This book was such a unique read for me that I can't recall reading anything of this nature, with the one exception of The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan, which is also allegorical in nature. The story in Between Two Kingdoms is told as a story that I think young children could appreciate just as well as adults because of the simplistic nature of the text. What intrigued me about this book was trying to figure out what each element of the story represented in reference to the Bible. Some things were obvious, such as the King being God, the Good Prince being Jesus Christ, and the River being the Holy Spirit. The interpretation of many elements though are biased according to how the author, Joe Boyd, interprets Bibical scripture, such as making the River female in nature, which would indicate Boyd's interpretation that the Holy Spirit is also female, which I do not agree with. Another interpretation that I found questionable was the Dark Prince and his true name, Adam. I could be wrong, but that tells me that the author interprets the origin of the Devil as the first man, Adam. I was completely baffled by the language that the Phantom Messengers spoke and what it was supposed to represent.
Many elements of the story were quite imaginative and fascinating, such as the behavior of the River, which was as playful and joyous as it could be peaceful and comforting. I love how the children could use such a simple thing as mirrors to destroy the Phantom Messengers by showing them their true selves. The Long Night was rife with metaphor, and I love good metaphors.
On the whole, I think this story is a great conversation piece for anyone interested in puzzling out the meanings behind the allegory. ( )

I was sent this book from FSB to read and give a review. Please read disclaimer.

Between Two Kingdoms by Joe Boyd is an allegory ,very much so. Even if you have just a passing knowledge of Christianity you will be able to figure out what most of this book is trying to convey.

That being said I found this book very entertaining and I think that the intended audience of preteen and early teens will find this book very exciting and enjoyable, especially boys.

The two kingdoms in question are the Upper Kingdom, which is ruled by Great King and The Good Prince, and the Lower Kingdom ruled by The Dark Prince. The residents in the Upper Kingdom on eternally seven years old and spend their days eating cookies for breakfast and building tree houses and whatever else they like. The residents in the Lower Kingdom are old people who don't have a pleasant existence.

The Good Prince calls Tommy to go on a mission to the Lower Kingdom. The Prince calls Tommy a Leader but Tommy protests. The Good Prince says "A person can be a leader long before he has the occasion to lead".

Tommy and several of his friends , Mary, Luke, Bobby go to the Lower Kingdom and meet several other followers of the Great King including Pops. Along with these followers they must stop the Dark Prince's evil plan.

This was a very quick read and it was mostly non stop action from beginning to end.

I would recommend this book to anyone looking for something that a boy would like to read. Girls would like it too but I think that boys would really enjoy it. ( )