Book Review #5: Artemis Fowl

Fifth in a series of 8. The book for this review is courtesy of Kimiyo Brown: Eoin Colfer's Artemis Fowl.

~

Children are too often sentimentalized, I think. They are complicated, imaginative and clearly sinful beings, their shifting personality gaining shape underneath a time-sensitive ration of cuteness. I dearly love playing with them--OK, most of them--and am intrigued at the thought that (to my knowledge) Jesus is the only major religious leader who is reported as socializing with them. But kids can also behave very badly, especially under the influence of bad examples, and a recent superhero movie titled with an expletive made headlines for a particularly profane 11-year-old character.

A good fictional portrayal of children, therefore, should not be sentimentalized (and even a cursory glance at Jane Eyre or most any story by Dickens reveals was not such a temptation in past centuries as now). Leaning the opposite direction, however, not only breeds cynicism but also sets a low standard for any observing children. It bears asking, then, if Colfer's portrayal of this book's titular protagonist--a 12-year-old prodigy seeking to step into the criminal shoes of his gangster father by robbing fairy gold--walks this fine line of reality or not.

In my observation, the answer is no. Artemis is clearly not meant to be a role model, but he is also short on redeeming qualities save his melodramatic habit of becoming the winner by staying intellectually ahead of his opponents. The one wrinkle in his cool facade is affection for his mother, living in a world colored by dementia and grief. Apart from the fairy costuming, this is a genre thriller for kids, with the requisite cast of one-note characters behind the scenes, high degree of violence and grey-shaded morality in its numerous double-crossing twists. What sets this tale apart for me is its notes of sarcastic humor, which add a level of sophistication and interest to both the characters and the plot (though I could have done without the appearance of a poop joke at a key plot point).

If this is part of the future of kid's literature, I would have to say it's more influenced by televised & filmed sources than written ones, as almost all of the material hinged on the actions and not the thoughts of the characters; to my thinking, this is tantamount to ignoring the medium's greatest strength and reminiscent of the later episodes in the Harry Potter series. I know it's not exactly fair to criticize the wandering nature of the plot and its several loose ends by the conclusion, as this is the first in a series and is not attempting to be conclusive. However, I didn't feel compelled enough by what I found here to want to further acquaint myself with either the fairy world or the overly static characters.

SUMMARY

Appreciated the sly notes of humor

Disliked the inverted morality and occasionally aimless plot

I would recommend this book to less impressionable readers (preferably adults) who want a mental break

Disclaimer: This book contains one scene of graphic violence and several other fights.