Preview of The Bronze King Summary:

Charnas's The Bronze King presents a unique blend of fantasy and realism.

Valentine Marsh's quest to recover the stolen statue of King Jagiello and quell the power of the evil kraken is set against the contemporary scene of New York City and is interwoven with social issues of today. Indeed, in The Bronze King fantasy is not presented as an escape from the normative world; instead, the problems of our world, such as pollution and vandalism, become the core of the battle for King Jagiello's return.

Valentine Marsh is a strong, engaging, and realistically drawn character who must face not only the evil kraken, but also an array of social and family problems. Especially through this character, Charnas presents the range of problems facing adolescents today—from family issues of divorce, single-parent families, parent-child relationships, and aging grandparents to social problems with peers and feelings of alienation...