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The Dark is Rising Sequence: "Over Sea, Under Stone"; The "Dark is Rising"; "Greenwitch"; The "Grey King"; "Silver O": "Over Sea, Under Stone"; The "Dark ... The "Grey King"; "Silver O" (Puffin Books)
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Product Description
This spellbinding volume brings together the five novels from Susan Cooper’s classic fantasy sequence: Over Sea, Under Stone; The Dark is Rising; Greenwitch; The Grey King; and Silver on the Tree. Here Barney, Jane and Simon discover an ancient map in Cornwall; the mysterious Merriman reveals his secret purpose; and Will Stanton realizes that he is not just an ordinary boy but has a far greater role in fulfilling his destiny. Creating a magical world where the everyday mingles with the supernatural, The Dark is Rising Sequence weaves a story of secret codes, strange prophecies, the legend of King Arthur and a centuries-old conflict between the power of good and the forces of evil.
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #15527 in Books
- Published on: 2001-07-26
- Original language: English
- Binding: Paperback
- 800 pages
Editorial Reviews
About the Author
Susan Cooper was born in Buckinghamshire, read English at Oxford and began her career as a reporter and feature-writer for the Sunday Times. Her sequence of fantasy novels, THE DARK IS RISING, won her numerous international awards, including the Newbery Medal. She has also written a Broadway play and several film scripts for TV and cinema. Susan Cooper lives in Connecticut, USA.
Customer Reviews
Sheer Brilliance
I first read this series in 1986. I loved it but gave it away to a friend! Last year I bought the series again & was captivated. Especially as I realised that some of it was set in Tywyn where my partner is from! It's very spooky when you realise that all of the places in Wales are real! The American film of "The Dark is Rising" does not even compare to the stunning intricacies of the writing. These books had me on the edge of my seat both as a child and an adult. Amazing!
Not good for reading aloud
I am sorry to confess that I really didn't like this book. Reading all the enthusiastic reviews, I am clearly out-numbered but if I explain why I didn't like it then maybe you can decide whether your mind works like mine or like the books' admirers.
Perhaps the difference is that I read the book aloud and I have the impression most of the reviewers read it alone as children. When you read a book aloud you are very conscious of the quality of the prose and especially the dialogue. That, I believe, is the weakness in Susan Cooper's books.
The story is nicely crafted and it is easy to identify with the brave and occasionally foolish children who are the heroes. But I found the prose excruciating. It is difficult to explain what is wrong but I found myself skipping practically every other sentence in order to make it readable. Try reading a page from the Dark is Rising and then a page from Jonathan Stroud's superb "Amulet of Samarkand" and you will know what I am talking about.
I find it difficult to understand why better editing wasn't applied as it would not be difficult to improve Susan Cooper's writing. The answer may be that the book was written a generation ago when people used typewriters and standards were different. Children's books tended to be slower with a dumbed down version of adult prose that sounds pedestrian compared with the lively artistic style of some modern children's writers. Try digging out your old copy of the first of Enid Blyton's adventure stories (Famous 5 I think) and you will be amazed at the uninspiring description of the family getting ready to go on holiday, including getting dressed and having breakfast, which goes on for about 50 pages.
I suspect a lot of the support for this book is nostalgic. If you read it as a child and loved it, go ahead and get it again. If it is new to you, please have a look at a copy in a shop before you buy it in case you find you agree with me about the writing. There is so much excellent children's fiction around, it's a shame to make a mistake.
Great series, awful film
A wonderful series such a shame Fox have made such a needless and tragic hash of transferring it to the big screen. Maybe if someone at Fox had actually bothered to read Dark is Rising then they may not have made such a soulless and disappointing cure for insomnia of a film.
