This is the first of an adventure series for Middle Grade readers, set in a magical land based on the ancient continent of Gondwana. I was attracted to the idea of our heroine, Nellie, falling through a ‘crack in the Earth’ into Gondwana and not being able to get out until she had played ‘the game’ set by Gondvan, ruler of the Gondwana realms. I don’t think it qualifies as time travel, although time is certainly an element of the adventure.

The land is a wondeful mix of primaeval forest, rocks and streams, genuine plants and some animals as evidenced by fossil remains, and composite or mythical creatures such as troll-like people and spirits. There are also descendents of extinct animals, such as pygmy possums and lyrebirds. It is brilliantly described, and colour plays a huge part in it.

Nellie meets a boy who has failed to get out of the forest in the past, and her positive mental attitude helps to turn his negative approach into friendly help. I like the way that Nellie comes from Australia, and Meg, the friend, from India, both of which continents are thought to be remnants of the original Gondwanaland. There are connections throughout this book that make it feel coherent and real, despite the unreality of the spirit world. Sliding down a rainbow sounds great fun!

The challenge Nellie is set to enable her to escape from Gondwana is enjoyable and not over-taxing for the reader, but the descriptions of her adventures are vivid. Most young readers would be able to imagine themselves in those situations and admire her ways of getting out of trouble. I wasn’t sure I appreciated the immediate decision to damage the giant grasshopper, though, when peaceful methods had been the first choice most other times (unless they had been attacked first). However, I think the New Zealand Weta is not what I think of as a grasshopper, so the decision might have been justified.

Nellie now has the status of Visitor to Gondwana, so it’ll be interesting to see what happens to her in the next book.

All in all, a very enjoyable book and one that I was keen to get back to when I had to take breaks! I think any kid (big or small) interested in adventures in the wild will enjoy this, especially if they have a passing interest in pre-historic worlds. ( )

This was a charming little adventure novel, aimed at a fairly young age group. So, I suppose my average rating is mostly due to the fact that I am an adult reading something aimed at probably the 7-10 age range, perhaps the sort of book that a girl could move onto when she was bored with the Rainbow Magic series. I do not feel it had so much boy appeal, although it does have a male character, it's a little too "clean". The story itself is very basic - which is probably why I compared it (lightly) to the RM books - a young girl finds herself trapped in a "Game" within the world of Gondwana, a land based on the once-continent. However, the animals she meets with along the way are not quite your typical Gondwanan creatures - well, some are, but others (like the weta) are somewhat over-sized. Anyhow, to get home she must play the game which involves going on a sort of scavenger hunt (where the boy, Meg, helps her solve all the clues) to find a number of gems. Once they find them, she has to take them to the center of Gondwana before sunset - which is a bit weird because time flows differently in Gondwana. The tale held few surprises, although some of the animals were pretty nifty, and in fact the only bit that DID surprise me was when the girl decided they should chop off the weta's leg. Seemed rather brutal to me. All up, I imagine it would be a perfect story for someone 7-9 that liked shorter, whimsical reads. ( )

A very quick read, and the first in a series, TRAPPED IN GONDWANA is aimed at the younger end of Young Adults. The start is similar to Alice in Wonderland in that Nellie falls down a crack (hole) in the earth; but the magical adventure that follows is in a class of its own. Nellie is a brave and selfless young girl, who thinks problems through and is not afraid to stand up to monsters and bullies. She does doesn’t spare the bad critters either – one is killed and she chops off the leg off another, seemed a bit mature; but there was no blood or guts to upset the young audience. A perfect adventure for girls in the 8 to 12 age group, but can be enjoyed by those who have not seen the age 12 for many a decade. I am not sure boys would enjoy it as the male character is a bit of a dweeb and needs protecting all the time. ( )