The real treasure in these books is reading about the snarky demon Bartimaeus and his adventures with Nathaniel, his "master."

If you are a fan of Harry Potter and Artemis Fowl, this book may be a good choice for you. It is about a boy apprenticed to a magician, who longs to be more than his master thinks he is. Witty, cute, and easy to read. It's the first in a trilogy, I'm starting book 2 now.

A strange and wonderful synergy between a young magician and a djinni. An excellent book.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the Bartimaeus Trilogy! Not just for kids/teens :).

My preteens/teens didn't get into this trilogy, but my husband and I loved them!

Poor Nathaniel gets an unexpected set of adventures, when he sets out to find a way to gain some power of his own, and to get some of his own back on Simon Lovelace, a magician-cohort of his teacher and Master. Simon mocked Nathaniel, made a laughing-stock of an 11 year old boy, for no reason beyond just being cruel. But Nathaniel will get even. Oh, yes, he will! Learning magic well beyond his apprentice level, he manages to summon the djinn, Bartimaeus, and controls him so that he and Nathaniel can steal the "Amulet of Samarkand" hidden secretly in Simon's well-protected demesne. Then all hell breaks loose!!

I enjoy much young adult fiction simply for escapism, especially fantasy fiction that is well-written. This is the start of a trilogy that I will certainly complete; I do however have a caveat--one of the characters enjoys talking to the reader. This is done by the use of footnotes. About halfway through the book, I became more used to the idea, but it is still rather off-putting and I wonder how children reading the books will feel about the breaks in the storyline these footnotes cause.

There are several moral dilemmas presented in this alternate world and many "gray" areas--who is truly good and who is truly evil? Hopefully the rest of the trilogy will address these issues more clearly. Unlike some trilogies, this book ends in such a way that it could stand alone; if I were reading it with children or grandchildren, it probably would (at least until I pre-read the other two volumes)...there are definitely other series I would share with children before I would share this one.

I really liked this book. I was enthralled throughout. It's a pretty fat book and I believe it's good for anyone, not just teens! Maybe a few slow parts, but all books have that. Other people have said what it is about, so I won't go into that here.
I even read all the footnotes. They contain mostly interesting material and are often humorous.

I thought the book started off slow but once you got into it, the author brought the words to life! Great read for any age!

Great Book! Picked it up at a flea market and was suprised to find that I liked it. It does have a Harry Potter ring to it (appreciated,later becomes great magician),but the book is in no way copying it.

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Very entertaining!

The narrator's voice was incredibly smarmy and arrogant. I understand this is the character's POV, but it was still very annoying. It seemed like the author reveled in their first person know it all narrator. I couldn't stand their voice and had to quit reading it. So just be warned for other readers who don't like books where the narrator bugs them!

Worst book I never read. I was looking for another series to move onto after Harry Potter. I could not get past the first three chapters. The style of writing is TERRIBLE!

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