Rating: 3 stars
Sam Hill gets picked up by the sheriff for stealing fireworks out of the back of a truck. He gets sprung by PJ, the sheriff's son, and they end up running into a goblin - an actual, real-life goblin that they manage to knock out and get into the holding cell at the station. While there, two pale people show up, dispatch the goblin and before you know it, Sam and PJ are following them underground.
You see, goblins are real. They're not just characters in stories, they're actual beings that live underground and are kept in check by a smaller band of humans that choose to forgo live on the surface of the earth to keep humanity safe. It turns out that goblins, as stupid as they are, are incredible reverse engineers and gain all their technology and inventions by first studying the creations of other races and cultures. Unfortunately, they've just gotten a hold of Sam's backpack full of stolen fireworks, and if they get the chance to study them and learn about explosives, it may be the deciding factor of this ongoing war with the humans of the UnderEarth.
Now, I've read some incredible young adult novels this year; Goblins!, I'm sad to say, is not one of them. It's not a bad book by any means, there's just not enough to distinguish it from the hundreds of other young adult novels that will undoubtedly be released by this time next year. Yes, there's coarse language and violence and death, but there's also a lack of commitment to characters staying dead and a rushed pace that seems to indicate an aversion to fleshing out scenes; I could think of several parts of the book that would have benefited from more thorough description or a bit deeper narrative.
Buckingham undoubtedly had a film adaptation in mind when he wrote this and I certainly hope that comes to fruition; Goblins! would make an awesome flick to which you could take your nephews or little brother or the kidnapee you keep handcuffed to the water heater in your basement. There's lots of great potential for visual thrills and some moments of silly comedy that would have the little ones cracking up (I'm thinking of the bug tunnel and Sam in the arena, if you have to know). The problem is, that sort of stuff isn't as effective in a novel as it is on the big screen and although those scenes would be fresh in the theater, their full potential just can't be realized on the printed page. If Buckingham isn't working on a screenplay as I write this, I'll be pretty irritated. Still, it is nice to see a YA author shoot for the closer to 12 age bracket than the 'let's push the envelope' bracket. I'll be looking forward to Buckingham's next novel.
(Side Note: There's a line in Gwar's most recent album, "We must possess the UnderEarth." Needless to stay, I spent the duration of this novel picturing the members of Gwar as the goblin characters. This resulted in more than a few laughs and is highly recommended.)
------------------
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
Pub. Date: September 2008
ISBN-13: 9780399250026