tFern Drudger has just about the most boring parents in the history of boring parents. Her mother cooks scentless, tasteless food while her father sits in their completely beige living room. But Fern’s life is a bit more exciting than her parent’s. She’s seen bats turn into marbles, nuns turn into lampposts, and has shaken crickets out of books. She also has puffy hair and big eyes – completely unlike her parents.tThen, one day, a man named the Bone and his son, Howard make an unexpected visit to their house. The Bone claims that Fern is really his daughter and that she and Howard got switched at birth. Mr. and Mrs. Drudger are so taken to Howard that they decide to switch kids for the summer. Before Fern leaves, Howard warns her about the Miser, which she knows nothing about. Soon Fern finds out that her “father” the Bone is an Anybody (you’ll have to read the book to find out what that means) and that he’s looking for a book that used to belong to Fern’s mother, (she died) who hid it. After Fern learns that the Miser used to be the Bone’s friend and that her grandmother never liked the Bone, she realized her mother must have hidden the book at Fern’s grandmother’s house in an attempt to bring the Miser, the Bone, and Fern’s grandmother back together. Can Fern and the Bone find the book, or will the Miser find it first? And will the Miser, the Bone, and Fern’s grandmother ever become friends again?tI liked this book because there are lots of parts where the writer actually writes to the reader, which makes it more interesting. Also, Fern’s grandmother’s house is made entirely of books, so there are lots of little bits and pieces from well known books and it’s fun to try and figure out what book they’re from.
Took me a while to get into it but I ended up really liking it - - a very original story and I like the references to all the books. Here's the review from Amazon.com:Grade 5-8–This inventive novel has elements of Cornelia Funke's Inkheart (Scholastic, 2003) and Lemony Snicket's "A Series of Unfortunate Events" (HarperCollins). Fern Drudger, an imaginative misfit in her extraordinarily boring family, discovers that she and Howard Bone were switched at birth. The adults decide that the children will spend the summer with their birth parents and Fern meets her father, the Bone. He is an "Anybody"–he can change into someone or something else. However, he's not very good at it. He's convinced that Fern can help him find The Art of Being Anybody, a book once owned by his dead wife, which will allow him to improve his skills–but he must locate it before his enemy, the Miser, does and stop him from using it for evil purposes. Fern and the Bone end up in disguise at Fern's grandmother's boarding house, a magical, if dilapidated, palace of books, where anything can happen, especially if you happen to be an Anybody. Like Snicket, Bode is an amusing presence within this story about family, imagination, love of the written word, the dangers of hypnosis, and how to put an army of fairies to good use. The writing is fluid, the characters are multifaceted, and the situations range from poignant to gloriously silly. Eye-catching, black-and-white sketches echo the story's nuances and add to the atmosphere. There's laugh-out-loud humor, fantasy, mystery, real-life family drama, and the potential for a sequel. What more could a reader want?–Mara Alpert, Los Angeles Public Library
What do You think about The Anybodies (2005)?
This series is the very reason I have a crush on 'tween fiction. The author nails the voice - nails it to the wall! Plus my heart sighs when an author does an aside correctly, wittily and well. These books - chock full of asides done right. Other reasons to love:Characters in this book can shake things out of books - you know, like shake Jane Eyre and out pops Mr. Rochester - or better yet, Mr. Rochester's dog or Jane's bridal veil. It's now my new way to get to know people to ask, "If you could
—Laurie
The Anybodies is a fantastic fantasy!!! I would describe this book as crazy, creative, and fun-loving ! N.E Bode was a pure genius to use the twists and turns that was put into every page !!!At the begging of the storie i was very confused and thought what the heck !!! But later in the book I realized that that was exacly what N.E Bode wanted me to feel because the whole book is a big puzzle peice, it is not his intention to have every word written in stone, through out the whole book it is your guesses your thoughts your ideas and thats what i loved about it ! I belive that the plan N.E Bode had was "Readers choice" 100% ! I love the free choice of the book and the imagination that is spread widley ! Especially in the end adding in some good old scare or i guess you could call it horror . The book is full of mystery and suspence ! I gave this book four out of five stars because i feel that overall the book was great, detailed and amazing but i also feel that things could be added in to help the reader understand Ferns emotions in the book, I also felt that a few pieces to the puzzel were missing and it could make the book even more spectacular if they were found.If emotion was added in i would for sure give this book that fith star !!!If your reading this book now, i suggest that you dont stop ! Put the puzzel peices together ! In the end you will fall in love with The Anybodies !!!ps- Read the very end of the book where the author(N.E Bode)recieves a letter from his old writting teacher who N.E Bode talks about in between chapters, lets just say that the writting teacher was not to fond of his teacher and shared that with his readers , then again the old teachers letter wasnt to fond of his student either :) I encourage you to read it !
—Taylor C
The anybodies is about about a girl named Fern who was switched at birth from her real parents. Fern isn't like her fake parents because she is special while her fake parents only care about dull things that Fern doesn't like. Fern's real father comes one day to say that Fern isn't there real child. Fern's father then takes fern on a mission to save her mother's book from being put into the wrong hands. Fern may have powers like her mother but does she have the raw talent like her mother. read the book to find out What happens. This book is interesting because it shows that a child's active imagination is important.
—Mykele Miller
