Amber is currently really into adventure stories and one book which we have recently read is, ‘Tommy Turner’s Battle For Yorintown. This is a follow-up to ‘Tremendous Travels book. Aimed at kids aged 8-12 (although Amber is 6 and enjoyed it), the book tells the story of Tommy finding himself in an ancient Maya City in a race against time to save an alien planet. The story doesn’t take itself too seriously and there are some very funny parts throughout.
Battle For Yorintown is partly set in Mexico where the authour, Ali Seegar spent a year in her late teens. This is where she developed an interest in Maya history and pyramids.
The book is really well-written and is written in a way which is easily digestable for young readers from the very start. Amber found the book really funny and enjoyed reading and learning about time-travel. She loved the talking car and the alien characters which I thought might be a little scary for her. We both loved the character of Uncle Harry and thought that the communication between the characters in the book were great, switching between some serious parts and more cheeky, funny conversations.
Illustration throughout is fantastic and in black and white, however I would have liked to have seen these in colour to bring the characters to life a little bit more but I understand that the choice of black and white is relevant to the history side of the story. In terms of overall storyline this is a really good starter book for kids who are interested in adventure stories or history. It is an eager page turner and it had Amber hooked until the end.
I would say that this book can be enjoyed by both genders and even for kids over 12.
Ali is currently working on the third book in the series.
Tommy Turner’s Battle for Yorintown is available at all good bookshops and online.
*We were sent a copy of the book in return for an honest review.
