Ela Green and the Kingdom of Abud by Sylvia Greif

It can’t be, no…” The tree had just brushed her shoulder with its branch and was now looking at her. Recovering from her fright, she stood speechless. She was staring into the eyes of a tree. I am mad.I must have fallen on my head, certainly, yes, for sure, Ela thought as she tried to reassure herself. Ela Green and the Kingdom of Abud is the first book of a trilogy and introduces Ela, a fourteen-year-old girl. Ela is no common young girl; she talks to plants and animals and has a very close bond with Mother Nature and Earth‘s heartbeat. She has a complicated familial background and just found out that she was adopted. She also struggles at school and does not get along with the other girls. The adventure starts in the present day at Waldegg Boarding school on the shores of Lake Geneva in Switzerland. The formidable school is the connecting link in an adventure that will time-travel the reader through centuries and continents in search of the mysterious Kingdom of Abud and the magical Book of Name, the most powerful manuscript ever written. As Mrs. Green drives her daughter back after the summer holidays, Ela has no idea that the discovery of an ancient bracelet and a scroll she found in an antique desk will change her life forever. Motivated by the excitement of the mysteries she finds herself entangled in, the feisty young girl will come to understand her own potential, strength and discover the power of her miraculousmagicalheart. Different myths and beliefs add to Ela’s universe drawn for Norse mythology and Egyptology that lead the way to a prophecy that must be fulfilled. Book, one follows Ela’s fantastical adventure charting her own journey of self-discovery along the way. The narrative starts with Ela’s first passage to Abud, and her encounter with Yggdrasil the wise-tree keeper of the kingdom. As the story unfolds, Ela and her uncle Archie will passage together and meet some of the strange inhabitants of the mysterious kingdom. Munkor the friendly insect, Mother Mortius the terrifying protector of nature and Mother of trees, Nyani guardian of the underworld ,Gubblew the talking rock and Baob the angry tree.