I’d originally had this book as a selection for the YA Reading Challenge, but it’s definitely a younger book than that, so I’ll read something else to finish out that challenge.
Clockwork is a quick macabre fairy tale set in a stereotypical German town, on the eve of the day the newest clockmaker apprentice will unveil the piece he’s made for the town’s glockenspiel that will signify that he’s an apprentice no longer. Like clockwork, there’s more going on in this town, and the apprentice’s story interlocks with that of a writer facing writer’s block, a clockwork prince, and a little girl who has to be brave to save everyone.
This is a great little story that I easily finished before bed last night, and I’m sure would amuse many a preteen reader.