Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer

Puffin, 2020. ISBN: 9780241387177. 277 pp.
(Age: 10+) Many readers will remember the popularity of the 12 year old genius, Artemis Fowl, introduced in the first book of eight fantasy novels, who wants to capture one of the Fairy People and hold her to ransom in order to restore his family's fortune. This is not an easy task - Artemis' skills (ingenuity, confidence and courage, plus a gift for decoding Fairy messages) will be enlisted on all levels. This makes for an exciting, face-paced and often humorous read and, obviously, for all new readers (which there will be), there are the joys ahead of reading the seven books which followed the original. This is a special edition of the first story issued in 2001, coinciding with the imminent release of the film, Artemis Fowl (Disney), produced and directed by Kenneth Branagh. It contains a new author's note, a letter from the Branagh and photos from the film. Artemis Fowl is set to appeal to a new generation of readers, the older ones of us included.
Julie Wells