A Measure of Disorder (Mother-Earth Series)

The story starts out reminding me of Percy Jackson because of the field trip. At first I though this is going to be a copy cat but as they story moves along, was I ever wrong.

First of all, the story moves at the PERFECT pace, not boringly slow but not too fast so that it can include details. The characters are full of characters, whoa that sounded weird. I did not hate any of the characters (and I always hate some characters in a book). I really like juvenile book characters where the book do not focus on relationships with the main girl and guy, but focus on the mystical story. The book focus on the journey, or adventure the main characters have. The plot is so captivating that I couldn't put it down.

I love the setting! It was very mysterious and magical. This was definitely one reason I love juvenile books. The descriptions allowed you to imagine yourself the world full with elemental spirits, goblins, dragons and more.

The story kind of reminds me of Narnia with all the creatures and enchanting scenery. But a better comparison might be the mini 2 part series of Neverland.

I really enjoyed the evil side's POV. To me, it was far more interesting than the good side. It just feel like there was more going on than the good side. The good side just basically walked, not very interesting. But with the evil side, you discover a lot of things which is awesome.

When the children entered the main city, wow, was that an experience! I really loved the writing!

Seriously this book was amazing! It had all I wanted in a book. Even with Michael Scott's books I had to put it down and reread it months after. This is why I am drawn towards books that are for ages 9-12 because I don't want to deal with the crappy relationships and other boring stuff YA books offer me. Brilliant job Alan!

First going into this book, I didn't have very high hopes. Occasionally I will judge a book by it's cover. This book's cover art is not the best I had ever seen. Then I started to read the book. The beginning was nothing very special, but slowly it started to progress until... I was hooked! I could hardly put this book down. Reading Teen followers, you will have your doubts before reading this book. DON'T. It is WELL written, well thought out, and the whole concept is completely insane. Which makes for one great fantasy book. In my opinion... the more insane the book, the better fantasy it makes! This amazing book by Alan Tucker makes you want for these insane things to happen, things that would never really be possible. Hence the word fantasy. You will so know what I'm talking about when you read it.

I never have even heard of this book if the author Alan Tucker hadn't sent me a copy. He was so freakin' cool to have taken the time to send me one. Thanks dude! At the current moment it needs more publicity. This book has earned it. I am positive that there are hundreds, thousands of books that need to be read because their great. But I can only read so many books. And, yes, most of the books that I read, I only read because I hear of that book from a friend or family member and now an author ( I'm moving up ). I wish that good books like this were more recognized. This review is the best thing that I can do to achieve some publicity for this book.

This is a great book and I can't wait until the sequel comes out. I will be highly anticipating it and can only hope that it is as good as the first.

Austin ([...])

this book is a great read i'm going to be honest I haven't had time to finish it yet but it sure pulled me in once I picked it up it pulled me right in! no slow starts in this book for sure. great job!

A Measure of Disorder

A Measure of Disorder by Alan Tucker is a wonderful foray into fantasy and imagination. Technically a young adult book, the book is just as likely to appeal to middle-graders as the heroine of the book is a fourteen-year-old eighth grader name Jenni Kershaw.

Jenni and her eighth grade science class are on a field to a nearby campground to collect plant samples for a science project. Suddenly, after lunch, the entire class finds themselves going unexpectedly sleepy. A mist rolls over the lake they are picnicking near and when everyone awakes they discover they are now in an alternate reality that is very different from their own.

Slowly, as time goes on Jenny and her classmates find themselves surrounded by strange people and new and threatening circumstances. One after another Jenni's classmates begin to change, some for the better; others for the worse. Then two distinct camps are developed. One wishes to live in peace, but the other seeks the destruction of the peaceable camp. What will the outcome be?

What follows is an excerpt from the story, taken from approximately midway through:

"Rodrin lowered himself down and returned shortly with a small Nomenstrastenai girl, and a tiny flying Faerstrastenai that immediately sped over to Jenni and landed on her shoulder, hugging her neck.

"Oh Jenni! I'm so glad to see you!" the Faerstrastenai said in a soft voice that sounded familiar.

Jenni let the hug continue for a few seconds, then offered her hand to step onto so she could see the Faerstrastenai face to face. She apologized and buzzed to Jenni's hand. Jenni thought first of Rachael, but her features and hair were different.

"Deena!" Jenni exclaimed. "Oh my gosh! I wish I could hug you back!"

Deena laughed. "Me too."

"Deena, this is Ba'ize. He's the mayor of Seren'naie"

Deena performed a curtsy in midair and Ba'ize smiled. "A pleasure to meet you Deena," he said. "And who has come along with you?"

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" Deena ushered the girl forward. "This is Feeder, she's from Crank's village."

The girl sniffled and bowed to both Ba'ize and Jenni. As she straightened, Jenni saw tears in her eyes. She had blond hair, like Crank, and wore a simple tan dress, typical of her people, but it was soiled and torn. She also looked incredibly tired. Jenni then recalled this was the girl she had seen tending the tamed birds in the village while they were there.

Jenni looked back to Deena, "What happened? How did you get here?"

Deena proceeded to tell the story of the transformations of Mrs. Minch, Mike, and Scott and the subsequent attack on the village. The Gobinstrastorai had arrived and camped around the village for two or three days, then somehow managed to destroy the defense mechanism that protected the Nomenstrastenai. Deena and Feeder had been able to slip out during the battle and hide. The next day when they had seen the devastation of the village, the two had decided to follow the trail of Ms. Pap and the class, and make their way to Seren'naie.

Feeder began to cry and Jenni sat on the floor, holding her. Ba'ize sat in a chair, trying to make sense of their story.

A few minutes later, Crank arrived back from his errands, and the painful tale was relayed to him. Feeder ran to him and Crank absently comforted her while he sat in shock at the realization that his mother and father were dead."

A Measure of Disaster by Alan Tucker, copyright 2010, MAD Design, Inc, 212 Fair Park Drive, billings Montana 59012, author's website: [...]

This book got me hooked by the 2nd chapter! The characters are mature, the adventure, characters and action keeps you interested. It's a fun and interesting adventure and worth the read. I bought the entire series for the kindle after reading through a few chapters of the first book! There should be more to this series - other new stories or adventures...

I enjoyed this book because it had a lot of characters. I'm tired of the same old boy-girl tale in any genre. This one had lots of new ideas which I truly appreciated. It kept my interest and I look forward to reading the next in the series! My thanks to the author for a unique story line!

Eighth-grade life becomes a thing of thepast when Jenni and her science class go on a field trip and are unknowingly transported to another world. There they encounter amazing creatures, some of which think a kid shish kebab would be a tasty treat...

Very well written. I will tell everyone to read this. Great YA book as well. Alan Tucker has one heck of an imagination!!! I couldnt put this book down! I cant say too much because I dont want to give it away. I am majorly itching to grab up books two and three in the series...I must know what happens next, thanks Alan, I am now addicted to yet another series!!!!!!

~S~

This is a pretty good story, I liked the overall concept of bringing balance to a world. The writing is a little choppy in places, telling rather than showing, some misplaced commas, and I thought none of the kids really cared about their parents or left behind family. It didn't feel like their families were searching for them much either. Just felt off, even though parents don't play much a role in YA books. The first time the story changes perspectives was well into the book, so I was thrown off.
Otherwise, the story was interesting and unique, and I think a good sample of a portal fantasy for young teens.

A truly engaging fantasy novel! I can't wait to read the sequel - I just hope it will be as creative and captivating as the first. Definitely a must-read for fantasy lovers of any age!