For Kate's 11th birthday she writes her Uncle Herbert a letter asking for a present since he has never sent her anything before. What she gets will shake her, her brother Tom, and her parents world to the ground. Uncle Herbert gives her a train, not a toy train but a real life size train named the Silver Arrow. Kate and Tom's parents want the train off of their property, but the children and the train have other plans. That is when Kate and Tom go on the coolest train ride of their lives.

There is a whole lot more to this wonderful story, but you know me and spoilers. However, I have to admit I was drawn to this story because I have like other of Mr. Grossman's books, but this is totally different and I still couldn't turn it off, I have the audio version narrated by the wonderful voice of Simon Vance which was a great fit for this story. This is definitely a book you will not want to miss.

This review will appear on my blog on September, 1st.

This was a fun little adventure, definitely geared towards middle graders. I enjoyed it except for the heavy handed environmental message. I did appreciate that it wasn’t laced with guilt, but I find overtly didactic books to be tedious. Lev Grossman is a talented writer and his creativity and humor carried the limited plot along.

<i>Review copy provided by NetGalley and the publisher for an honest review<i>

This middle grade fantasy was a great book to listen to. I wasn't sure where it was going at first, but Vance's narration and the characters that are woven in make for a compelling adventure. Simon Vance did a marvelous job with the narration giving so much emotion to the characters and bringing the train to life.

Kate & Tom are brother and sister and live boring lives where their parents focus on their phones and computers more than them. It is Kate's birthday and she decides to ask her Uncle Herbert for a present. She barely knows him, she only knows that he is "super-rich" and, according to their mother, irresponsible. What a surprise when he shows up the next morning with a colossal steam locomotive called the Silver Arrow. What follows is an adventure Kate and Tom never saw coming.

What was so wonderful about this story is that there is a moral to it, but it is so gently given that it almost comes as a surprise. The train "talks" to them and helps them learn how to take care of it. Their passengers are animals who have been forced to leave their homes for one reason or another, though to Kate they are just animals who can talk. She forges relationships with them and learns from them, especially when a group of nasty animals without tickets try to board the train. What we come to learn is that those animals are the kind that like to invade a space and take over. They are not meant to be on the train. To explain their behavior, the group of animals Kate has befriended explain how animals that were meant to be in one habitat were moved to completely different locations and the havoc that has created for indigenous plants and animals. By the end, it becomes obvious that not all animals can be saved because "people weren't paying attention" to the fact that when they cut down a forest, they were destroying an animals home. "They were just thinking about themselves."

Grossman provides a story that readers can get lost in yet come out with a better understanding of the world around them. Perhaps, just perhaps, it will spark a desire to do something about the world's problems.

Imaginative Story about Environmentalism

What an imaginative and fun book for kids! I found this to be so creative. Young Kate writes to her uncle requesting a gift for her birthday. He brings a very unusual one, a proper train called the Silver Arrow. Then the real adventure begins! She and her younger brother, Tom, take the train on some tracks—the train seems to have a mind of its own and just starts going places—and they start picking up talking animals. The train knows where to go, and at one point, starts teaching the children about how to work it. The animals have very distinct personalities, and the train seems to take them to platforms all over the world; various animals leave the train at certain points. The book turns more serious and environmentally minded, as we learn that these animals are relocating because their native habitats have been endangered by humans. This upsets Kate and Tom, and they want to help. So they keep delivering animals with the train to different places. They even take one animal to a station in the sky because it has no place to go.

For the most part, I thought this book taught the environmental lessons well without being preachy or making the children listening feel too bad about humanity’s role in the destruction of nature, but instead, empowered to help make change. When the animals on the train let the children know what is truly going on, they state that humans can do great things when they decide to. A few other points were certainly more grandstanding about what humans do wrong in this regard. Some children and parents might find these moments too uncomfortable. Depending on the age of the child or children (and their empathy level) reading or listening, she or he might feel bad.

I listened to the audiobook version, and I liked the narrator, who did an excellent job with the voices for the different creatures. He was able to make them sound distinct. There is a fair amount of humor in this book, making me laugh out loud at times. I like the way, too, that the author showed the relationship between older sister Kate and younger brother Tom. Sometimes they get annoyed with each other, but they also care for each other—very much like real siblings. The book is so imaginative, funny in places, and so well narrated that I think both parents and children would enjoy listening to it together.

This book was alright. Kate and her brother went on quite the adventure with the Silver Arrow and I thought it was just okay. I think I would have enjoyed this more when I was 10, and I guess I just wanted more from it. The narrator of the audiobook was fantastic and one of the best parts of listening to this story.

What an enchanting journey this one takes you on. Kate asks her estranged uncle for a birthday present, and he shows up with a steam train engine. Soon Kate and her brother Tom are whisked away on a magical adventure. They are tasked with helping talking animals migrate and they learn about animals, their habits, and the dangers of invasive species. Humans being the greatest invasive species of them all. I enjoyed the whimsy of this one and the excellent narration that included Simon Vance doing a broad range of voices for Kate, Tom, each of the animals, and the train!

This book reminds me of Alice in Wonderland, The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Before I even get started on my thoughts, I just want to say that the audiobook narrator, Simon Vance, does a spectacular job narrating this book. He really brings all of the characters to life.

The Silver Arrow is a middle grade novel that is perfect for those looking for a whimsical tale like The Polar Express but offers the adventure and magic of The Chronicles of Narnia. This is not to say that this book should be likened to either, but those were the feelings that I had while reading this one.

For Kate’s 11th birthday, she decides to ask her rich Uncle Herbert for a birthday present because she is so sick and tired of her ordinary life. She craves adventure. What Kate doesn’t anticipate is the magical train that Uncle Herbert delivers. With her younger brother Tom in tow, Kate realizes this is the perfect opportunity for them to finally have an adventure, but are they up for the task at hand?

Honestly, from start to finish, this book was just so incredibly fun and full of adventure. I loved that Uncle Herbert allowed Kate and Tom to pick what kind of train cars they wanted to add to their train, and naturally, their imaginations run wild. There were so many magical creatures that I loved, and I wanted to be friends with all of them. I still think that the porcupine and train were my favorites because their honesty and low key sarcasm were refreshing.

I think that this is a story that middle grade students will really enjoy getting wrapped up in.

Thank you Hachette Audio for providing a review copy through NetGalley. This did not influence my review. All opinions are my own.

This is the story of a young girl named Kate who uncle gives her a train for her birthday. Not a tiny toy train but an actual train. Their talking animals, talking train, and amazing train cars that the kids asked for and are just added to the train. One of course is a library car and i all for hanging out there one day. The story moves along at a nice clip and the entire can be listened to in just under four hours. Which if your middle grade age is just perfect. There also the suggestion that maybe their more books like this coming in the future which would be nice. A great addition to middle grade adventures.

This is a cute middle grade story about a brother and sister who have adventures on a magical train when their uncle gifts it to Kate for her birthday. The train can look however they like and they can choose to add whatever train carriages they want. Despite the magical train with candy, library and mystery carriages and talking animals, this story perhaps isn't magical enough... it's very much rooted in the real world. It focuses very heavily on environmental issues and has a lot to educate children on regarding conservation and nature, but you're very aware of this and the author sums everything the characters have learnt and overcome at the end. Admittedly, I'm not the key demographic here, but it may feel a little patronising to children... a little on the nose.

The audiobook - narrated by Simon Vance - was fantastic and really pulled you into the story. I hope he reads the rest of the series, should there be future books.

A children's adventure story including some of their favourite things: adventure, trains and animals. The story explores the migration of animals and the erosion of the animals' natural habitat. The main character of the story, Kate, learns a lesson in her adventure - a lesson that many of the listeners will understand. She learns to be responsible and realises that she is capable of taking on such responsibility. The pace of the story f perfect for young listeners - and narration is perfectly pitched for this age group. . I enjoyed the audio of this interesting story and am sure it will appeal to listeners who are looking for adventure stories featuring animals.

The Silver Arrow was a fun and whimsical middle grade adventure with magic at every turn. The audiobook of this was wonderfully narrated making for an entertaining and lovely reading experience.
Kate has always longed for adventure, and when her mysterious and estranged rich uncle answers her request for a birthday gift with a train promptly put in her backyard, she feels like life might finally be getting interesting - and she couldn’t be more right. Along with her brother Tom, she’s plunged headfirst into an adventure more wonderful than she could have expected.
Full with talking animals, mysterious train journeys and inexplicable magic, The Silver Arrow is fun, creative and exciting.
Kate was headstrong and brave, and I liked her character arc of excepting the responsibility that came with independence, and seeing her bloom as she experienced her very own adventure!
The plot wasn’t the usual hero saves the world from great adversary with exciting adventure at every turn that I usually look for in middle grade, but it was unique and exciting in it’s own right. I loved how the plot was designed to shed a light on global warming and climate change, helping younger children to empathise with these struggles by having them told by the animals affected by them. This is such an important and relevant topic so I’m really glad to see fiction books discussing it.
The writing was playful, full of humour and heart.
Overall this was a great younger middle grade that I’d recommend to readers of all ages!

Oh how fun to listen to! The narrator did a wonderful job differentiating voices without it being distracting. The story in enchanting and magical with just a bit of moral to the story thrown in. Kate just wants something different for her 11th birthday and sends a note to her Uncle Herbert, an eccentric, rich uncle that she doesn't recall ever meeting, asking for a gift. When her uncle arrives on her doorstep the next morning with a REAL, full-sized steam locomotive she can't help but think that this is not quite what she had in mind. However, when she and her brother Tom climb aboard and full steam ahead adventure ensues! With talking animals, magic, and a bit of growing up, this is a birthday she'll never forget!

I thoroughly enjoyed this audio book. The reader was perfect for the story. His tone and accent kept the listener interested and the story kept the reader engaged. This book could rank up there with Roald Dahl and Beverly Cleary. It has the family drama and heart of Cleary, with the lessons, animals and fun of Dahl. Plus the big lesson in the end I was not expecting, but it fit so perfectly and tied everything together. It’s modern, but has that classic feel that could keep kids entertained for decades to come. A great book for young and old alike!!!!!!

It's Kate's 11th birthday and she wishes she had more adventure in her boring, normal life. So she writes a letter to her rich Uncle Herbert to 'please' send her a present. And a present she gets- it's no ordinary present, it's a whole train, not a toy train mind you, a whole proper train, complete with carriages of their choice. Kate and her brother Tom, set out on a journey of exploration where they meet exotic and endangered animals from far and beyond and visit habitats both displaced and their own and learn a lot of things about themselves, about impact of humans on the animal species and the meaning of an adventure.
The story will be enjoyed by children 8 to 11 years old and is full of descriptions of animals- that we usually do not come across in books or even the zoos and the safaris as many of these species have become endangered due to human activity.
There are a few bits that I missed -
1. Building of a plot that helps give a direction to the story and helps readers understand where the train is headed
2. I enjoyed the narration that but I would have liked the text to be visible as well to see some the of the words, and their spellings.

This short, but adventurous story of two children aboard The Silver Arrow train is sure to keep children and preteens interested start to finish. What starts out as a fun birthday excursion quickly becomes a learning experience for the kids who learn about the effects of humanity upon the environment, including the adorable animals on the journey with them. Even the trees themselves have an important message for these two. Simon Vance is an incredible narrator and does this story justice.

wears a banana yellow suit and is a bit unorthodox, presents her with a most unusual gift: a train. Not a toy. This is a mammoth-sized steam-belching machine on a track in her backyard. When Kate and her younger brother Tom climb aboard, they begin an adventure that is beyond their wildest imaginings.
The Silver Arrow is a dream come true. Tom and a Kate create their ideal train with such delightful cars as a library car, a swimming pool car, and even a candy car. But the children soon learn that this will not be a pleasure excursion. They are tasked with transporting endangered species to less hostile environments. Kate is the conductor. She is charged with protecting and finding proper homes for animals such as a white bellied heron and a fishing cat. Yes, they really exist. I looked them up.
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There is no evil villain in this tale. The nemesis is time. Kate must deliver all the animals to a new habitat. But the engine’s coal supply is rapidly depleting, the train is running out of track, and the polar bear can't survive much longer in a warm passenger car. While it is clear that humans are responsible for endangering the animals’ existence, this isn’t a blame game. It’s a race to save, to repair, to protect.
Although the story is told in third person, the narrator is obviously speaking from Kate’s point of view. Grossman keeps the tale focused on Kate and her perceptions of the world, from her developing realization of a larger life purpose to her admiration for science, particularly her hero Grace Hopper.
Vance is the perfect match for Grossman’s fantasy. His smooth narration draws listeners in and keeps them enthralled. His phrasing and subtle emphasis on specific words is sublime. The voices for the individual characters match the personality of each, from the rumbling engine and the gruff porcupine to the wondering awe of two youngsters.
​The ride careens to a wild and wondrous conclusion that will leave readers breathless. But it's served along alongside the comfort of French toast with loads of syrup and melted butter.
Good news: Uncle Herbert makes clear that more adventures await these siblings.
This magical tale is an incredible mix of science and fantasy. There is an unusual selection of intriguing animals with distinctive personalities. Who knew that I would be enchanted by a porcupine, a pangolin, and green mamba? Kate's hero is Grace Hopper and the narrative is sprinkled with delightful Hopper trivia. Grossman has fashioned a fantastic amalgam of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, falling into a strange and wonderful land with droll talking animals and The Magic School Bus, journeying on extraordinary scientific expeditions. It's a winning, winsome combination.

4/5 stars

** I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review**

I had a great time listening to this, It's whimsical and magical. This book has an overall message of never give up and always keep trying. A message that never grows old. I highly recommend this book, I just enjoyed my entire time listening and reading to this book.

Listening to the audiobook of The Silver Arrow was made particularly delightful by the narration by Simon Vance. A tale of time and space travel through the means of a train will capture the attention of children of all ages (as well as adults who are yet children at heart).

A wise and magical uncle who completely understands children manages to salvage what could have been the worst birthday ever! It all started when his niece asked for a birthday present. When uncle shows up with a train, the results were not as expected; parents (who are so often unimaginative) gave the child one week (1 week?!!) to enjoy her new present and then the uncle was instructed to remove it.

Not liking that ultimatum, the birthday girl threw a fit and was promptly sent to her room (on her birthday?!) where she smoldered with indignation. Until she and her brother decide to explore the train and get swept up in the wildest of adventures with talking animals, exotic locations, and a train that runs itself. For those who grew up on children's books by C.S. Lewis and Roald Dahl, The Silver Bullet offers a breath of fresh magic that will enthrall many generations to come. I sincerely hope there will be a sequel (and that Simon Vance will lend his marvelous voice to any future audios)!

Disclaimer: I received a free digital audiobook of The Silver Arrow from NetGalley for the purpose of review. No other compensation was received.

The Silver Arrow by Lev Grossman is a wonderful new addition to children's fiction. Grossman takes us back to the classic style and feel of children's literature akin to the Chronicles of Narnia, Roald Dahl, and a touch of Lemony Snicket. For her 11th birthday Kate has sent a desperate request to her estranged rich uncle to give her some sort of delightful present. She did not expect Uncle Herbert to show up with a steam engine named the Silver Arrow, let alone the adventures said train would take her and her brother Tom on. Full of talking animals for passengers, readers are introduced to many endangered (or close) animals as they embark to new places hoping to find peace from the invading humans. While the message of conservation is certainly a theme, it doesn't ring too heavy as to turn off readers. Simon Vance's reading is wonderfully done, especially as he takes on different accents for each animal that reflect not just its region of origin, but also its attributes as an animal. While other reviews seem to be marking The Silver Arrow as Middle Grade, I would argue it's not a true Middle Grade and should be targeted toward slightly younger readers (again think of your typical readers for Narnia, Dahl, Snicket, even L'Engle). Either way it was a swell ride and I'll look to see where the Silver Arrow takes Kate and Tom next.

I was looking forward to reading this book because I tend to love middle-grade adventure stories. They usually feel so carefree and magical to me. Unfortunately, I didn’t feel the same about The Silver Arrow, and I ended up being very disappointed.

This book sort of feels like a mix of The Polar Express and The Chronicles of Narnia, but not done well. It honestly felt very contrived and forced, which really hindered my enjoyment of it.

The story starts out with rich Uncle Herbert gifting his niece Kate with a train—a real, metal, life-size train. Although her parents were initially upset about this gift, Kate and her brother Tom set out alone together on an adventure on this train, which is called the Silver Arrow.

I thought the beginning was very slow and weird. Just the fact that the uncle got her a real train for her birthday that he put in her backyard (like, what?) and the parents were angry but were still like, “Okay have fun playing in it,” rubbed me the wrong way for some reason. The story just felt very forced to me at that point, like Lev Grossman had a cool idea about two young kids getting lost on a magical train adventure but didn’t know how to actually introduce the train into the story so he invented a rich uncle to just hand-deliver it to them. That was not believable at all, and my absolute least favorite thing about any fictional story is when the story is not believable within the boundaries of its own world, and I felt like this book suffered from that at the very beginning.

So Kate and Tom go on this adventure and meet all kinds of talking animals, who tell them all about themselves. The Silver Arrow feels like an ecological novel for kids. Lev Grossman tells us about different animals from around the world and explains details like the animal kingdom hierarchy and what happens if it gets out of balance, what animals eat, what their habitats are, what they like to do, why they migrate, and why humans need to help preserve them from going extinct.

This sounds like a cool concept, but honestly, the whole book felt very contrived to me, like Grossman’s hidden agenda was to indoctrinate children with the desire to make a good ecological impact on our planet. Now don’t get me wrong, I think it’s important to teach children (and adults) the importance of caring for animals and nature and protecting our planet, but I don’t like how that information was presented here. I felt like this whole concept took away from the actual plot of the book because every scene had to be paused so one animal could talk about their natural habitat or their predators or how human impact was harming them. It was very obvious, as an adult reader, what Grossman was trying to do here, and it put me off a lot.

I honestly just felt really bored with this story. It was very slow-moving for how short it was and it had me rolling my eyes at some of the scenes in it. It read very young for its intended audience of kids ages 8 to 12, and it felt pretty silly to me at times. This seemed like a kind of story someone tells their young kids before bed but not one that was ever supposed to be published. That sounds kind of harsh but there are so many similar stories out there that are much more interesting and well-written, ones that communicate the same messages in a more natural and engaging way. I honestly don’t think if Lev Grossman was already a best-selling author that this book would have been published at all.

Besides the aforementioned issues I had, I also thought that the writing was unimpressive and unenjoyable to read. Lev Grossman’s Magicians trilogy has been on my to-read list, but after reading this book, I honestly don’t know if I even want to read that series because the writing style in this book really got on my nerves and I suspect that what I didn’t like here will be present in his other works as well.

I listened to the audiobook for The Silver Arrow and I thought the narrator, Simon Vance, was alright. Good but not great. The way his voice sounds when he narrates almost reminded me of a knock-off Jim Dale narration because of his British accent and the inflections he used to tell the story, and some of the character voices sounded similar to me. The story takes place in the modern-day but his voice made me feel like it was a story of the past. I particularly didn’t like how he narrated the adults at the beginning when the train gets introduced because they sounded whiny and strange to me. Eventually, I did feel like the narration got better as the story progressed, and I would listen to more books narrated by Simon Vance in the future, but he’s not my favorite narrator.

The Silver Arrow has adventure, talking animals, magical trains, and lots of presumably factual ecological information. I would recommend this book for kids ages 5 to 8 who want an easygoing adventure on a magical train ride that will teach them real facts about all kinds of animals from around the world, as well as teach them how to be more eco-conscious.