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| Perma-Bound Edition ©2009 | -- |
Intrepid heroes preserve the peace of a war-torn Muslim country in this adventuresome Boy's Own type treasure hunt. Stuck in the Afghanistan-esque country of Balabad thanks to his journalist father's assignment, Oliver Finch is as bored as only a 12-year-old can be. He misses the New York Yankees and movie theaters, and only his Baladi friend Zee and carpet salesman Mr. Haji make his sojourn in the country bearable. But that all changes when Balabad's most valuable artifact, the Sacred Carpet of Agamon, is stolen from a local mosque—and it seems that Zee and Mr. Haji have unexpected connections to the theft. Zee and Oliver's sleuthing is interwoven with the history of the carpet, an adventure in its own right that details the story of Bahauddin Shah, trusted advisor to the last king of Balabad. In a decisively nonIndiana Jones touch, the adventurers' success is more due to the work of the Baladis than to any efforts of the visiting New Yorker. A cluster of likable stock characters and whip-wielding warriors keeps the endearing plot moving. (Adventure. 10-12)
ALA Booklist (Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 CST 2009)Haven, an Associated Press bureau chief whose postings have included Afghanistan and Pakistan, uses some of the mystery surrounding the Golden Hoard of Bactria, a treasure discovered in Afghanistan in 1978, in crafting this ornate, atmospheric suspense romp. Haven's writing style here is reminiscent of the lush, exotic adventure tales of H. Rider Haggard, especially of King Solomon's Mines. The hero, 12-year-old Oliver Finch, has been unwillingly transported from his beloved Manhattan along with his father, a foreign correspondent assigned to Balabad. Finch is ideally positioned, then, to learn about both the latest local doings this case, the theft of a 500-year-old sacred carpet. When one of Oliver's friends is kidnapped, he resolves to find his friend and solve the mystery of the stolen carpet, all of which leads to a satisfying series of dangers, pitfalls, double crosses, and escapes. This adventure follows Haven's first novel, Two Hot Dogs with Everything (2006).
Horn Book (Sat Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2009)American boy Oliver and his Baladi friend Zee stumble upon a secret about seven ancient keys that supposedly lead to buried treasure. Soon the keys--and people--start disappearing. The novel mixes mystery and action with a bit of Indiana Jones thrown in. The vividly described setting, a fictional country called Balabad, was inspired by Afghanistan.
Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)Three children encounter kidnappers, a mysterious carpet and a thieves' market in Haven's (<EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">Two Hot Dogs with Everything) entertaining but slight novel. Oliver's father, a newspaper reporter, has moved his family to the tiny Middle Eastern nation of Balabad. Oliver, 12, and his best (and only) friend, Zee, relieve their boredom by visiting a carpet seller, Mr. Haji, who entertains them with stories of Balabad's history. When a series of unusual crimes that begins with the theft of the 500-year-old Sacred Carpet of Agamon culminates in the disappearance of Haji, Oliver and Zee, with the help of a girl named Alamai, set off to find their friend and discover the secrets of Balabad. The brief adventure is exciting but ends too quickly, and with too few opportunities for the protagonists to put their intelligence to use. There's much to like, including smart, realistic characters, a fascinating back story and solid action sequences, but the strong writing doesn't compensate for the structural problems. Illustrations not seen by <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">PW. Ages 8–12. <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">(Jan.)
School Library Journal (Wed Apr 01 00:00:00 CDT 2009)Gr 5-8 Centuries ago, seven keys were given to the seven sons of King Agamon of Balabad to protect the country's treasures from foreign invaders. The young men were then sent to seven different places around the world, and only when all of the keys came together again could the treasure be found. Now, 500 years later, Oliver Finch, a New York City kid, is stuck living in Balabad because his father is a reporter and his mother is an art historian. He and his friend Zee spend most of their time visiting Mr. Haji, a carpet salesman who tells funny stories. Then, Balabad's sacred carpet is stolen, the culture minister disappears, and Zee overhears his father talking about a secret brotherhood. When Mr. Haji disappears, Oliver and Zee try to find him and are joined in their search by a girl named Alamai, who knows the ins and outs of the city and where and how to get information. In the process, they almost become the villain's next victims. Haven has created an exciting mystery set in a fictional Middle Eastern country with an intriguing history and a vibrant culture. The story is woven together like an intricate carpet. It's disjointed at times, moving around the world as the thieves locate the current owners of the keys, but all of the plot threads come together for the action-packed climax. Samantha Larsen Hastings, West Jordan Public Library, UT
Kirkus Reviews
ALA Booklist (Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 CST 2009)
Voice of Youth Advocates
Horn Book (Sat Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2009)
Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)
School Library Journal (Wed Apr 01 00:00:00 CDT 2009)
The Seven Keys
of Arachosia
Bahauddin Shah stumbled through the darkened passageway, gripping the cold stone wall for balance and keeping his head low to avoid the rocky ceiling. The sound of his footsteps echoed back at him through the gloom, and his heart thumped beneath his loose-fitting shirt.
The old man wore a heavy iron key chain around his belt, and it weighed down on him in more ways than one.
There was so little time!
Bahauddin held a small lantern in his right hand that threw his shadow onto the dark red wall above him, making his face seem impossibly long and his beard even thicker than it really was, which was pretty thick indeed. The shadow would have scared the living daylights out of anyone who'd seen it, except there was no daylight down there, and certainly nobody living to be scared of it.
The tunnel twisted and turned. Every once in a while smaller passageways veered off at odd angles into the darkness. Sometimes Bahauddin came out into vast open rooms that rose up into shapeless voids. There were even enormous darkened ponds, wretched and foul-smelling, like the stink of rotten eggs.
Bahauddin covered his nose with a piece of old cloth and tried to stay focused. A man could easily get lost in the Salt Caverns.
In fact, that was the whole idea.
But Bahauddin would not get lost. He knew every corner of this underground world, and his old body pulled him toward the exit like a falcon returning to his master's arm.
Bahauddin had just turned into a wet, narrow passage and was examining some black markings on the wall when the thud of cannon fire above him jolted him to the ground. Debris rained down from the ceiling as he knelt on the floor, catching his breath.
His hand groped for the key chain, and he smiled when his fingers felt the cold iron.
They were all there. All seven of them.
The blast that had knocked Bahauddin to the ground could not have been more than twenty feet above him. He was nearly at the surface.
For the first time, Bahauddin allowed himself to think what he would find up there, twelve hours after he had set off on the most important mission of his life. What would be left of his city, his family, the palace?
"It does not matter," the old man reassured himself, brushing his clothes off in the darkness. "Baladis are survivors. We will rebuild. It just might take some time."
The outsiders would eventually lose interest, just like all the other outsiders who had come before them, Bahauddin thought.
Balabad's great defense was that it was impossible to hold on to, and any rational outsider eventually came to the same conclusion. There were vast deserts in the south, impossibly tall mountain ranges in the east, endless plains in the west, and ten thousand feuding tribes in the north, all angry about some _long-_ago slight, and all willing to drag a foreigner into their squabbles.
Of course, it usually took a decade or so before the invaders would see that it was not worth sticking around, for invaders do not easily give up.
Bahauddin reached the end of the narrow passageway and held his lantern above his head. A small shaft ran straight up from the stone ceiling, about the size of a chimney and just big enough for a man to climb through. You would never have seen it had you not known where to look.
A deep smile creased Bahauddin's face. He clamped his teeth around the lantern's metal handle and jumped as high as he could. His fingers barely gripped a thick iron rung, the first in a series of handles hammered into the red and pink salt rock, so long ago they'd become a part of it.
Bahauddin grunted as he pulled himself up, his strong hands climbing the rungs one after another and his legs dangling below him. He could feel the warmth of the lantern through his beard and hoped it wouldn't catch fire.
This really was a job for a mu
Excerpted from The Seven Keys of Balabad by Paul Haven
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
Inspired by the years he spent in Afghanistan and Pakistan as bureau chief with The Associated Press, Paul Haven's intricately crafted tale is filled with details of everyday life in this remote and frequently overlooked part of the world. Loosely based on the legendary Golden Hoard of Bactria--the renowned hidden treasure discovered in northern Afghanistan in 1978--this fast-paced middle-grade novel will appeal to readers who like their twists and turns filled with mysterious characters, exotic locales, and an utterly relatable protagonist.
Welcome to Balabad, birthplace of the international secret society known as the Brotherhood of Arachosia--and rumored hiding place of the grandest riches the world has ever known. Balabad is also the country Oliver Finch has called home ever since his father was reassigned to this dull, war-torn dust bowl. Each day runs into the next for Oliver until a five-hundred-year-old sacred carpet is stolen. Then one of the few friends he has disappears. Oliver is determined to figure out what exactly is going on. But in order to do that he'll have to consult with a one-eyed warrior, track down the far-flung members of the Brotherhood, and unlock a centuries-old secret! Suddenly, life in Balabad for Oliver has become a whole lot more interesting . . . and dangerous.