Kingdom Keepers: Disney After Dark (Kingdom Keepers, 1) Paperback – September 1, 2009

When I first picked up Kingdom Keepers: Disney After Dark by Ridley Pearson two years after it was published, I was looking for books that would be age-appropriate and content-appropriate for my siblings-in-law who were ten at the time. I was instantly attracted it because of the ties to Disney, and because of the research I did on author, Ridley Pearson. It wasn’t until after I learned that in future installments, Pearson would be getting unprecedented, exclusive access to behind-the-scenes areas of the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, I knew that this book was going to be a must-have!Worlds are about to collide and the line between reality and dream become forever erased for 5 pre-teen students who were selected to be models for a new Daylight Hologram Imaging attraction for Disney’s The Magic Kingdom where holographic versions of the kids would act as tour guides for guests of the park. As the park closes each night and the guests and Cast Members close up shop and go home, the parks come alive in a way never imagined: The characters, the real characters that Walt created over the decades come to life. The trouble is that some of the darker characters that Walt dreamed up have banded together to cause trouble for the Parks and Imagineers in a bid to take over the magic that the place thrives on.Dubbed the Overtakers by Disney Imagineers, they have aligned themselves against the Kingdom and it is up to Finn, Charlene, Philby, Willa, Maybeck to put a stop to their interference. Each night as the five children go to sleep they wake up in a dream-like state inside the Magic Kingdom as their hologram-selves. Programmed to do so by their soon-to-be mentor, an old friend of Walt Disney himself, long-time Imagineer, Wayne Kreskey, the children begin to learn about the challenges and struggles that have faced the parks over the last few years and are presented with the puzzle of the Stonecutter’s Quill, that Wayne believes can only be solved with their help, thus placing the fate of the entire Kingdom in their digitally glowing hands.The team struggles to pull together all of the pieces to their riddle in time while still holding down their real daytime lives of being students and members of their own families, knowing that no help from the outside could come because who would believe that the battle between good and evil would ever jeopardize the magic of Walt Disney? Along the way they are introduced to several characters who each have enough power to defeat them individually, but quickly learn that these Pirates and other characters answer to a higher power; the fairy witch Maleficent from Disney’s telling of the very old story of the Sleeping Beauty.Written for ages 10 and up, Kingdom Keepers: Disney After Dark is presented in a fashion that makes it really easy to read and comprehend by children and adults alike. If you are an adult and you want to read this book, you have to remember something that Walt is quoted as saying in the book: "I have plans to put this place in a different perspective.” Knowing ahead of time that this was part of a series of books, I didn’t hold it to too high of standards of content and character development as other reviewers have done. Readers need to keep in mind the age of the main protagonists and need to ask themselves, “do I know anyone that age?” and “do I know everything about my pre-teen?”All things considered, I give Pearson 5 stars for a job well done in telling a story that keeps as true to the spirit of Walt Disney’s intentions and creations as humanly possible while not being confined by those same creations. (Check out this review on GoodReads at [...]or on my blog at [...])

While this may appear to be a young adult novel, I believe the popularity of it and how long the series has lasted have shown it to be anything but that. I had never read the series until now, and this first novel will almost immediately suck you in to the world and the characters.As someone who lives no more than 10 minutes form Disney World property, it was incredible to not only read about the parks themselves and the accurate portrayal, but reading about the locations outside of the park was just as exciting. For example, the city of Maitland to many will be nothing more than a city in a novel, but for me, it's a real place that I drive through often and the locations descripted outside of the parks are just as accurate as those within (true, there are some artistic liberties taken, but that is to be expected).If you are a fan of Disney, then buy this immediately and jump right in. If you may not be a Disney fan (I couldn't imagine!) but you enjoy adventure stories, then this, too, is right for you and in the end it may very well turn you into a Disney fan.I do want to talk about why I gave it four stars versus five, but that means I have to spoil the ending just a little. If you intend to read it, you may want to skip the next paragraph, but even if you do continue reading, I will do my best to not outright give it away.While I know this is a series of novels, even then each particular book should have an appropriate ending, and this did not have it. The items that the kids were seeking throughout the novel they, of course, finally do find and recover, but then we, the reader, are not in the least bit told an explanation as to what they are or what they do. Yes, something 'magical' happens but it's more of a "Okay, that's kinda neat, but so what?" instead of, "Oh, yes! THAT is why they needed those things!" I'm going to assume, and hope, that this is better explained in the next one, but it's still kind of unacceptable that this entire adventure focuses on these items and we get no real explanation.Nevertheless, get this book! I cannot stress enough that if you are a kid, or have a kid or kids, then it's a must read, but as someone in his 30s, after countless friends and co-workers (all between 20-45 years old) insisted that I read it, I finally did, and I do not regret it in the least. I cannot recommend it enough, and I intend to start the second one soon!

I was really worried about weather I would enjoy this book or not... I am a HUGE disney fan so really wanted to read it and like it but after reading a headp of mixed reviews I almost didn't. I'm glad I did though, it's simple writing and a quick read, it's obviously written for a teenage audience due to the lack of descriptions or elaborations... It's read we I just mean for adults the author could have gotten into i the story a bit more...I enjoy harry potter, Twilight, the darke Academy and other teenage aimed books. This one is written the most simplest out of all of them but is still a good read as the story is interesting and it does leave you wanting to read one more chapter. I just need the rest of the series now!

I was a little worried that my daughter wouldn’t like it, but she loved it, especially as we’ve been to WDW before, and she wants me to buy the next one.

This is a great book. Aimed for young teens its an easy read but sparking with adventure and imagination. A must read for any Disney fan no matter what age you are.The author takes you on a great ride around the Magic Kingdom as your heroes try to say the day. He enlightens you with parts of the park that most people don't realise exist.I really enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone.

Bought this for my 9 year old daughter before our trip to Disney World. She loved it and it really sparked her imagination. She felt like she had been there and it added to the magic of the holiday.

This series is fantastic for any Disney Parks fan, although it does frustrate me that there are a fair few typos and grammatical errors!