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Urchin Of The Riding Stars (The Mistmantle Chronicles Book One) Paperback – January 1, 2006

by M. I. McAllister (Author)
4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 160 ratings
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On a cold night, a night of riding stars, a newborn squirrel is found all by his lonesome on a distant beach, shivering, and close to death. His mother is nowhere to be found, so he is adopted and raised by a kind squirrel, in the land of Mistmantle. The young squirrel is given the name Urchin. And, given the mysterious story of his life, young Urchin is unaware of the powerful destiny that awaits him, and will influence the entire island of Mistmantle. When Urchin is old enough, he takes on a position in the Castle, where the good King Brushen and Queen Spindle are having their positions threatened by an evil plot that has already taken the life of their son, Prince Tumble. Captain Crispin, a good friend of Urchin, is blamed for the death, and sent off to a faraway land, while the real culprits, Lord Husk and Lady Aspen, work to take control of the Castle, and disgrace King Brushen. Little do they know, the islanders and ancient prophecies are watching over Mistmantle, and with the help of Urchin of the Riding Stars, victory may not truly be theirs.
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Previous page
  1. Print length
    282 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Hyperion Books for Children
  4. Publication date
    January 1, 2006
  5. Dimensions
    5.25 x 0.75 x 7.5 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0786854871
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0786854875
  8. See all details
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Hyperion Books for Children; Reprint edition (January 1, 2006)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 282 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0786854871
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0786854875
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 7.2 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.25 x 0.75 x 7.5 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 160 ratings

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  1. M. I. McAllister

    M. I. McAllister

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  2. Margaret McAllister

    Margaret McAllister

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Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
160 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

FDragon
5.0 out of 5 stars Great <3
Reviewed in the United States on March 12, 2015
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I had never heard of this series before and while I was searching for Redwall on the kindle store, The Mistmantle Chronicles popped up on my search and I was curious. I was immediately drawn in by the cute art on the book cover (I'm shallow, leave me alone!), the solid reviews and the plot synopsis itself. Basically, Urchin is a cute little squirrel that falls from the sky and is taken in and raised by the woodland creatures of Mistmantle Island.

Urchin becomes a page to one of the king's guards and the story really starts from there with betrayal and conspiracy ensuing. The plot is simple enough for younger readers to understand and also complex enough to keep older readers from becoming bored. The writing is solid and for a book aimed towards a younger set, the writing works for all age levels. It never dips into juvenile territory and I really appreciated that.

The characters are endearing and the dialogue is well-written. I'm just glad I downloaded it. The book was well worth the 4.99 or so I paid to download it.

This is one of the best book series I've read in awhile. I'm a grown man and I will admit that I like books about talking animals.

I feel like it's a bit less... stuffy than Redwall (from what I remember) and it's definitely easier to understand than say, the Guardians of Ga'Hoole books (which is a good series too), which tend to drag in places and get a little overcomplicated for children's books. Definitely less violent than the Wings of Fire series (which I also recommend)

The level of violence is never offensive, the action is exciting, the characters are interesting, the setting is right, the dialogue is right... just the whole feel and theme of the book is just right. I felt transported to the medieval woodland creature world of Mistmantle and I can't wait to go back for book 2 (don't worry, I've already downloaded them all!)
18 people found this helpful
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inkling girl
5.0 out of 5 stars First installment of a beautiful series
Reviewed in the United States on November 25, 2019
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If you have kids in your life who enjoy fantasy and adventure books, I can’t recommend this series enough. It deserves so much more recognition than it gets. The writing is really beautiful, and the stories are a perfect balance of adventure, danger, humor, and such lovable characters.

There are some pretty heavy themes for young children (murder, treachery, exile, ”culling” baby animals that are deemed weak). However, these actions are always portrayed as clearly, no-doubt-about-it evil, while the good characters are clearly good and courageously stand up for what is right, which is why I’m ok with handing these stories to kiddos. But if you have a sensitive child, you might want to read along with them to discuss some of these more difficult elements. Actually, even if your child can handle it on his/her own, you might want to read along anyway, because trust me, you’ll find yourself enjoying the book just as much.
2 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars fantasy fan
Reviewed in the United States on December 18, 2012
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I adore the first book because it is very adventurous and it has so many legends. I was hooked and didn't want it to end. The suspense of what was going to happen next was intense. I can imagine everything in my head. You just want to keep reading and reading. It's so great that you just want to get the next book and keep on reading. There was a big tragedy for someone and I prefer not to talk about it. Sometimes you get scared if some person is going to get or ill, but you just want to keep reading because if you don't you're just gonna keep wondering and wondering until you can't bear it.It's very dangerous too. Sometimes things happen all of a sudden. Everything is very intense after that. And when you have to stop reading the suspense is burning in you. It's all exciting,dangerous and sad sometimes. It's so good that you might even read while you're eating. At least I do. I'm just saying that it's a great book and I recommend that you read it.I hope you rate it 5 star one day.

Sincerely,

Meena Shaibani
2 people found this helpful
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Melissa
4.0 out of 5 stars It's pretty violent, but a good story
Reviewed in the United States on May 11, 2016
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I like it, but I wanted to love it. The story is engaging, but I found the level and detail of violence to be stressful. Admittedly, I have a fairly low tolerance for it, as I am previewing for sensitive readers, so that is something to keep in mind if you are giving this to a sensitive young person.
11 people found this helpful
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Angelica
5.0 out of 5 stars Great read for boys and girls, probably 11 and up.
Reviewed in the United States on December 6, 2016
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I wish this series didn't have to end! Great read for boys and girls, probably 11 and up. There is only one scary part about the evil king, it is about a paragraph long. It explains he became evil because he took on the spirit of the evil king long ago who killed squirrels and threw them in a mass grave deep beneath the castle.

This is a classic tale of good overcoming evil. The hero is a young squirrel, in each book he is about a year or two older. Great stories!
3 people found this helpful
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Aurora
5.0 out of 5 stars Still An Absolute Favorite
Reviewed in the United States on July 7, 2019
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I first read this when I was in Elementary school and I adored it. The world building and clever dialogue still has its charm even after so long. A great and wonderful fantasy for young readers. The whole series is good, but the first book holds a special place.
One person found this helpful
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Mike
5.0 out of 5 stars A Rival to "Redwall"
Reviewed in the United States on February 22, 2016
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The premier installment of the "Mistmantle Chronicles" is, in my opinion, the best in the series. Despite what some may think, it is not in any way like "Redwall." It is about anthropomorphic animals in a Medieval-like setting, but there the similarities end. There is not as much action as in "Redwall", but there is a tad more intrigue and philosophizing, and it follows the same characters all the way through. All in all, the compelling storyline and likeable characters make "Mistmantle Chronicles" a rival to the more famous Jacques series. I do not say one or the other is better per se: If you like one, you will probably like the other.
7 people found this helpful
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Caroline Floyd
5.0 out of 5 stars Exquisitely written!!
Reviewed in the United States on January 1, 2021
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One of my all-time favorite novels. I have read multiple times myself and just finished reading to my children for the first time. Beautifully told story.
2 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Aidan Jameson
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent service and product
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 1, 2023
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Great service - book in excellent condition & delivered speedily
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としかあさん
4.0 out of 5 stars イギリスからの中古品でした
Reviewed in Japan on January 1, 2013
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イギリスで出版されたものでした。日本で出版された本しか見たことがなかったので、外国の本が初めてで新鮮でした。中古でしたが新品同様の感じです。子供が英語の本で読みたいという希望でしたので、購入して、とても良かったです。内容は、日本語で翻訳された本で子供が何回も読み返していましたから、きっとおもしろいものだと思います。
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Toboe
5.0 out of 5 stars a haunting adventure story, everyone should read this
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 1, 2008
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I knew, as soon as I saw the front cover this going to be great, but I never guessed how good it would be! set in a fantasy world reminiscent of the redwall books, the charters are anthrowpermophic animals (squirrels, otters, hedgehogs and moles. the story starts with the auspicious berth of are hero urchin, a squirrel young, naive Impressionable, but Mysterious. adopted by the residents of mistmantle (an island forever surrounded Perpetually in mist hence the name) on the very day he achieves his dream of becoming an apprentice of the royal court there is a murder that throes the entire island into shock. what follows is a game of wits in which young urchin is pushed to the limits of his courage, hope, loyalty and faith.

I don't always read books I usually listen to books on audio cassette or CD, it was on cassette that I found urchin in the library, I borrowed it on the spot but didn't listen to it until it was almost due back. I listened to it in on siting! the book is 336 pages long that amounts to 6 cassettes in on siting imagine! so hears why (I think) It's so good. as I said in the title it is haunting, it's not just a fantasy epic, there are levels to it like I'm not sure what. it reminds me of.....
..the chronicles of narina, the magician's guild watership down and martin the warrior. the a lot of genres mixed into it such as.....
fantasy, drama, mystery, crime, adventure, gothic, epic and a little bit of the psychological

what it reminds me of most is the redwall and harry potter books that said it's darker than ether. I insist that you buy or borrower this book at once
3 people found this helpful
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Mrs D E Sylvester
5.0 out of 5 stars ... adding it to a junior school library and highly recommend it. I don't particularly enjoy stories using animals ...
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 19, 2015
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I read this before adding it to a junior school library and highly recommend it. I don't particularly enjoy stories using animals but thoroughly enjoyed this. The characters are classic goodies and baddies and will appeal to all ages. Loved it.
One person found this helpful
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Elisabeth S. Martin
5.0 out of 5 stars Why isn’t this still in print?!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 30, 2019
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We love this book! Sweet noble story
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