Oregon Battle of the Books - this is a pretty annoying read for someone who isn't very interested in Disney land (or even the Disney characters). I can see this as pretty annoying even for middle school age kids. The writing is very basic and simple and the plot seems pretty transparent.

and it didn't get any better ( )

Do you ever wonder what happens in the Magic Kingdom when the park officially closes to guests?
This is a fun book based on that idea.
It is a quick midgrade read. On the same levels as Percy Jackson for adventure and fun!
Run around the parks with the kids and try to solve the mystery behind the scenes of Walt Disney World.
This is a must own book :) ( )

Fantasy

I'm a major DisneyWorld fan, so this book was a natural for me to read/listen to. Pearson does a good job weaving real-world WDW detail into a young-adult fantasy story. I particularly liked how he ensures that loose-end details get wrapped up during the course of the story. Many authors assume that kids won't be paying attention to such, and the loose ends drive me nuts as an adult reader.
[Audiobook note: I give the reader only 1 star. His poor voicing of Maleficent (has he never watched "Sleeping Beauty"?) the irritating rasp of the old Imagineer, Wayne, and the whining nasality given to the voices of Dillard and Willa seriously degraded my enjoyment of the story.] ( )

This book feels like a Disney production, in the same way the you can seen a short clip of a performance and know that it came from Disney World or a Disney Channel show. There is just enough of everything to make it appear happy, well-rehearsed, and a place you might like to be. Missing is depth, natural flow, and realistic serendipity. Kingdom Keepers is based on fictional Disney production (the DHI's), so it is fully in keeping with the Disney production model. The use of proper names for various park elements felt somewhat forced, at times making this little novel feel like a Disney advertisement. Readers barely get to know the main character, learning a little more than a name for the supporting characters.

To be honest, I don't like the Mouse, never really did, and this opinion colors my view on this book. If you don't have strong feelings against all things Disney, this will most likely be a fun read. ( )

I have been to Disney World twice and reading this made me imagine being back there again.
It's an imaginative story, the characters come to life, our favourite ones from Disney.
The characters were the weak point of the story, very underdeveloped.
I actually got this book in Florida during one of my trips. ( )

This book does not deserve the paper it was written on. When middle school kids complain that they do not like to read, or that books are too hard to read, I wouldn't blame them if they were talking about this book.

As a brief illustration of how stupid this book was, behold this magnificent passage:
"Her hair was the color of laundry lint. Her eyelashes were so pale they were almost invisible, which left her eyelids looking like weird flesh-colored cups that blinked down over her eyes like a bird's."

"Like a bird's"? Like a bird's what? Like a bird's... flesh-colored cups? How did this line make it past an editor? Also, lint can be purple. It can be red. It can be green or pink or blue. Lint comes in every glorious shade of the rainbow. What then, pray tell, was the color of her hair?

All in all, this book stinks. If you are in middle school, I beg of you, read the Penderwicks or the Melendy books or something that will not discourage you from reading forever. ( )

Finn, along with a group of four other teenagers, is the basis for one of Disney's new hologram tour guides, with his image serving to host and direct visitors throughout the park. However, in a weird sort of dream he learns that there is great danger facing the park against which he and the other hosts need to fight. The group then goes on nighttime adventures throughout the Magic Kingdom, trying to win back control over the Kingdom from the evil characters trying to take it over.

This book was a fun, quick read. The story was definitely creative, and I enjoyed the Disney setting. Though I didn't think they meshed especially well with the rest of the story, I also did enjoy the parts involving Virtual Magic Kingdom, as that definitely reminded me of my childhood. The book very clearly _targeted a younger audience, and that definitely showed, I think, in how parts of the book were (or weren't, as the case may be) fleshed out; and even though this book obviously has fantastical elements, it sometimes pushed suspension of disbelief a little to far. I may well pick up another book from this series for a light read sometime. ( )

I read this because one of my 6th graders kept telling me how good it was. It came out in 2005, and I’m sure it’s not a coincidence that Gail Carson Levine’s [book: Fairy Dust and the Quest for the Egg] came out that same year. It seems that Disney paid a lot of money to talented writers to flesh out bad storylines involving classic Disney characters. (Although, I adore David Christiana’s illustrations in the latter.) This book has a lot of good elements- a mismatched group of kids who have to overcome their differences to save the world (including one who is treasonous), three-dimensional holographs that enable the kids to enter a parallel, sinister world, and roller coasters. Unfortunately, the story just doesn’t hang together well. Aside from the main character and the one who defects to the dark side, the kids are pretty much interchangeable. One of the more annoying plot contrivances is the man who seems to know what the kids need to do to save Disneyland from the villains, but insists that the kids have to find out for themselves. It’s never really clear why he can’t solve the problem himself. ( )

Really fun book about disney ( )

This was a middle grade fantasy story similar to a Disney-themed Five Nights at Freddy's where five teens deal with evil forces coming to life in the Disney World park at night in the form of Disney characters and animatronics from the rides.

I enjoyed reading this book a lot. Though the young characters and Disney-themed plot are indicative of a middle grade novel, the writing itself passed for YA to me; nothing felt unbelievably whimsical or silly the way middle grade often does. I enjoyed this aspect of the story a lot. I also had fun reading about the characters using VMK, or Virtual Magic Kingdom, a Disney-run MMO chat game that used to exist. I played on the site very briefly as a kid (my mom found out and decided she didn't want me on it) but I have strong, fond memories of it which I found myself revisiting in the reading of this book.

My main dislike of this book was its ending. It felt like it was wrapped up way too fast and not enough was explained. I realized when I was searching the title on good reads that the book has a sequel, at least, and so the writer probably planned from the beginning not to explain everything at the end, but that was not evident to me by the presentation of the book's cover jacket, etc., so the somewhat unfinished feel felt out of place. I also felt bad about the author's treatment of a minor character named Dillard, who seemed to exist entirely for the author to call fat in the first half of the book.

All-in-all, I was very impressed with the book. It was much better than I had expected going in. ( )

This book is the first in a series of adventure and mystery children's novels set in the Walt Disney World theme parks that I'm reading to my Disney fan daughter. The basic gist is that five young teenagers have been used as models for holographic theme park guides in Disney's Magic Kingdom known as Disney Host Interactive (DHI). A simple one-time acting gig unexpectedly leads the kids to start crossing over in their sleep and appearing in the Magic Kingdom in the form of their holograms. An old and mysterious Imagineer named Wayne tells them that they were created to counter the characters of Disney villains who are coming to life and trying to take over the parks (and thus known as the Overtakers).

The five teens kind of have a Scooby Doo crew crossed with a Disney Channel Original Movie vibe. Finn is the leader and the main protagonist of the book. Charlene is an athletic cheerleader who is often frightened about participating in the adventures. Maybeck, a tall African-American, is the sceptic of the group and typically responds with sarcasm. Willa, possibly of Native American background, is more positive and is good at working out clues. Philby is the redheaded tech genius of the group. Finn's mysterious friend Amanda also helps out, although she is not a DHI.

They have to solve a mystery by finding clues on the rides. The Overtakers try to stop them by turning the rides against them. Which leads to the creepiest scene ever in It's a Small World that will totally ruin the ride for you. They ultimately have to face down Malificent and her sidekick Jez.

It's a fun and interesting story, and much more of a literary children's book than you might expect from it's commercial tie-in with a big theme park. In fact, since the Disney company is so image conscious, I'm surprised that they actually make the company look bad at some points in the narrative. My daughter enjoyed this book and I expect we'll be reading the whole series. ( )

Interesting premise, decent characters, a bit shaky on the execution. The story got a little convoluted at times, and the author seemed to revel in their insider knowledge of all things Disney World. Still going to read the next one. ( )

Eh. I got two chapters in and just didn't care about any of it.

This book was SO much better than I expected. Fun characters, neat storyline. ( )

I'll love the Kingdom Keeper series till I die. I'm a huge Disney fan and bought this book at the theme park (in addition to the others as they came out). Both my mother and I read the story and fell in love. Sure, it has its bad points, but every story does. The fact that I was interested from this book till the last book in the series is a wonder in itself. If you're a Disney fan, definitely pick it up! ( )

The story had an interesting premise, but the delivery was just okay. There were lots of plotholes that were never filled in. It doesn't seem like the holes were left as cliffhangers, the author just moved on and seemed to forget about them. The beginning was very slow, but when the action picked up, it did get interesting enough to hold my attention. I will pick up book two to see if there is improvement in the series. ( )

Rating: 4 Stars

When I lived in Florida, I was an avid Disney fan. My family had annual passes and we used to go to Disney all the time! So I figured this would be a great book for a Disney fan, such as myself.

What gives this book 4 stars?
1.) Waking up in Disney long after it closes and having the park all to yourself, you can't tell me that that isn't some kid's dream. Because lets face it long lines, crowds, and ungodly wait times suck, period! The concept is perfect, and totally imaginative!
2.) I love how the line between good and evil is a key part to keeping the 'Disney Magic' alive in the park. Believe it or not, I like that the villains play a role in the series. Within the walls of Disney, the villains are hardly mentioned in any of the attractions. They are what made the good characters heroes!
3.) Disney Hologram tour guides?! Enough said! Mr. Pearson is an absolute GENIUS!!

I liked the book a lot. I have only read books 1-3. All are very good! Perfect for middle grade Disney fans! ( )

After I read this, I felt excited, inspired, wanting to go to Disneyland at hat very moment. I loved this book and I want to start reading the next one! ( )

What a wild, fantastic ride!! I was as engrossed as my son. And talk about your giant cliff hangers...not one thing was actually explained or resolved! We are so glad we already purchased #2!! ( )

I barely finished this one. Thirty-three percent through and I was speed-reading just to get to the end. I really should have just stopped, but the idea sounded too good not to follow through, like Kingdom Hearts. But it's not worth your time.

The concept is ideal for any Disneyphile-evil lurks in the park and five kids have to stop it, going on rides after close and exploring cast member tunnels and doing all the things you're not allowed to do. Walt Disney World goes from a place of joy to a battleground. Anyone who's been to a Disney Park at least once should be intrigued.

But you shouldn't. It's so poorly executed and poorly written. Like it was a rush job. The characters have no depth. They don't even get the depth of stereotypes. No one has a personality. I could not tell you the difference between the two girls of this five person team. And they're barely in the book as it is. Anyone who's not the "team leader" gets barely any screen time. The two other boys are "the big guy" and "the computer guy" but "the big guy" occasionally feeds information about computers and "the computer guy" acts weak and nerdy. No one has internal goals or distinguishing characteristics. Power Rangers had better characterization.

The story is all event. And they throw in some BS about how these kids are "holographic cast members" and that gives them the ability to be in the park after it closes. This is a thing that doesn't exist in the park, and I had to try explaining to my kids five times. It's rooted in science but acts like magic and has no rules around it. It just happens. Once they're in the park, they have to do some lame The Da Vinci Code style sleuthing, because Walt Disney knew that his movies were going to come to life and imprison the guests in dungeons down below. That's a sentence I just said. This fetch quest accomplishes its job of filling out pages by making every obstacle the same--you get on a ride, the ride malfunctions, but you succeed anyway without any lasting consequences. Goalposts are never pushed back.

Kids deserve better than this. The only highlight is seeing the things you saw in Disney World, and only in the "hey I remember that" way.

This is no Percy Jackson or Wimpy Kid. I did not care whether the characters lived or died. And there were too many of them anyway. In addition to the Team of Five, there are two girls with ambiguous motives but the same non-personality, an Imagineer mentor, and "the adults who know nothing". The author can explain the Utilidor under the park, but not why these kids matrix-jump into their holograms when they fall asleep nor how that works. That's like Benedict Cumberbatch doing the mocap for Smaug, then going to sleep and finding himself IN the film. It feels like the author was writing to a deadline or to the specifications of investors and focus groups. Pick up a Travel Guide instead. ( )

An over-glorified advertisement for Disney. ( )

First, I want to quickly sum up how I got this book. I was at Barnes and Noble with twenty dollars in gift cards, an hour to kill, and no brand-new hardcover money-grabbers to blow all my money on in one go. So, I bought three paperbacks instead: Because of Mr. Terupt, Out of My Mind, and Disney After Dark. I had read both of the other books previously (and, as an aside, absolutely adored them), but Kingdom Keepers was a new find. I'd seen tue fourth book around before multiple times but never the first, so seeing Disney After Dark at Barnes and Noble prodded me into taking the plunge of buying an unknown book.
Five years ago I (and, seemingly, the rest of the world) fell in love with the Percy Jackson series. And how did I discover Percy Jackson, you might be wondering? Well, you're probably not wondering, and you're probably wishing I'd just get to my review already. But I'll tell you fast: I got "The Lightning Thief" from Borders on a whim.
So, in the back of my mind I was hoping to find another great series like Percy Jackson in Kingdom Keepers. Keep this in mind as you read my review.
So. Kingdom Keepers. Disney After Dark. I have to admit, I thought the title was kind of cheesy when I started the series. I still do. But in a strange way, it fits the book - not that I'm saying the book is particularly cheesy (because it isn't), but it pretty much sums up the whole idea of the book.
Finn is a normal kid, except for the fact that there are holograms of him all over Disney World. You see, he and five other kids were chosen after auditioning to be scanned and projected throughout Disney World in Orlando, Florida as tour guides known as DHIs (which stands for both Disney Host Interactive and Daylight Hologram Imaging). The perks? Finn instantly became the superstar at school who everyone recognized from Disney World, he got a substantial amount of money for his college fund for the right to use his image and voice forever at Disney, and his family got mega gold packs so they could go to Disney whenever they wanted.
The downsides? Well, Finn can only go to Disney after specially clearing it with the security guards ahead of time, and only if he wears a hat so no one confuses real Finn with DHI Finn. This also means that when he sneaks into Disney World, he has to constantly be dodging guards who are trying to get him out of there before tourists spot his non-virtual-tour-guide self.
The side that's both up and down? Finn starts to dream he IS his DHI every single night. And there is a strange man named Wayne (an "Imagineer") in these dreams who claims that Disneyland is being threatened by the evil "Overtakers" - who include many of the villains from various Disney stories.
Finn tracks down the other four DHI hosts at their various schools, and learns they all are having the same dreams. When they all go to sleep within half an hour of one another, they are all in their DHIs at Magic Kingdom at the exact same place and can talk to each other. These dreams aren't just dreams; they're real. Add Maleficent (the witch from Sleeping Beauty, utterly unrelated to the upcoming movie), who is an Overtaker, and two strange girls - one strangely helpful, one strangely stalking - and you've got a pretty good picture of Disney After Dark.
Now, in this kind of book deep characterization is a bonus, not a must. We barely meet Finn's parents. Each character has a personality trait that is why they're "part of the team." , but at the end of the day Finn is the leader, Maybeck is the rough kid with a softer inside, Philby is the computer genius, Charlene the girly make-up expert, and Willa is a girl, who is smart. They stay faithful to their personalities, though, and each has an individual flavor as a character - but if you asked me what Willa's main goal in life was, I couldn't answer farther than "help the Imagineers defeat the Overtakers."
Does it live up to Percy Jackson? Um, no. Sorry, but it's not quite humorous enough, and all the detailed references to Disney World, while fun (very fun!) are a bit confusing. It's good, though, and I've already gotten and read the second book (also in one go, these books aren't exactly Moby-Dick). I'll request the rest of the series from the library as soon as I pick up the nine books waiting for me right now.

This review is also on my blog. ( )

I liked it much better the 2nd time around. Now that I have an AP to Disney I was able to follow it much better. I'm looking forward to the next one. ( )

I would have adored this book as a kid. A group of kids find themselves in the Magic Kingdom at night, and they have to battle creatures from the park rides, led by villains from Disney movies. As an adult I was somewhat less enchanted, but that's okay. I'll still be looking at the park in a new light when I visit in a couple months. ( )