# I have discovered Artemis Fowl! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 23, 2006, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-discovered-artemis-fowl/361918 "2006-06-23T22:20:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2006, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-discovered-artemis-fowl/361918/1 "2006-06-23T22:20:23Z")
A bit late, I s’pose, but except for Harry Potter, I don’t normally read the kidlet’s books. Well, I hadn’t been to the library in awhile, I had just finished up _Song of Troy_ by Colleen McCullough, and the _Reader’s Digest_ hadn’t arrived yet. My daughter caught me in a weak moment, and foisted the first book on me. It’s not bad! Rather cute, in fact, and I found it a page-turner. I’ve started Book 2, and Ivygirl has mentioned that there’s four books, but they only have the first three…so maybe Mom can take a trip to the bookstore? 😉 I like reading new, good books. It’s like finding your own little treasure chest. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2006, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-discovered-artemis-fowl/361918/2 "2006-06-23T22:42:14Z")
I read about the Artemis Fowl books in one of those reviews of other children’s books that Harry Potter fans might like, so I bought the first two. I was really underwhelmed. Perhaps it was the attempted humorous tone, but I really didn’t enjoy the books at all. ---
**Author:** ![Bobotheoptimist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/919ad9/32.png) [@Bobotheoptimist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bobotheoptimist)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2006, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-discovered-artemis-fowl/361918/3 "2006-06-23T22:42:43Z")
I love Artemis Fowl. Well written, short enough to read in one sitting, interesting concept, although I think the plot was starting to suffer by the fourth book, interesting possibilities remain. > [@](#): > > The world assumed that the Irish were crazy, a theory that the Irish themselves did nothing to debunk Frankly, Potter kind of annoys me. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2006, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-discovered-artemis-fowl/361918/4 "2006-06-24T00:10:27Z")
Read the first one, and enjoyed it enough. Read about halfway through the second one, but that was several months ago, and ever since it’s been on my “maybe I’ll finish it someday, maybe not” pile. I’m not sure exactly what made me lose interest: maybe I couldn’t suspend enough disbelief, or maybe I just never cared about or believed in the characters, or maybe I was in the wrong mood when I read it, or maybe I thought it would make a better movie than a book. It’s a lot like the literary equivalent of an action movie, the kind with chases and explosions and high-tech gadgetry and special effects, only with fairies and other such fantasy critters. And the genre mixing didn’t entirely work for me. ---
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2006, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-discovered-artemis-fowl/361918/5 "2006-06-24T01:26:27Z")
I want a Butler of my very own. StG ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2006, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-discovered-artemis-fowl/361918/6 "2006-06-24T03:59:02Z")
I’ve only read the first book. I generally liked it but Artemis puts me off a bit too much. ---
**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2006, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-discovered-artemis-fowl/361918/7 "2006-06-24T04:46:17Z")
I like it. I wasn’t all that fond of Artemis picking up a conscience–I like him better on the villainous side of amoral, he works much better. But the characters are well-drawn, and I love the dynamic between Artemis and Butler (and Butler and Juliet, and Holly and Foaly, and…) ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2006, 10:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-discovered-artemis-fowl/361918/8 "2006-06-24T10:20:22Z")
I read the first book. I enjoyed it, but not enough to buy the others. ---
**Author:** ![Cockatiel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cockatiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cockatiel)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2006, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-discovered-artemis-fowl/361918/9 "2006-06-24T17:49:28Z")
I read the first book and thought, “Meh.” I liked the glimpse into the world of the fairies and the other mystics (that volcano elevator was cool) but I couldn’t relate to Artemis. He annoyed the crap out of me. I guess I’m not into the “evil child prodigy” thing. The [Supernaturalist](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/078685149X/qid=1151171213/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/102-4083883-4443346?s=books&v=glance&n=283155), on the other hand, amused me greatly. ---
**Author:** ![Shadez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@Shadez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shadez)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2006, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-discovered-artemis-fowl/361918/10 "2006-06-25T02:17:32Z")
> [@ivylass](#): > > I’ve started Book 2, and Ivygirl has mentioned that there’s four books, but they only have the first three…so maybe Mom can take a trip to the bookstore? 😉 Since you’re getting them from a library, ask one of the librarians to ILL the fourth one for you. ILL stands for InterLibrary Loan. If you have a current card with that particular library, it should be free, not sure. It might take a week or two, but what it does is has your library ask surrounding libraries for a copy of the book to give you for a few weeks. The book’s library then mails the book to your library. Generally the overdue fines are more expensive, but that’s about it. /Shadez