a wonderful handsome, sincere, and dashing pirate. He was a great character. Ariel was also a wonderful character with his alluring magic and his bouts of temper. Nate and Ariel are the ones who really carried this book.
The book was a very easy read and a humorous read at parts. I enjoyed the concept. If Mantchev had made Bertie and bit less, well stupid, and a bit more mature this book could have been a 5 star-er. For me though Bertie's lack of characterization and the simplistic writing style brought this book down from something wonderful for me. I still liked it a lot and am eager to read the next book. I am curious to see what Bertie will do next. This book was fairly well-wrapped up but enough loose ends were left that I am going to have trouble waiting for the next book!
Reviewed by http://bibliophile-bestiary.blogspot.com
If you are looking for a very different book that has it's own unique writing style, this book is for you! At parts it if written as if it is a script. Bertie's whole life has been the Theatre, and it reflects in her friends and personality. All the players in the Theatre are ones you will recognize from those required reading lists! The book does start off a little slow, but it quickly picks up and the action begins! If you are a fan of Shakespeare, fantasy or just the stage, this is a must read! 4 out of 5 stars!
I actually listened to it on audio book, and it was one of the most amazing performances I have heard! They had different actors doing voices for the different characters, so it isn't just one reader changing their voice. It really brought me into the story!
If you are looking for a very different book that has it's own unique writing style, this book is for you! At parts it if written as if it is a script. Bertie's whole life has been the Theatre, and it reflects in her friends and personality. All the players in the Theatre are ones you will recognize from those required reading lists! The book does start off a little slow, but it quickly picks up and the action begins! If you are a fan of Shakespeare, fantasy or just the stage, this is a must read! 4 out of 5 stars!
I actually listened to it on audio book, and it was one of the most amazing performances I have heard! They had different actors doing voices for the different characters, so it isn't just one reader changing their voice. It really brought me into the story!
This is a hard book to discuss. I liked it but had a hard time getting into it. After reading page, say, 100, I started to care what happened. Then it was good. Bertie lives in a magic theatre where every character in a play (ever written) is being "held". If you are into Shakespeare and enjoy theatre this is a good book to read. The writing was a little childish, but I am not sure what age would like this. I would say 8th-9th grade is all that would willingly read AND understand this- if you haven't read/know the plot of Hamlet it will be hard to follow. This book mentions so many of Shakespeare's characters and plays if might make kids (and other readers) want to go try and read his work- that would be great!...It's a good "beach" read, but don't look for too much substance in this work...that being said, I would be interested in seeing Book 2 of this series when/if it comes out.
This was an imaginative book, though a little strange. I had trouble getting into it at first, but I'm glad I finished it. It did leave you hanging on some characters so maybe that will be covered in the second book.
Good book, fascinating concept and world-building, wonderful characters. A bit difficult to follow in a few places but that doesn't detract from a beautiful story.
Reviewed by http://bibliophile-bestiary.blogspot.com
If you are looking for a very different book that has it's own unique writing style, this book is for you! At parts it if written as if it is a script. Bertie's whole life has been the Theatre, and it reflects in her friends and personality. All the players in the Theatre are ones you will recognize from those required reading lists! The book does start off a little slow, but it quickly picks up and the action begins! If you are a fan of Shakespeare, fantasy or just the stage, this is a must read! 4 out of 5 stars!
I actually listened to it on audio book, and it was one of the most amazing performances I have heard! They had different actors doing voices for the different characters, so it isn't just one reader changing their voice. It really brought me into the story!
If you are looking for a very different book that has it's own unique writing style, this book is for you! At parts it if written as if it is a script. Bertie's whole life has been the Theatre, and it reflects in her friends and personality. All the players in the Theatre are ones you will recognize from those required reading lists! The book does start off a little slow, but it quickly picks up and the action begins! If you are a fan of Shakespeare, fantasy or just the stage, this is a must read! 4 out of 5 stars!
I actually listened to it on audio book, and it was one of the most amazing performances I have heard! They had different actors doing voices for the different characters, so it isn't just one reader changing their voice. It really brought me into the story!
