I'm not sure how to describe this book. I enjoyed it a lot. I purchased it new not long after it was published and shortly before the author's untimely death. I didn't realize it was a children's book because the author had been writing fantasy and science fiction for adults. I set is aside not intending to wait 14 years before reading it!

I'd guess this is written with a ten year old audience in mind, but I certainly enjoyed it as an aging adult and think it is one of the sweetest children's books I have read in a very long while. An adventure story with a treasure hunt, and very memorable characters. It has many pen and ink drawings which took me a while to appreciate. Nice short chapters that let me read this easily at my leisure. Recommended ( )

No bully is a match for a dreadful ghost, nor for two determined ladies with a cannon. ( )

Spent a few cozy hours reading about a young girl shipwrecked on a sandy beach. In between storms she discovers a magical hotel and builds a new family. ( )

A young girl finds herself alone in the Dunes after a storm has taken away everything she ever knew. She finds a hotel buried under the sand and friends in new forms. It is, in essence, a book for children about learning how to live in a mysterious, difficult world, but the narrative voice is never didactic or twee. It is warm and generous and wise. A smart, imaginative book about the nature of ghosts, time, and loss and a delightful read for all ages. ( )

I opened it and the first thing I saw was this --
Wow! I read The Hotel Under the Sand with delight and joy. It's wonderful, wacky and spooky and serious and FUN. It also strikes me as utterly original (which is quite rare). In fact -- although this is something one should always say with some caution -- it wouldn't surprise me if it turned out to be a classic and went on down the ages along with Alice and Oz and the very few others that have become immortal.
-- Diana Wynne Jones, author of Howl's Moving Castle
What could possibly make me more excited about this book? NOTHING.

So, did it live up to DWJ's excessive praise? Short answer, yes. It was possibly one of the sweetest, funnest, most original chapter books I've ever read. There's one of the best ghosts I've ever read about, the coolest magical setting, and a super awesome treasure hunt. I mean, it starts with a girl washing up on an island and she immediately finds herself water and food and makes her own shelter! She's not helpless! It also made my heart so happy with its friendships and found family. I have no idea why this book hasn't found its audience yet but I'm going to work on changing that.

http://webereading.com/2017/05/the-hotel-under-sand.html ( )