Gregor and the Prophecy of Bane

Gregor and the Prophecy of Bane by Suzanne Collins

Book 2 in the series, The Underland Chronicles

Collins, S. (2004). Gregor and the prophecy of bane. Scholastic Inc.: New York.

ISBN: 0439731372

Plot 
Gregor returns to the Underland when his baby sister, Boots, is kidnapped. There he must embark on another quest. As in the first book of the series, Gregor the Overlander, he is joined on his quest by several of the strange creatures of the Underland. They are seeking to kill The Bane. It is prophesized that The Bane will be the destruction of the Underland. The rats think The Bane is Boots, Gregor’s little sister. The humans are convinced it is a rat. Gregor watches Boots and Luxa, the royal human princess, apparently drown on the quest. He decides to kill The Bane anyway. When he meets The Bane, it is a baby rat. Gregor cannot kill it as it is just a baby. When he returns to the human’s capitol city, he is put on trial for not killing The Bane. It is revealed that the true meaning of the prophecy is that the warrior’s heart will die if he kills The Bane. Gregor has done the right thing. Gregor discovers that Boots is alive, although there is no word of Luxa. Boots and Gregor return to the Overland with a new prophecy to ponder: The Prophecy of Blood.

Critical Evaluation 
Gregor and the Prophecy of Bane is a worthy follow-up to Gregor the Overlander. Once again, Collins’ writing is fast paced and action packed. Her plotting is suspenseful, full of exciting twists and turns. The book is written on an appropriate level for tweens. The violence is not graphic. Gregor is a character who under great duress chooses morality over military duty, political expediency and self-preservation. Young people who love heart-pounding, non-stop action in the fantasy genre will love Gregor and the Prophecy of Bane.

Reader’s Annotation 
Those who loved Gregor the Overlander will love its sequel Gregor and the Prophecy of Bane. We find Gregor embarked on another quest in the strange Underland. This time he must save his little sister who has been kidnapped by Underlanders and is marked for death by the rats. Gregor must assassinate the mysterious Bane to save the Underland. But will he be able to accomplish his quest and save his sister as well? This is just one of the dilemmas to be found in Gregor and the Prophecy of Bane.

About the Author Suzanne Collins is an American author born in 1964. She worked in children’s television before she became a young adult fiction writer. Gregor the Overlander was her first book. There are five books in the series. She followed it up with The Hunger Games trilogy, which has garnered her a cross over her adult audience. 

Genre: Fantasy/Science Fiction

Curriculum Ties: Language Arts

Booktalk Ideas: What would you do if you had to choose between your survival and doing something you know is wrong?

Reading Level: Grade 5+
Interest level: Grade 5+
Challenge Issues: None

This book was included because it is an excellent story with high interest to the target audience written at an appropriate level.

Gregor the Overlander

Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins

Book 1 in the series, The Underland Chronicles

Collins, S. (2003). Gregor the overlander. Scholastic Inc.: New York.

ISBN: 0439435274

Plot 
Gregor’s family is poor. He lives in a New York City apartment building with his mother, his two little sisters and grandmother. His father disappeared when he was 8. He falls down a hole into a strange place called the Underland. The Underland is a world without sunlight where cockroaches, spiders, bats and rats are human size and speak. Gregor leads a band of humans, bats, spiders, and cock roaches on a quest to rescue his father who is being held prisoner by the rats, the bad guys of the Underland. Gregor and his band of Underworlders set off into rat territory. There are battles and betrayals. The group manages to save Gregor’s father. In the midst of battle, Gregor realizes that he is the main focus of the rats’ aggression. He determines to sacrifice himself taking as many rats with him as possible. He runs out onto an unstable precipice and is followed by many rats. Their combined weight collapses the rock face. Rats fall to their death. Gregor is saved by a giant bat. The battle with the rats is won, for now. Gregor returns to his family in New York City, but not before being made aware of a prophecy which predicts his return to the Underland.

Critical Evaluation 
This story is written for the tween audience. It is fast paced and tightly plotted. The action is nonstop, yet the violence is not graphic. This book is appropriate for young audiences on both reading and interest levels. Young readers who have lost loved ones or who have been given responsibilities not normally imparted to tweens will identify with the characters of Gregor and Luxa, the young Underland Queen.

Readers Annotation 

Gregor is an 11 year old boy who falls down a grate in his laundry room into a strange, new world called the Underland. There he becomes an unwilling warrior and leads a coalition of Underlanders on a quest to rescue a fellow Overlander imprisoned there. Could this Overlander be his missing father? Gregor’s adventure will change him and the Underland. It may solve the biggest mystery of his life.

Information About the Author

Suzanne Collins is an American author born in 1964. She worked in children’s television before she became a young adult fiction writer. Gregor the Overlander was her first book. There are five books in the series. She followed it up with The Hunger Games trilogy, which has garnered her a cross over her adult audience.

Genre: Fantasy/Science Fiction 

Curriculum Ties: Language Arts 
Booktalk Ideas: Facing scary new challenges. 
Reading Level: Grade 5+
Interest Level: Grade 5+
Challenge Issues: None

This book was included because it is an excellent story with high interest to the target audience written at an appropriate level.