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Across the Wall: A Tale of the Abhorsen and Other Stories | 
 enlarge | Author: Garth Nix
Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books
Category: Book
List Price: £6.99
Buy New: £2.20
You Save: £4.79 (69%)
New (16) Used (6) from £2.19
Rating:  12 reviews
Sales Rank: 4228
Media: Paperback
Pages: 352
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.8
Dimensions (in): 7.7 x 5 x 1.1
ISBN: 0007221460
EAN: 9780007221462
ASIN: 0007221460
Publication Date: October 1, 2007
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: *New* Posted the same day.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 7 more reviews...
 you really know how to write fantasies mr nix August 15, 2008
V. Lad (britain)
several great short stories in this book. each is quite unique and individual and i love the little explanations of each of the stories from the author himself. gives each story its own place and character (if that is possible!). i have several favorites but the ones that stand out are 1) the story about the girl left doorstep set in wild west 2) the different take on the merlin and the lady story 3) lady in the lake story.
BTW THIS HAS CREATURE IN THE CASE IN IT. dont make the same mistake and buy this as well as creature in the case seprately
 rubbish July 9, 2008
Eileen Banford (Northern Ireland)
This book contains only one good story. It is not worth the money. The other stories are poor and not up too the standard set in the Sabriel, Liriel and Abhorsen series.
Quite mixed in quality - read the Abhorsen Trilogy first February 22, 2008
L. Green (London, UK)
Barcode: 9780007221462
I'm so glad i've discovered Garth Nix's books as they are some of the best writing i have come across. His worlds are imaginative, his characters realistic and are a joy to follow in the various adventures Nix creates for them. His Abhorsen Trilogy is a masterpiece which is why i reccomend reading that first as it is the best representation of his work.
What we have here is a collection of short stories written at various points in Nix's life - i'll give you a brief run down of what i think of each one.
1. Nicholas Sayre and the Creature in the Case
By far the best story of this compilation it follows on from the events of the aforementioned Abhorsen Trilogy and is of just as high a quality as those books. Nicholas Sayre, a character i found initially hard to empathise with is presented in a far better light here and you quickly grow to admire his courage in this chilling tale.
2. Under The Lake
The first of the Merlin/Arthur inspired stories in this compilation - i wasn't keen on this story. It has very little plot and focuses more on immense description and feelings. Not that enjoyable but i suppose it's interesting to see that Nix can write extremely mature material if he wants.
3. Charlie Rabbit
Thankfully the next story is a return to his usual style that we all know and love. Part of this story's power is its anonymity - it could be describing a conflict anywhere in the world - especially relevant with the current state of the world - this is a gripping story.
4. From The Lighthouse
Not sure where i stand on this one - a lot of it seems quite random and perhaps too much is left unexplained but it does have a certain charm to it.
5. The Hill
I really like this one. Perhpas it is because Nix is writing about his homeland, Australia, that this has a far more personal feel to it. It deals with the themes of old age and fear of the future extremely well and leaves the reader with some very interesting points to think about.
6. Lightning Bringer
Short and sharp, this is an enjoyable little story. A sexual predator who can command lightning? Awesome idea!
7. Down To The Scum Quarter
Sadly, the most pointless story in the compilation, i didn't even bother to read this - a 'choose your own adventure' style thingy in the vein of Fighting Fantasy, a series i actually used to play. I appreciate Nix's comic take on the genre but this story doesn't work in the context of this compilation because the rest of the book is straight prose, i don't think many people suddenly then want to switch to a game halfway through and go flicking back and forth through pages to complete it.
8. Heart's Desire
The second of the Merlin/Arthur themed stories, this one has a strong sexual theme to it and is better than 'Under The Lake' at any rate but still feels hard to immerse yourself completely in which you can do so well with the rest of Nix's fiction.
9. Hansel's Eyes
Another enjoyable little tale - this is an innovative new take on the classic fairytale. Some great ideas in this one and some pretty scary stuff too.
10. Hope Chest
This one reads like it has the potential to be developed into a full fledged novel, something i'd like to see. Nix creates a distopian world - a terrifying alternative American Wild West - the conclusion of this story is nail-bitingly tense and amazingly good in how terrifying it is.
11. My New Really Epic Fantasy Series
Just too random. Again, a nice attempt at humour but i don't think this translates well to the page.
12. The Three Roses
With this story Nix creates an extremely well-done take on classic tales of morality and it works a treat - great imagery.
13. Endings
In very much the same vein as 'The Three Roses', this is another short tale of decisions and good & evil. A perfect ending to the compilation.
You then get a few questions with Garth Nix which are very interesting and contain a lot of inspiring advice for young writers. So, in conclusion - this compilation has some good stuff and some not so good stuff. On a whole though, when Nix gets things right, the result is so powerful that i'd still most definitely have to recomend this book - just check out the Abhorsen Trilogy first, ok?
Rubbish........Compared to the Sabriel Series December 9, 2007
Ms. Ej Wolfe-murray (england)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
The sabriel books are so much better than this. If you want to read really good fiction,go along with G Nix's earlier work and work similar to like-minded authors.
He is trying to revive the Sabriel Series ghost. It is not that good as a singular book,and is rubbish compared to Sabriel,Lirael and Abhorsen.
Don't disappoint yourself and read it.
 OK November 29, 2007
Alexis Farseer (UK)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I thought that Across the Wall would be a lot better than it turned out to be. I don't know if this is because i enjoyed Sabriel, Lirael and Abhorsen so much that this was bound to leave me feeling cheated.
The title Across the Wall hints at a glimpse of short stories focussed around the world that we have all read about.
Nicholas and the Creature in the Case was alright, but all I cared about was whether we were going to see a return of our favourite characters ( a fleeting one does not count )
I would have enjoyed this more has the others not been so good, but it quenched my Garth Nix hunger temporarily
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