Friday, June 27, 2008

Artemis Fowl: The Lost Colony



The Lost Colony (Artemis Fowl, Book 5) by Eoin Colfer, Listening Library, 2006

Seriously, I could listen to Nathaniel Parker read stock reports, the city directory or the "terms of use" boilerplate that accompanies software installation packages.

He is wonderful.

Parker also reads the Young James Bond series which are so vivid in my mind now, I may never read the Higson books. I prefer to listen to them.

I'd never listened to an Artemis Fowl book before, and I did not even notice the name of the narrator. When I heard Parker's dulcet tones begin the book, I did a little happy dance around the house.

Artemis is on a mission to save the fairy world. The stoic Butler is still at his side. Artemis is feeling the effects of puberty which, hilariously, foil his concentration on occasion. While hunting demons, he encounters a new rival, the lovely Minerva Paradizo (oh, how I love Colfer's characters' names) who is the same age as Artemis and just as brilliant. She hopes to trap a fairy and impress the Nobel prize committee with her discoveries.

Holly Short has quit LEPRecon following the death of her old boss, Julius Root and now earns her living with Mulch Diggums, as a Lower Elements bounty hunter. She re-teams with Artemis and Foaly in order to save their world from an unstable time tunnel.

Colfer's books are action thrillers full of explosions, car chases and techno gadgetry. They are also packed with stacks of humor, witty dialog and topical references that keep them fresh. What keeps me coming back though, are the underlying ethical and moral issues that are at the core of the tales. The fun of the Artemis stories is how he remains a fast-thinking, law-bending, conniver with a conscience and a heart.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I love Nathaniel Parker's reading of the Artemis Fowl books, too. (Well, except for the Nguyen parts of Book 1. Otherwise it is awesome.) Each character has a distinctive voice, plus he keeps all the humor intact. I've read all the Artemis Fowl books once but listened to the audiobooks multiple times, they're that entertaining. Whoever's idea it was to have Parker read this series = pure genius.

Trisha

Camille said...

Trisha,
This was the first Artemis I listened to. ou are so right about how he keeps the humor and gives each line just the right emphasis. I also love the way Parker voices the characters. He doesn't sound like he is straining to differentiate them the way other narrators do at times.

Narration really is a unique talent and skill. I feel overjoyed to have "discovered" him in these roles.