The Amulet of Samarkand (The Bartimaeus Trilogy, Book 1)

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Nathaniel vows revenge. In a Faustian fever, he devours magical texts and hones his magic skills, all the while trying to appear subservient to his master. When he musters the strength to summon the 5,000-year-old djinni Bartimaeus to avenge Lovelace by stealing the powerful Amulet of Samarkand, the boy magician plunges into a situation more dangerous and deadly than anything he could ever imagine. In British author Jonathan Stroud's excellent novel, the first of The Bartimaeus Trilogy, the story switches back and forth from Bartimaeus's first-person point of view to third-person narrative about Nathaniel. Here's the best part: Bartimaeus is absolutely hilarious, with a wit that snaps, crackles, and pops. His dryly sarcastic, irreverent asides spill out into copious footnotes that no one in his or her right mind would skip over. A sophisticated, suspenseful, brilliantly crafted, dead-funny book that will leave readers anxious for more. (Ages 11 to adult) --Karin Snelson

Book Description

Nathaniel is a boy magician-in-training, sold to the government by his birth parents at the age of five and sent to live as an apprentice to a master. Powerful magicians rule Britain, and its empire, and Nathaniel is told his is the "ultimate sacrifice" for a "noble destiny." If leaving his parents and erasing his past life isn't tough enough, Nathaniel's master, Arthur Underwood, is a cold, condescending, and cruel middle-ranking magician in the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The boy's only saving grace is the master's wife, Martha Underwood, who shows him genuine affection that he rewards with fierce devotion. Nathaniel gets along tolerably well over the years in the Underwood household until the summer before his eleventh birthday. Everything changes when he is publicly humiliated by the ruthless magician Simon Lovelace and betrayed by his cowardly master who does not defend him. Nathaniel vows revenge. In a Faustian fever, he devours magical texts and hones his magic skills, all the while trying to appear subservient to his master. When he musters the strength to summon the 5,000-year-old djinni Bartimaeus to avenge Lovelace by stealing the powerful Amulet of Samarkand, the boy magician plunges into a situation more dangerous and deadly than anything he could ever imagine. In British author Jonathan Stroud's excellent novel, the first of The Bartimaeus Trilogy, the story switches back and forth from Bartimaeus's first-person point of view to third-person narrative about Nathaniel. Here's the best part: Bartimaeus is absolutely hilarious, with a wit that snaps, crackles, and pops. His dryly sarcastic, irreverent asides spill out into copious footnotes that no one in his or her right mind would skip over. A sophisticated, suspenseful, brilliantly crafted, dead-funny book that will leave readers anxious for more. (Ages 11 to adult) --Karin Snelson

Customer Reviews:

Bartimaeus made the book.......2007-08-03

I almost rated this a 3-star. Bartimaeus is brilliantly refreshing. He is Professor Snape meets Jack Sparrow. It's well worth the read just for him alone. What bogs this book down is the highly irritating magician Nathanial. He is only 12, yet is seemingly as arrogant, intelligent, and cruel as an adult. I think the author forgot his characters age entirely until much towards the end. While Bartimaeus is the brilliant main character of the book, Nathanial is also a main character - and a highly annoying one, at that. He is Harry Potter, only much worse. I've not read the next two books, but already I'm very sick of him. I will most likely read them simply in pursuit of the demon Bartimaeus. Without him, this book would have been worthless.

The plot moves slow and a large chunk is spent reading a 12-year-old rant and whine. Only the demon saves the day, and what's more, he goes completely unrecognized or un-thanked for his duty.

I do highly recommend this book for the character Stroud has created, but be prepared to take the good with the bad.

Elgee at www.freewebs.com/hlgstrider .......2007-07-13

My husband bought me this book for my birthday, but I quickly began to doubt his good intentions as he snatched it up before I did and devoured it. Then he proceeded to constantly interupt my reading of another book by gaffawing at the constant commentary of Bartimaeus himself and everytime I asked him what was so funny he told me it wouldn't make sense unless I read the book and kept reading. He devoured book one in an evening, continued on through book two and three the next day, and I am sure if Matt were writing this rating, he would give it a five. For me, it was a three.
I'm a character driven reader and character was what this book lacked . . . not character in the sense that the people weren't fully formed or the book didn't hold interest. In that sense the book is full of character. The wise cracking Djinni in the title role can't keep his mouth shut for all the character, and his constant interjections (in the form of foot notes) are hilarious, and in many places more interesting than the text itself. No, it is missing character in two other important senses: A. a protagonist I could like and root for; B. a moral substance or cause for which we (the readers) can root for. Honestly, in this story of a neglected young boy who calls up a magical Djinni to avenge himself on a senior magician who humiliated him, I didn't find either.
The two leads are Nathaniel, the neglected boy, and Bartimaeus, the summoned Djinni. Nathaniel, for most of the book, is young, hurt, and pitiable but never motivated by what I consider a good cause. For the first half of the book he is merely out for revenge and glory, to prove that he can weild powers beyond his age and to ruin one who called this into doubt. When the second half of the book begins and it is revealed that more is at stake than just Nathaniel's pride, we are hardpressed to care because the author makes it clear that the government entities Nathaniel and Bartimaeus rush to protect really aren't worth protecting. It would be rather like learning that Hitler and Stalin were going to go at it and being told you could stop Hitler and let Stalin lead a long and happy life by risking your rear end in many uncomfortable ways. Sure, no one wants Hitler again, so you might do it, but it sure as heck wouldn't be for the love of Stalin. Bartimaeus on the other hand is more interesting, but he doesn't want to be there, is compelled to do things against his will, and really only gives a darn because Nathaniel has threatened him with life imprisonment in a tabacco tin (and life is long for an immortal) if he doesn't behave. For him, victory isn't victory either.
So what are we fighting for? Who knows. None of the characters seem to anyway.
So I kept reading just so I could absorb the footnotes which were hilarious, not really because I gave a darn what was going to happen to the prime minister or the evil villian or even much to good old Nathaniel.
But the action is fierce and the tone is hilarious. I just wish I knew what I was reading for other than that.

Somewhat derivative and cliche but fun.......2007-07-06

In Stroud's alternative London, magicians rule the country as members of parliament and they have their own invisible army of imps, marids, afrits and djinns. As in every magician society, there are apprentices and masters. One of these apprentices is named Nathaniel. Nathaniel always studied hard and did his best. Nathaniels life changes though when an arrogant, mean-hearted magician named Simon Lovelace humiliates him publicly by hanging him upside down while poking him in front of everyone and his own master fails to defend him.

This humiliating experience enrages Nathaniel and sets him on an irreversible course to summon a djinni named Bartimaeus to help him exact his revenge. Nathaniel commands the djinni to steal the arrogant magician's most prized possession. Unfortunately, lots of things can go wrong with magic, and they certainly did for Nathaniel, his master and Bartimaeus.

Somewhat derivative and cliche, still a fun read. My eldest (15) enjoyed it, but I wouldn't let younger children read it due to some of the mature themes.

Harry Potter meets 1984 meets Wizard of Earthsea.......2007-06-23

London, sometime near now. Magic exists, and magicians control the government. To do this, they must summon "demons", creatures from higher dimensions, to do their bidding. They maintain power through fear and intimidation of both their human subjects and their more powerful slaves.

Enter Nathaniel, eleven-year old wizard, and apprentice to a junior government magician. He's been humiliated by Simon Lovelace, another, more powerful magician, and wants revenge. He summons Bartimaeus, a sly, wisecracking djinni, to steal a powerful artifact, the Amulet of Samarkand, from Lovelace's residence. Bartimaeus does this and at Nathaniel's bidding hides it in his master's office.

In the process, Bartimaeus learns Nathaniel's birth name. And then the fun really begins...

I was looking for a good fantasy series to tide me over until the release of the Harry Potter finale when I happened upon "The Amulet of Samarkand". Since then I have read it twice, and listened to the brilliant audiobook reading of it. This is one of the best fantasies ever written, and will always have a place in my collection.

It's as though the world of Harry Potter were taken over by the Slytherins, only much more evil. The magicians in this series are almost all conniving, sneaky, backstabbing, selfish gits. It's hard to like any of them. But it is fun to watch their machinations, especially through the eyes of the eternally jaded, sarcastic Bartimaeus.

Harry Potter, with a little 1984 and Wizard of Earthsea thrown in. Read this series. You won't be disappointed.

Wonderful Book!.......2007-06-20

This is one of the best books I've read in this category. I LOVED this book. I can't wait to finish the other two in the series.

The Amulet of Samarkand (Bartimaeus Trilogy)

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The Amulet of Samarkand (Bartimaeus Trilogy)
Jonathan Stroud
Manufacturer: Hyperion Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OBIYOY

Amulet of Samarkand Bartimaeus Trilogy 1

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Amulet of Samarkand Bartimaeus Trilogy 1
Jonathan Stroud
Manufacturer: MIRAMAX BOOKS
ProductGroup: Book
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Amulet of Samarkand Bartimaeus Trilogy 1
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The Bartimaeus Trilogy - The Amulet of Samarkand, The Golem's Eye, Ptolemy's Gate (3 books, as a set)

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The Bartimaeus Trilogy - The Amulet of Samarkand, The Golem's Eye, Ptolemy's Gate (3 books, as a set)

Manufacturer: Miramax / Hyperion
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000IG6992

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The complete set of three individual books.

Bartimaeus Trilogy : The Amulet of Samarkand

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Bartimaeus Trilogy : The Amulet of Samarkand
Jonathan Stroud
Manufacturer: Hyperion Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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El Amuleto De Samarkanda / The Amulet of Samarkand (Infinita / Infinite)

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El Amuleto De Samarkanda / The Amulet of Samarkand (Infinita / Infinite)
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The Bartimaeus Trilogy - Book One - The Amulet Of Samarkand

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Fantastic

The Bartimaeus Trilogy - Book One - The Amulet Of Samarkand
Jonathan Stroud
Manufacturer: Miramax/Hyperion
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000LEZUEG

Customer Reviews:

Fantastic.......2007-01-21

This book is a great read - especially considering the young age of the author! It has all the great elements - action, adventure, mystery, and humor - yes, humor. Bartimaeus' character has a wonderfuly caustic sense of humor that had me laughing out loud on several occasions! I simply couldn't put the book down!!! Luckily for me, its easy to read and keeps your interest. I highly recommend it for all ages!!!

The Amulet of Samarkand (The Bartimaeus Trilogy, Book 1)

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The Amulet of Samarkand (The Bartimaeus Trilogy, Book 1)
Jonathan Stroud
Manufacturer: Miramax
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000UMVOEE

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Economic thought at the turn of the new century, this book argues, faces fundamental intellectual questionss with profound consequences for all of us. Is it true that there is no alternative to the neo-liberal ideology of free trade, allegedly self-regulating markets, and the abandonment by government of much of its responsibility to manage the economy? Can poor countries pursue no other route to prosperity and development but opening up their economies to global forces? Arthur MacEwan explores these and other questions.

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Manufacturer: The University of North Carolina Press
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Americans live in a liberal democracy. Yet, although democracy is widely touted today, liberalism is scorned by both the right and the left. The United States stands poised between its liberal democratic tradition and the illiberal alternatives of liberalism's critics. In an engaging and informative discussion, McGowan offers a ringing endorsement of American liberalism's basic principles, values, and commitments. He explains that the liberalism of the founders distributed power widely in order to limit the power any one entity could exercise over others. Their aim was to provide for all an effective freedom that combined the right to self-determination with the ability to achieve one's self-chosen goals. In tracing this history, McGowan offers a clear vision of liberalism's foundational values as America's best guarantee today of liberty and the peace in which to exercise it.

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