The Indian in the Cupboard
Written by Lynne Reid Banks
Illustrated by Brok Cole
Reviewed by Anthony T. (age 9)
It's alive! In The Indian in the Cupboard a boy named Omri receives a present from his friend Patrick. The present was an Indian - a toy Indian. He also receives a cupboard from his older brother Adiel. Omri discovers that the cupboard can change something plastic into a real living thing. He puts his Indian into the cupboard and it turns real. He has to keep it a secret from his family. He tells it to his friend Patrick but he doesn't believe him so he takes him home one day and shows him. Suddenly Patrick wants one too. Omri says he can't because he has to care for them. You have to feed them, provide a home for them and do whatever you would do for a real person. Patrick doesn't know he has to do all this for them. He wants one so bad that he can't stand it.
The next day he goes to Yapps, the comic book and action figure store and buys a toy cowboy with a gun in its pocket. Then he goes to Omri's house the next day to make the cowboy real. While Omri is getting some soup for the Indian, Patrick puts the cowboy into the cupboard and he makes the cowboy real. Just then the phone rings. It's Patrick's mom and she wants him home right then. He doesn't have time to get the cowboy so Omri has to bring him to school. The Indian wants to go too so Omri brings him. What will happen next? To find out, read The Indian in the Cupboard.
I think The Indian in the Cupboard was a good book because it would build up to what would happen so I couldn't stop reading. The idea was also interesting about a magical cupboard that could bring things to life. As I read, I think about what I would do if I had a magical cupboard like the one Omri has.
Omri is the main character who owns the cupboard. I think about what I would put in it so it could become real. Omri's friend Patrick changed because at first he didn't get it that he would have to take on a real life. He would have to care for it and everything. Now, he's starting to get the picture and he's really taking care of him.
I would recommend this book for people who like good surprises when they read. You won't want to stop reading because it gets more exciting as you read. It's also exciting because sometimes it really gets you on the edge of your seat because you don't know if something is going to happen that will get Omri or his friend Patrick in trouble.