Young Bond: SilverFin

Awesome book,though slow paced at the beginning

My six year old son has recently finished reading Silverfin, in the regular paperback form. I was extremely surprised to see a child so young so enthralled by spy thriller, even if it a young adult version. Although he loved the book - in fact he has talked about little else other than James Bond, spies and secret agents since, I thought he might enjoy a copy with pictures even more. My hopes were not too high for this book. At 160 pages, less than half that of the paperback, and being made up, in large part of pictures, I assumed a great deal of the story would have to be sacrificed. I was wrong. While the pictures a single picture may not paint 1,000 words, the whole of the pictures effortlessly replaces quite a bit of the text without any loss of story line. Having read both this and the original paperback, I have found the storyline identical. There really is nothing lost in the transfer to a graphic format. I do have a slight preference for the unillustrated version, simply because I like to let my imagination fill in the details, and I read too fast as it is. A good paperback rationed out can last me a few days - and I do have to limit myself so as not to finish it one night. This on the other could be used up in hour, although it took my son a full day to read it. It is still very much a book I could enjoy though. My son on the other hand loves this book. He immediately asked for Bloodfever in this format, and seeing the joy this has brought I decided to buy it. Unfortunately this is the only young James Bond book available as a graphic novel. More's the pity. These are the type of books that would make any boy into avid readers! I honestly think the decline in comic books has been matched by a decline in literacy. Many studies have shown that children who enjoyed comics were more likely to become fluent readers. More recent studies show how much more students understand and enjoy the classics in graphic form, and even the bible is now available in comic strip style.Fpr those who have not read the full length version, this is the first in a series about James Bond as young boy. An unimaginable terror as a crazed arms salesman and a mad scientist team up to create an aberration of nature. When a young boy sneaks under the fences for a chance to fish in this secret lake, an chain of events is set off which include Bond, and deeply affect the man he will become. This book gives us the chance to see Bon's character develop and watch him mature from a kind but somewhat frightened young boy, into a confident, couragous and very resourceful young man. It is full of action and excitement, and provides a good role model as well. I think this is one of the very best children's books ever written. I am only sorry there are no more books like this. I fully recommend this book for all ages.

SilverFin by Charlie Higson puts the pleasure in pleasure reading. It is one of the most enjoyable books I have ever read. I stayed up very late on many school nights reading it because I couldn't put it down. It is a very addictive book. I've read six James Bond novels by Ian Fleming in my time and I enjoyed reading SilverFin more than some of them. Mr. Higson is a fantastic author because he writes with great detail, his writing style makes the story very easy to comprehend, and it is evident that he did much research. SilverFin started off the Young Bond™ series very nicely with a perfect introduction to James Bond's formative years.I liked how Higson made James weak in the beginning and made him grow tougher as the story progressed. James was vulnerable and scared of bullies in the beginning but that all changed at the end of the story. I am eager to see more evolution in young James as the series continues. I am a little disappointed that James wiped off the kiss he received from Wilder Lawless because at thirteen years old a boy should not believe in "cooties" anymore. When I was thirteen years old I was kissing girls but maybe it was different in the 1930s but I doubt that. I would have expected James Bond to enjoy that kiss even at thirteen. Isn't this the same James Bond that lost his virginity at sixteen, only three years later, to a prostitute in Paris? I was also a little disappointed by James' group of friends at Eton. To me they came off as the school "rejects" but I guess that Higson wanted to show us that James is an outsider, which makes sense. James' friend, Red Kelly, is a good character. He is important to the plot and also a source of comic relief, which got annoying at some parts.I enjoyed learning about James Bond's family. The part about his parents is very touching. Higson keeps the reader hooked by hinting about his parents throughout the beginning. Later on the story of their death is revealed in an appropriate way. Aunt Charmian and Uncle Max are great characters and they obviously had influences on James that carried on into adulthood, which is evident in the Fleming novels. For example, James learned about spying and fast cars from his Uncle Max. I like how May was Uncle Max's housekeeper. If you've read the Fleming novels you would know that she becomes James' housekeeper. I am disappointed that Uncle Max passed away because he was such a lovable character but it was obvious that he would die at some point since his health was pretty bad.The villain in SilverFin is a very good villain. He is a very sick and cruel man, which is surprising since this book is aimed at pre-teens. His plan of creating a genetically altered race of men and beasts is very interesting especially because this story takes place in the era of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party. His son, George Hellebore, was a good enemy until his predictable change of heart. He turned on his father therefore becoming a good ally for Bond later on when together they destroyed Lord Hellebore's castle in Scotland where he conducted his evil experiments.SilverFin is as perfect as can be but I am concerned about how it will be accepted by the parents of its target audience. The book has a lot of violence, death, and a little gore and I certainly understand why it was toned down in the United States. That stuff doesn't really bother me but it may bother some strict parents. The only violent part I didn't really like was the abuse and murder of some piglets by Cleek MacSawney, Lord Hellebore's right hand man.I recommend SilverFin to readers of all ages and it is a must read for fans of James Bond. This book makes reading fun and I should know because reading has never been my favorite thing to do. If you decide to read SilverFin, don't read it too fast because Book 2 is coming out in January 2006. Waiting for it will be as painful as being mauled by Lord Hellebore's killer, genetically altered eels from Loch Silverfin. Well, maybe not that painful but still pretty painful!

the graphic representation is ok, but the story adaptation is not up to the mark

Critics complained that John Gardner and Raymond Benson could never step free of the shadow of Ian Fleming in their 007 "continuation novels." The good news is Charlie Higson has finally stepped clear of that shadow...the bad news is he's landed squarely in the shadow of J.K. Rowling. Parts of SilverFin read a bit too much like a Harry Potter clone, and while this may please the pre-teen target audience, it may make Young Bond Book #1 a tough read for the more seasoned James Bond fan. (But make sure you read this review to the end -- it get's better.)After a thrilling opening prologue that would not be out of place in a legitimate...err, I mean, adult James Bond novel, we meet young Bond as he arrives at Eton in the 1930s (kudos to Higson and the copyright holders for making these books period). Like Potter, James is an orphan sent to a school filled with eccentric headmasters, odd slang, and old rituals. Like Potter, he is polite and self-effacing. For much of the novel he is really an observer of more talkative and flamboyant characters. In what is certainly a low point of young Bond's masculine development, Wilder Lawless, the spunky "girl" of the story, wrestles him to the ground and shoves leaves into his mouth. This is clearly NOT Fleming's Bond. It's not even Roger Moore's Bond. But know this is also by design...It's no spoiler to say Young Bond #1 is a story of transformation and that, by the end of the novel, the timid boy has found his 007 steel and menace via his harrowing experience on Loch Silverfin. If nothing else, this book HAD to be that. And when Bond finally shakes off his yammering Potteresque companions, the action of the final third of the book is downright thrilling! Age becomes less of a factor when Bond is facing off with a madman or battling for his life in the waters beneath a Scottish Castle. It's here Higson begins to channel Fleming at his best and shows us the true potential of a Young Bond series. For this old Bond fan, the final third was a last minute save; a rousing return to Bondian basics with a dash of sci-fi horror thrown in. I would still rather be reading the adventures of an adult 007, but like young Bond himself, I found myself transformed in the end by SilverFin.So for those die-hard Bond fans predisposed to not liking the Young Bond series, know that SilverFin will probably not change your mind, and I recommend seeking out a secondhand copy of John Pearson's superb James Bond: The Authorized Biography of 007, which offers up a far more interesting -- or at least more adult -- version of young Bond's upbringing. But for those more pliable fans, like myself, who have enjoyed the various "continuation novels" and are willing to gamble on this Young Bond series, SilverFin will satisfy (and maybe even surprise). It's a good start. I just hope Higson will shake off the Harry Potter contrivances and edge back toward that shadow of Ian Fleming in Book #2.