The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod: Eighth Grade Bites
The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod: Eight Grade Bites is a novel about an eighth grade vampire-human hybrid named Vladimir Tod. It was written in 2007 by Heather Brewer and is told in third person.
Vladimir Tod is what some would label as the lonely, awkward, and pale goth kid. He is part human and part vampire and has some special talents, such as floating in midair and the ability to read minds. After a mysterious fire which caused the death of his parents, Vladimir is put under the custody of his Aunt Nelly. His only friend is the popular jock Henry and he has the biggest crush on one of the most school's popular girls, Meredith. The disappearance of his teacher Mr. Craig starts to freak him out. Who would kidnap a teacher?
In the beginning of the novel, Vlad and Henry find a strange book and cylinder in the attic. They all have a mysterious symbol engraved into them, three slanted lines outlined by parenthesis.
During the story, a few chapters fade in and out on a mysterious man who is desperate to find Vlad. Eventually, Vlad goes into one of his classes and finds a strange man who will be their substitute teacher, Otis Otis (also known as Mr. Otis). He begins to talk in strange ways about Mr. Craig, the teacher he is subing for. This doesn't really bother Vlad until he starts bringing up vampires.
A few nights later he runs off to Mr. Craig's house. The first thing he notices is that Mr. Craig's scarves and hats are hung up on an old coat rack. When he's about to leave the home, he notices that a familiar hat rests next to Mr. Craig's things. The hat belongs to none other than Mr. Otis. Feeling creeped out, Vlad leaves the house. On the porch, he notices the same mark that was on the book and the cylinder.
Vlad figures out how to open up the mystery book by pressing his hand to the strange symbol. He finds only more questions instead of answers. We then figure out that the strange man's name is D'Ablo. D'Ablo is the man who has been hunting down Vlad for the first 100 pages or so. Will Vlad defeat his hunter? Will he ever be popular? Will the bullies ever back off? Read to find out.
My take on the book is complicated. It's not a very challenging book to read. Vlad still is my favorite vampire of all time. I did find myself questioning the relationship between Henry and Vlad. I questioned why a jock would be best friends with a goth vampire boy quite often. Throughout the book Brewer can't seem to make up her mind about Mr. Otis. At some points he's evil and at others he's the hero. I wondered how Vlad ended up goth in the first place and why he would like a preppy girl. The plot dragged on for a little bit. But, it was all balanced out in the end. It was quite a slow start. Every character except Vlad was kinda unbelievable.
But, the book had its high points too. First of all, this book made me want more at the end. Secondly, I loved the fact that this book was easy and simple to read and that there weren't many fillers. Thirdly, I think it's different that a female author wrote as if she were really a teenaged boy. Even though it was written in third person, it still felt like first person to me.
I instantly fell in love with Vladimir. I guess it's because I'm a complete sucker for anything vampiric. Just getting me to care about the main character was an accomplishment in itself. Part of me really wanted Meredith and Vlad to be together. Nelly was a complete doll, her whole live revolved around Vlad. I really did enjoy this simple, yet unique book. It would devastate me if Hollywood ruined this book and turned it into a movie. All around I give it 8/10 stars.
