I really enjoyed this book and the journey it took me on. Sci-fi isn't really my genre of choice, but this one had me hooked from the very beginning.

I’m not much of a graphic-novel style stories fan, but wow was this book worth my time!

The illustrations rocked, the concept was amazing – I mean, a library maze that people can get in, but not out? yes, please! -, and the scenes? Simply fascinating!

The writing style was a bit weird at first, but it worked in a strange way. It breathed so much life and energy into the pages – it was almost as if the library itself was rising its shelves higher to trap the reader in there with the raiders, too.

I especially liked the scene where the Librarian was like “Yeah, sure, get in the Archives you so desperately seek – whoops, no out for you, though~”. In such a short read, to actually manage to get a scene like this one, to capture the suspense and the mystery of that place – it takes talent, that much was clear.

A magnificent book that should not be missing from any school or public library. If it got me, a seasoned – at this point – reader to gape and coo over it, imagine what it could do with young readers, or those that are just now beginning to discover the beauty that is the written word. The questions and glossaries at the end of the book only work to emphasize that even more.

***I was given an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinion stated in this review is solely mine, and no compensation was given or taken to alter it.***

Many thanks to NetGalley and Stone Arch Books for a review copy in exchange for an honest, unbiased review. Images are taken from an unfinished version and may differ from the final product.

I’ve been a fan of Michael Dahl’s books since my own daughter was in the early reader phase and I was trying to find ways to convince her reluctant self to actually read something. She really enjoyed reading his books together, and so when I saw he had a new one coming out, I had to jump on the chance to read it. Plus, do you see that cover? It’s stunning. Who wouldn’t want to pick that up?

Raiders of the Lost Archives delivers on the fun, engaging books Dahl is known for, with vivid and gorgeous illustrations, a spooky atmosphere, and a hero that’s too cool to not root for.

The only reason I ended up going with four stars instead of five is because this falls into what I’ve noticed a lot of younger Dahl works do in that it feels very episodic, like it’s not quite complete but is part of a larger work that’s missing in order to give this part meaning and gravity. The story doesn’t quite feel complete to me.

My Thoughts:

- Dahl has a talent for delivering tension with few words, and this book is no exception. I’ve always enjoyed the way Dahl plays with words and structure to deliver a full, vivid image of what’s going on without bogging the reader down. After all, these books are for early readers, so word space is kind of at a premium here. For such a short book, I do love Dahl’s word choice and the way he formats his sentences. It ramps up the tension and makes it a little creepier, which is impressive for such a short book.

- On par with all his books, the illustrations in this are absolutely gorgeous, and they really bring the story to life. I especially love the fact that not only are pages illustrated with images so the reader can see what’s happening, but the words are also “illustrated” in small ways that really make them pop. It makes even the normal text engaging and interesting, which is one of the tricks I used to get my own reluctant reader to read this series when she was at this age, because the words just become all the more fun and reading in general becomes an entirely different experience from most other books in this age group.

- As far as heroes go, the Librarian is super cool, and I love the idea of making a librarian a hero. The Librarian is mildly sarcastic and nonchalant, with sort of fuzzy magic, which I don’t know any of the rules for, but which allows him to do some pretty neat things. Sometimes things don’t need an explanation, especially in kids’ books, and he’s a hero persona that’s just fun and enjoyable, without needing to question it.

Sticking Points:

- Dahl’s books are sometimes so short and to the point that I often struggle with the “so, what?” part of the plot, and this wasn’t an exception to that. This book doesn’t work as well as a standalone, because there’s no explanation of what the library is or who the Librarian is. Sure, you can put a good enough picture together from context clues, but it doesn’t feel like a complete story in and of itself. I think this suffers a bit from a lack of clear stakes, leaving it feel more episodic rather than a complete work. It’s hard with books for younger kids, because you can’t bog it down with too many words. Unfortunately, this didn’t quite make it for me. The stakes are there, but they don’t stand on their own. Having not previously read any books about the Librarian and few about the library itself, I don’t know what the Archives are, and I had so many questions that I felt needed answering in order for it to feel more complete.

Thank-you to NetGalley and Capstone for an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

It was hard to contain my excitement when I received the latest instalment of Michael Dahl’s Library of Doom series, Raiders of the Lost Archives on e-ARC. The Library of Doom series was the missing link that transitioned my eldest son, a reluctant reader, into devouring each book already published in the series. Raiders of the Lost Archives keeps the spirit of the series by Dahl’s use of different fonts, graphics and stunning illustrations which immerses the reader into the story.

We throughly enjoy this series as a family and wish each book were longer as they are hard to put down!

This is a dark kids book about a forbidden library that is being raided. I found this to be an entertaining tale for a child about 5-8 years old and a good book to have young readers practice with.

I work with middle schoolers who don’t like to read and are low readers. I think this would be a good book for them. It’s short enough that they won’t feel overwhelmed with the size of book and the illustrations are well done. I think between the shortness, the illustrations, the adventure (intrigue) and the illustrations with the words, it would keep my students interested long enough to finish the book as well as want to read more in the series. It is definitely a book I would suggest to my students.

Rating: 4.5

The book "Raiders of the Lost Archives" by Michael Dahl is about a librarian who guards his library from intruders. This book focused on Raiders trying to break into the Lost Archives. Since this is the first book in the series we were introduced to the main character and some background information about the library. While I did enjoy reading this book the ending seemed rushed. This book would have been better if it was a little bit longer. By that I mean everything was resolved too quickly. My favorite thing about this story was the beautiful artwork. I thought the artwork was perfect and it will help grab the reader. The artwork truly helps bring the story together. I can definitely see kids enjoying these stories. I can't wait to read more about the world and about the different books that are being protected. Stories like these are great for young readers because it shows how fun and important books and libraries can be.

Should you read Raiders of the Lost Archives"?
Yes! This book is such a quick read and will leave you wanting more. I found myself thinking a lot of questions which is good because it means I'm invested in the story and that world. This is a great book for young readers because it has a mix of fantasy, humor, and creative artwork.

**Received an advanced copy through NetGalley in return for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. **

The Librarian and the silent ones work in the shadows to protect the Library of Doom and its’ books. Enter a Silent One and the raiders sent to raid the archive. Can the Librarian and the Silent One save the Library of Doom? The illustrations in this book are colorful, vivid, detailed, and engaging. The text is simple enough to be a high low reader for ages 9 to 14 and includes discussion questions at the end to spark readers’ imaginations. Reluctant readers who enjoy action and fantasy will enjoy reading this book.

Please note: This was a complementary review copy from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. No financial compensation was received.

Thank you to Capstone and Netgalley for the digital ARC.

An interesting minimalist graphic novel.

I thought this book was really good! The cover hooked me right away. The art is amazing. Patricio Clarey did an awesome job. The book is marketed for kids, but I think anyone can enjoy it. It's a short read, but a lot of fun. There is lore hidden away that makes me want to know more about this world. This is great for kids because it's action-y, but also explains any words they don't know at the end of the book. I also really liked how some of the text was illustrated. It really brought the story to life!

Deep within the Library of Doom, raiders are searching for the treasure of the Lost Archives. The thieves have captured a young worker to guide them through the maze-like shelves. The boy doesn't want to betray the Librarian, but he is a Silent One. If he cannot speak, how can he call for help?

This is a short, fun mystery.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Michael Dahl, and Capstone/Stone Arch for a chance to review this book. I was given this book for free in exchange for my fair and honest opinion. I have not felt compelled, in any way, by the author, the publisher, or NetGalley to alter my sincerest thoughts on this book. Every word of this review is solely and completely mine.
How do you know that you’re enjoying a book? When you feel the book is too short! The artwork is captivating; the story setting is perfect. The Library is a sacred place, guarded by the Librarian, but Raiders have come to invade this place. They take a Quiet One and he cannot call for help. The Librarian sees them and fights to fend them off. It is a gorgeously immersive experience that is way too short.

Good little fantasy story for children. Simple, easy to read, fun and it also have quite a lot of action. I got through it with my son and he really like it too so that's a win!

Lovely illustrations and fun design of the text make this story a quite immersive, even if too short, experience!

The Library of Doom seems like a really atmospheric, secretive and ancient place , with tons of secrets and magic relics from all Eras of History. An amazing concept that I always love to see!

This is a book I would have been delighted to read when I started reading. As an adult, I only wish there was more of it!

I received an eARC via Netgalley

This book is the perfect addition for young children and infants. With fantastic drawings, fantastic concept design, and fantastic atmospheric setting, I loved this fantasy book. It’s light, gets straight to the point and is honestly a book that you would want to buy. The story is simple, yet effective.

And I loved the characters, each and everyone had a purpose. I loved the addition of a paper tiger. Although I wanted more elaboration, especially on who built the Library. And who were the Lost Raiders? What were they were looking for? I would also have liked to see some ancient Egyptian influences. (not from the dead, but from the living). I would have wanted more motivation and character goals for the Lost Raiders.

I feel this story could have been longer and had more adventure. Creating books like these take a huge amount of time and effort and so I can appreciate the work that goes into this. I also loved the fantastic illustrations and honestly wished fantasy novels would have more illustrations, if in the text or not, hand drawn, but it must be in there. Sometimes I have difficulty visualising what is written in fantasy and some illustrations will really help.

Dahl has done a fantastic job, and I honestly cannot reccomend this enough.

The first book in the new Secrets of the Library of Doom chapter-book series for kids is a very short, sort of prologue to the series that opens with a band of marauders, decked out in armor, who infiltrate the Library of Doom to coerce a young boy working there - a Silent One, as he's taken a vow to never speak - to lead them through the library's maze-like chambers to the Lost Archives they seek to raid. Sworn to silence, the young boy cannot even call out to summon the Librarian - a superhero-like figure with magic powers, whose destiny is to guard the Library of Doom and all it contains - for help; will the Librarian learn of the invasion and arrive in time to evict the raiders and save the boy? Patricio Clarey's illustrations here are darkly beautiful, with great detail, worthy of reading the book alone - but in truth, even at 40 pages the book goes incredibly fast due to a tremendous amount of white space and very little story on the pages; befitting of a chapter-book, surely, but overall disappointing when you're reading and the story suddenly cuts off with very little to it, trying for a cliffhanger to get you to the next book instead. Not a bad story at all, very interesting, but it just feels a bit of a "cheat" as you don't get much bang for your buck when you suddenly find yourself on the last page, turning it anyway and expecting more. (Available August 1) 3/5 stars

NOTE: I received a free ARC of this title from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

This book was received as an ARC from Capstone - Stone Arch in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

I loved the artwork and the detailed graphics in this book which really helped make the story come to life. I could not imagine walking into a library one day and warriors rising from the ink and coming after you looking for the secret archives. Then being mute and all around scared, the warriors think that you are ignoring them and are coming to kill you and then shows up the superhero librarian to the rescue leading the warriors to the archives and trapping them in the book forever and all is saved in the library. I know a lot of our readers will find this a very entertaining book to read especially since its involvement with the library.

We will consider adding this title to our JGraphic Novel collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and Capstone for the ARC provided.

My first impression after reading this book, it was a smart idea to bring a library as some kind of a temple/ancient place that needs to be guard. There is also “ a Silent One” character which being vowed for being silence, and they’re secret orders of a young readers. I think this character represent as a librarian who dedicated their whole life only for books.

While the library being attacked by the raiders and the silent one summoned the Librarian to defend the library, it brings my mind to think “that would be interesting what if the raiders successfully captured the Archives, what are they going to do with that?”. More great adventures and fighting scene would be great for this part.

Unfortunately, I didn’t get the point why the raiders wants the archives, what’s in the archives, who vowed the Silent One, where/who is the young readers, and who is the Librarian himself, not enough details for all of the above.

Overall, I think the book is great for a kind of story telling with braveheart, loyal, adventorous type. I like how the ilustrator wrote some certain words become bold or italic in order to put more tense whenever we read the words. Plus put the library as an important thing to defend, another bright idea, any children who loves to read will do the same thing.

Lots and Lots of These

So, I decided to try to figure out how many of these books there are, and how they fit together. Every site, including Dahl's and the FictionDB, are woefully incomplete. But if your kid likes them it's helpful to have a sense of how it all fits together.

From 2007-2008 we have "Library of Doom", with about 13 books. 2010-2011 gives us "Return to the Library of Doom", and about 10 books. "Library of Doom: The Final Chapter" is 2015-2016, and has at least 8 books.

This book is part of the "Secrets of the Library of Doom", and has just come out. There may be others, but this covers the ones with which I'm familiar.

I went through all of this because I think the books are getting better, or are at least developing in an interesting fashion. The first books are a little Twilight Zone-y, with an R.L. Stine flavor. The later books focus more on the Librarian and have a bit more of an adventure flair. This latest book is a touch mystical, and there's more emphasis on really quite sharp illustrations and fun with fonts and layout, (like Geronimo Stilton).

The book is very brief, with just one or two sentences per page. I'm thinking very much along the lines of first-reader fantasy. As in earlier books, there's a setup, a good character, a villain, the Librarian, two or three action bits, some book "magic", and then a sort of open fantasy ending. As I say, all of the basics in a first-reader way. I don't think I'd buy a lot of these titles sight unseen at once, but I'd be sure to try at least one on each of my youngsters, just to see if it clicked or not. I can't resist them, and think of them as booky potato chips.

(Please note that I received a free advance will-self-destruct-in-x-days Adobe Digital copy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)

"Secrets of the Library of Doom" is not at all what I was expecting, but it is really cool. I'll definitly recommend this one.