The Five Realms: The Legend of Podkin One-Ear: Kieran Larwood Paperback – 8 Mar. 2017

I had been looking forward to this book all year having pre-ordered it on Amazon what seems like ages ago.The story follows the struggles of Podkin (a rabbit), his sister Paz and baby brother Pook as they flee into the snowy woods after the evil Gorm - mentally twisted, blood-thirsty, iron-clad rabbits - have overrun their warren and killed their father, the chief.The story is told by a wandering bard on Bramblemass Eve to a clutch of entranced young rabbits. We cut from the tale every now and then to remind us of how the story is being told and for the bard to field questions from the young rabbits.It opens really well. Atmospheric and engaging as the bard trudges through the snow to the burrow.The Gorm are tracking Podkin as he has a fabled dagger that can cut anything other than iron. As they flee, Pod, Paz and Pook find friends and foes as they try to keep one step ahead of the Gorm.I enjoyed the story very much but did find a number of aspects rather odd (spoilers imminent!). The story is entitled 'Podkin One Ear' so I sort of assumed that the loss of his ear would be of some significance in the story. Nope. He loses it very early on, trapped under a portcullis fleeing a warren. Pretty unlucky but of no other importance. I then wondered if it would 'mark' him in some fashion, make him easier for the Gorm to find... nope. No one is searching for a rabbit with one ear. I then wondered if it would have some significance in the final scenes of the book. Nope.The book ends well all the same. There's a little twist, which I won't spoil here, in a satisfying ending. Although very few in number, there are some wonderful double-page illustrations at key stages in the book. Personally, I would have happily seen more of those.I've seen that other reviewers compare it to Watership Down. Other than the characters being rabbits, I don't really follow the comparison at all. It's a good book in its own right. Kids will enjoy the relationship between the three rabbits and the characters they meet along the way. It's action packed and a sequel seems assured. The Gorm are not yet defeated...

This is a good story that moves along quickly. I read it before my daughter (a reluctant reader) and assured her it was up to her standards for a rollicking adventure without many lulls in the action. She is enjoying it very much.It is extremely derivative of other works, basically rabbits on a Lord of the Rings or The Hobbit type journey, without the depth or quality of language. If you have an advanced reader The Hobbit would be far superior if they like this sort of thing. It hasn't the quality of prose as say a Katherine Rundell book, but it pings along more quickly with plenty of jeopardy, fun and swashbuckling to keep them entertained. There are some nice little touches too eg. a star constellation called the Giant Radish - which got us giggling.All in all a success. Good enough for me.

This was our last bedtime story. My son is 8 and when we first started the book I was a bit worried he might end up having nightmares as some of the material is quite scary. Fortunately, with a bit of deft avoidance of the last paragraphs of chapters or reading on until the danger had passed meant we could keep going. I'm so glad we did as it's such a good book. Truly inspired, well constructed characters, danger, success, failure, near misses. Everything you could possibly want.I would thoroughly recommend this to anyone who wants their child to experience literature as opposed to just books. Tom Gates, Dirty Bertie, Captain Underpants etc. are all great for getting children reading independently, and I'm sorry, but I find Harry Potter a bit uninspired.This book really raises the bar. What I find with a lot of the great books I had as bedtime stories when I was little that I've tried reading to my son is that the language is tending towards being a bit unapproachable these days. What this does is take a really good story and communicate it in every day language. We're hoping the next instalment is just as good.

What an engaging read! My son won’t stop hassling me to read Podkin, and he insisted on reading excerpts to me regularly while enjoying the adventure himself. Such great stories, funny, exciting, sad, happy. Really thrilling adventures for this age group. He’s now saved up his pocket money to buy others in the series.

This is such a lovely and horrible book all at the same time!! I won't put any spoilers but the good bunnies are everything you want in a good bunny hero and the bad bunnies are pretty horrific!! You do get caught up in the story and there are some pretty tense bits from the get go. I have a 10 year old and she really loves this not sure she would have loved the bad bunnies when she was 8 though... I would recommend this but do read through the first 2 chapters to make sure overactive imaginations wont be a problem

I used to read 4 books at a time but with social media i find my "need to read" is quenched. But i miss reading a nice new papery book!!So what better way than with these cute "stories within stories".Im a grownup mummy n i was totally lost in the story. Its being told to you by a rabbit bard. I was so engrossed that this storyline, thankfully, pulled me back to reality.I've read all 4 now. And the next in the series isnt due out in paperback (i prefer bendy-flexy books that dont hurt to sit on) until next June.....what am i going to dooooo??

My favourite childhood books were Redwall, Watership Down, Animals of Farthing Wood, so I didn't pick up Podkin right away, as wasn't sure anything new could measure up to those animal led adventures.I was so wrong!The character development, the world building, the layers of meaning, this is a truly fresh story and style written with clarity and wit. This story never speaks down to its reader and definitely be enjoyed by all ages. It's a thriller of a story with loads of action, yet has the feel of an instant classic, with environmental elements to it too.Have downloaded the whole series and I'm saving them for when I want to read pure escapism and joy, and to feel like I'm 9 again.