The Kingdom of Oceana Book Review

Book Title: The Kingdom of Oceana

Author: Mitchell Charles

Publish Date: 2015
Publisher: Butterhorse Publishing

Series: Standalone, sequel to come?

The Kingdom of Oceana by Mitchell Charles

Suggested Grade: 6th, 7th

Suggested Format: Individual Reading

Synopsis: 

Ailani is your normal 16-year old boy living on a Hawaiian island, except for the fact that he's a prince. Oh, and it takes place when Hawaii is still just a conglomerate of tribes on islands in the Pacific. And did I mention that in addition to surfing and fire walking, he also has a sorcerer best friend who can shape-shift?

Prince Ailani is living the good life - he is happy with his position as a student and the son of the king, but he has a serious problem with his brother. His brother is older, in line for the throne, and seems determined to harass his brother to no end, even to the point of almost killing him. As the story progresses, Ailani learns that no only does he have to deal with his brother, but impending war with a nearby island takes them away from their home, and an ancient evil curse of zombie sea creatures arrive to complete the disaster. 

Ailani must learn to overcome his insecurities and step up to face the neighboring tribes and defeat the ancient sorcery before the islands are permanently destroyed.

Teacher's Notes: 

This was a fun read, although a bit predictable from a teacher's standpoint. As I read, I had several of my student's already in mind who will eat this up. I feel good about having it on my shelves, as it is not too violent or "scary," yet it contains that fun zombie style-action that my students love. And for those of you concerned, we are talking traditional island-style zombification, which is more like being a mindless drone. There are no half-decayed humans running around trying to eat brains. (Which will no doubt disappoint a few of my students, but that's ok) :)

It has the classic love triangle, the sibling rivalry, and the action and adventure of magic. It can be a bit confusing because of it's fast pace, but everything comes to a satisfactory conclusion that explains any leftover questions.

I really enjoyed the treatment of the Hawaiian vocabulary words, which were littered throughout the book with footnotes, giving a fun and more realistic feel to the setting of the story.


Overall: 7/10

How I Got the Book: Provided by author for review through Book Publicity Services

Suggested Interests: Island life, fantasy, shape-shifting, sibling rivalry