Title: The Gates
(Samuel Johnson Versus The Devil: Round 1)
Author: John Connolly
Release Date: 1st April 2010
Publisher: Hodder and Stoughton
Samuel Johnson has a number of problems. Samuel’s dad cares more about his car than his family, Samuel’s mother is lonely, and only Samuel’s dog, Boswell, truly understands him.
Oh, and as if things couldn’t get any worse, Samuel’s neighbours, led by the villainous Mrs Abernathy, are trying to open the gates of hell. It’s up to Samuel to stop them, except nobody will believe him, and time is running out…
Now the fate of humanity lies in the hands of one small boy, and even smaller dog, and a very unlucky demon named Nurd…
Everything is normal in the town where Samuel lives or at least until the Abernathys and their friends summon the devil. However, Samuel is well aware of the situation. Along with his friends, Tom and Maria, his faithful dog, Boswell, his Mum and a terrified scientist from CERN, Dr Planck, he is out to save the world. It takes Samuel’s Dad’s car, a demon called Nurd and a whole lot of laughs before they can defeat the demon known as Ba’al (posing as Samuel’s neighbour, Mrs Abernathy).
There is only one word for this book and that is… hilarious! The book is also really intelligently written and appeals to all ages. The Gates was first recommended to me by someone over twice my age and then my younger brother borrowed it and was also really impressed – I haven’t heard him giggle that much in ages!
Not only is it written in a conversational style, which makes it easy to read but the subject matter is also engaging and really interesting! There are little footnotes that add to the silliness of this book but Connolly deals with complex subject matter such as the Hadron Collider in an understandable way, although you do have to follow the details closely at one point. The characters are really well written and Samuel experiences the difficulties many young people deal with, such as his parent’s separation as well as some not so common difficulties, like flying skulls in his hallway.
John Connolly uses chapter headings to tell the reader what will happen in each chapter, for example, Chapter Two, ‘In Which We Encounter a Small Boy, His Dog, and Some People Who Are Up to No Good’. Each chapter deals with a new setting and storyline and is as exciting as the last, from bodies rising from the dead at the church to confused scientists trying to figure out how they had a hand in releasing the devil.
Overall, I cannot stress how much I think EVERYONE should read this book. It is literally un-put-down-able because it is so easy to read, so funny and the story is so effortlessly executed. My only criticism is that the ending leaves you on a slight cliff hanger, which means you have to scurry to the library/book shop to pick up the next one!
5/5 Read it!
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