Alcatraz Versus the Scrivener's Bones

Think about it. Why does someone become a writer? Is it because they like people? Of course not. Why else would we seek out a job where we get to spend all day, every day, cooped up in our basement with no company besides paper, a pencil, and our imaginary friends?

WRITING EXERCISES

Reading Journal Entry: Knowledge

The Curators attempt to trick Alcatraz and his comrades into reading. In a short essay or reading journal entry, describe what type of knowledge is most tempting to you. What is the most important kind of knowledge? Do you think you would be able to avoid the Curators’ traps? Why or why not?

Explanatory Text: Ancient Libraries

With friends or classmates, go to the library or online to learn more about the Ancient Library of Alexandria, and other ancient libraries or archives. Create informative posters about these places, their locations, history, contents and legacy, and assemble them into a classroom display.

Literary Analysis: Names

Many Free Kingdoms characters have names associated with prisons. Make an annotated list of characters with prison names accompanied by facts about their namesake prisons. What reason(s) are given for the prison names by various characters in the story? Can you think of other novels, book series, television shows, or movies in which characters’ names are related to such things as historical figures or geographical landmarks? What impact does Brandon Sanderson’s naming choices have on your reading of the story?

Literary Analysis: Forgotten Language

Write a short essay explaining how the idea of a “Forgotten Language” is introduced in the story and how it becomes an increasingly important concept throughout the course of the novel. Why might the idea of language be something Brandon Sanderson seeks to put at the core of this series?

English Language Arts Common Core Standards

RL.3.1–4, 4.1–4, 5.1–4, 6.1–4, 7.1–4

SL.3.3–4, 4.3–4, 5.3–4, 6.3–4, 7.3–4

W.3.1–3, 4.1–3, 5.1–3, 6.1–3, 7.1–3; W3.7–8, 4.7–9, 5.7–9, 6.7–9, 7.7–9

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Brandon Sanderson is not, obviously, the real author of this book. Alcatraz Smedry wrote it. Because this book must be published in the Hushlands as a “fantasy” novel in order to confuse and distract Librarian agents, an arrangement has been reached with Mr. Sanderson to use his name on the cover.

Alcatraz has met Brandon Sanderson, and he was not impressed. Sanderson writes actual fantasy books— silly things that are nowhere near as factual and real as this text. He’s the president of his local chapter of THCoFWWBAWTL, and he has been known to bring swords to weddings.

He’s been imprisoned for improper use of puns on three separate occasions. You can sign up for email updates here.

ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR

Hayley Lazo is an artist by trade, but her true passion is dispensing righteous fury upon grammatical offenders. Misplaced modifiers, dangling participles, and comma splices are among the many things up with which she shall not put. Her art can be found at art-zealot.deviantart.com.

ALSO BY BRANDON SANDERSON

Starscape

Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians

The Scrivener’s Bones

The Knights of Crystallia

The Shattered Lens

The Dark Talent (forthcoming)

Tor Teen

The Rithmatist

THE MISTBORN TRILOGY

Mistborn

The Well of Ascension

The Hero of Ages

Praise for the Alcatraz Series

“This is an excellent choice to read aloud to the whole family. It’s funny, exciting, and briskly paced.”

—NPR on Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians

“Genuinely funny … Plenty here to enjoy.”

—Locus on Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians

“Like Lemony Snicket and superhero comics rolled into one (and then revved up on steroids), this nutty novel … [is] also sure to win passionate fans.”

—Publishers Weekly (starred review) on Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians

“The conventional trappings of the middle-school fantasy get turned upside down in this zany novel.… Readers who prefer fantasy with plenty of humor should enjoy entering Alcatraz’s strange but amusing world.”

—School Library Journal on Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians