Happy Marvelous Middle Grade Monday! Today's spotlight is for an upcoming MG release from Disney Hyperion, The Wood Prince (Out of Abaton #1) by John Claude Bemis. A retelling of the story of Pinocchio. Today I've got a sneak peak of chapter 1! Before you read it, here's a little bit about the book.
ABOUT THE BOOK
By: John Claude Bemis
Published by: Disney Hyperion
To Be Released on: March 15th, 2016
A rich and fantastical reimagining of Pinocchio that that puts a fresh new twist on the classic in an enchanting, action-packed tale for middle-grade readers.
The automa Pinocchio has always been duty-bound to serve in the floating palace of Venice's emperor. So when Pinocchio finds himself locked in a trunk and delivered to a new master-a wanted criminal and alchemist named Geppetto-he is curious about everything around him. But most curious is the way Pinocchio seems to be changing from a wooden servant into a living, human boy. Before Geppetto and Pinocchio can uncover the mystery surrounding the automa's transformation, Pinocchio is stolen away. Determined to find Geppetto again, Pinocchio begins a harrowing journey across the Empire, where danger in the form of half-beast outlaws and winged airmen abounds for a lost automa.
Meanwhile, Princess Lazuli, the daughter of the ruler of a magical kingdom called Abaton, is also on a quest through the emperor's territory. Her father, Prester John, has been captured by the Venetian Empire, and Lazuli is desperate to rescue him. With the emperor's airmen closing in fast, Lazuli learns the only hope for saving her father-and her beloved home-lies in Pinocchio and Geppetto.
In a masterful reimagining of Pinocchio, John Claude Bemis weaves an enchanting, thrilling adventure for middle-grade readers in the first installment in the Out of Abaton duology.
I'm looking forward to reading this one! Get a sneak peak into John's upcoming release. Keep reading to read chapter 1 from The Wooden Prince.
CHAPTER 1 SNEAK PEAK
The Elongated Nose
By the time Pinocchio arrived in the village of San Baldovino, he was bursting with impatience to get free. Being locked in a trunk shouldn’t have bothered him. He was an automa, after all. Back in the palace where he came from, Pinocchio had been locked in closets and stored away in cupboards with the other mechanical servants all the time. It had never bothered him before.
But since he’d been locked in this trunk, he was changing. Pinocchio shouted and tried again to kick the inside of the trunk, but with his wooden knees pressed into his wooden chest, he was too cramped to make much of a kick. He wriggled and twisted, tangling his smock shirt and tearing his leggings, until he became aware of muffled voices outside the trunk.
“Let me out!” he cried.
A moment later came the sound of squealing nails being pried from the lid. Then the trunk was opened. Pinocchio stretched out his legs and sat up with a puff of relief. Two figures stared at him. The closest was an automat butler with chipped paint on his wooden face, wearing a moth-eaten black suit. The automa butler held the ax that had been used to open the lid. The other was an elderly man with a bright red nose and watery red eyes that struggled to focus on Pinocchio.