Have you ever wondered what it would be like to meet a guy with seven extra heads on two antlers all with different personalities? Or how about a mean little fat man in a banana yellow suit with 10 hats on his head who can do magic but is stuck in his house because of some rather large tabby cats? Or maybe a man named Christopher Carrion? He's dressed in black robes and has a bald head with piercing eyes. Covering the lower half of his face is a translucent material filled with a blue substance that shows the most terrifying nightmares. What he loves most is to inflict pain on his prisoners. Sound good? Well, then this is the book for you.

Clive Barker's first book in his series, Abarat is attention-grabbing and exciting. It tells the story of teenager Candy Quackinbush, who lives in a community called Chickentown and is having hard times at home and in school.

One day she's having problems at school with her classmates and teacher, so when she's told to go to the principal's office she instead leaves school. She walks to the edge of town and finds a field and continues walking until she sees a strange tower in the distance. When she gets to the tower, which looks like a lighthouse, it is so old and rotted she isn't sure what to think. From this point on, a chain of unfortunate and fortunate events happen.

Abarat makes you want to keep your nose buried in it – especially if you love action and drama. I believe that just about anyone will love this book, from middle school kids all the way to their parents, so I recommend it for all ages.