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Sir Nathan and the Quest for Queen Gobbledeegook
Queen Gobbledeegook has gone missing and it is up to Sir Nathan, the Hero of Mariskatania, to find her. Along the way he meets all sorts of odd folks, including pixies and wizards and a hulking creature named Mitzy that likes to knit. The land of Mariskatania is a colorful one, filled with bright Jubb Jubb Trees and fuzzy, blue Hobnobber Squirrels who spend all their time looking for Huckle Nuts, a snack guaranteed to poison them.
224 pages, ebook
First published February 1, 2012
6 people want to read
About the author
Mark Simon Smith
5Ìýbooks6ÌýfollowersMark Smith lives in a small town in the Midwest and has enjoyed the creative outlet of writing since a young age. Sir Nathan and the Quest for Queen Gobbledeegook was originally written as a silly romp through a land of adventure for the author's young nieces and nephews. Now it has been rewritten and edited for a general release, aimed at other children like the author's 9 year old son and for those young at heart.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
October 30, 2019
Full disclosure: Met the author last week and decided to read this after listening to his story telling style. This book was a hilarious romp though episodic adventures with a goofy character.
September 18, 2012
Queen Gobbledeegook has gone missing and it is up to Sir Nathan, the Hero of Mariskatania, to find her. Along the way he meets all sorts of odd folks, including pixies and wizards and a hulking creature named Mazy that likes to knit. The land of Mariskatania is a colorful one, filled with bright Jubb Jubb Trees and fuzzy, blue Hobnobber Squirrels who spend all their time looking for a snack guaranteed to poison them.
The sub-heading, A Somewhat Silly Story, is by no means false advertising Mark Simon Smith has crafted a clever tale that produces laughter, groans, and everything in between. Silly it is. The creatures he has invented include Tinker Toads, MechaMonkeys, Licorice Lambs, and Hobnobber Squirrels, to name a few. Each has interesting and sometimes hilarious traits.
Silly does not stop with the weird, strange, and often nice creatures he comes into contact with while on his quest to find the missing queen. Sir Nathan takes off riding his trusty steed Tupolev, a talking horse.
"You want me to climb a tree?" asked Tupolev in a shocked voice. "Why would you think I am any good at . . . oh, right. I forgot I'm a squirrel now. Sorry"
I enjoy silly movies with slapstick in them . I equally enjoy clever, creative, and silly books like Sir Nathan and the Quest for Queen Gobbledeegook: A Somewhat Silly Story. I think this is a good book for reluctant readers. The story is easy to follow, fun to read, and will brighten the spirits of anyone who reads it.
There are illustrations scattered throughout the book. These black and white line drawings are a great compliment to the story. If you have never seen a MechaMonkey, Pixie Sisters, or a giant Warlock's Assistant, Derek Gebler's art will help you imagine the unimaginable. His illustrations are clean, clear representations of the author's unique brain. Unfortunately, there are not enough of them in the book. I would have liked to see one at the beginning of each chapter.
Sir Nathan is one of those books that sparks the imagination. Many books are clever, others are creative, and some are fun. Sir Nathan and the Quest for Queen Gobbledeegook is all three. For those that like to read chapter books, one chapter at a time, as the nightly bedtime story, this book will have your kids mesmerized, wanting to know more. Their dreams will be pleasant, not nightmarish, since even the evil creatures have a good side. Girls will like this book as equally as boys will. When your child has devoured the book, and willing to part with it, sit down and read one of the better new children's authors debuting in 2012.
Book courtesy of the author.
Originally reviewed at Kid Lit Reviews @
The sub-heading, A Somewhat Silly Story, is by no means false advertising Mark Simon Smith has crafted a clever tale that produces laughter, groans, and everything in between. Silly it is. The creatures he has invented include Tinker Toads, MechaMonkeys, Licorice Lambs, and Hobnobber Squirrels, to name a few. Each has interesting and sometimes hilarious traits.
Silly does not stop with the weird, strange, and often nice creatures he comes into contact with while on his quest to find the missing queen. Sir Nathan takes off riding his trusty steed Tupolev, a talking horse.
"You want me to climb a tree?" asked Tupolev in a shocked voice. "Why would you think I am any good at . . . oh, right. I forgot I'm a squirrel now. Sorry"
I enjoy silly movies with slapstick in them . I equally enjoy clever, creative, and silly books like Sir Nathan and the Quest for Queen Gobbledeegook: A Somewhat Silly Story. I think this is a good book for reluctant readers. The story is easy to follow, fun to read, and will brighten the spirits of anyone who reads it.
There are illustrations scattered throughout the book. These black and white line drawings are a great compliment to the story. If you have never seen a MechaMonkey, Pixie Sisters, or a giant Warlock's Assistant, Derek Gebler's art will help you imagine the unimaginable. His illustrations are clean, clear representations of the author's unique brain. Unfortunately, there are not enough of them in the book. I would have liked to see one at the beginning of each chapter.
Sir Nathan is one of those books that sparks the imagination. Many books are clever, others are creative, and some are fun. Sir Nathan and the Quest for Queen Gobbledeegook is all three. For those that like to read chapter books, one chapter at a time, as the nightly bedtime story, this book will have your kids mesmerized, wanting to know more. Their dreams will be pleasant, not nightmarish, since even the evil creatures have a good side. Girls will like this book as equally as boys will. When your child has devoured the book, and willing to part with it, sit down and read one of the better new children's authors debuting in 2012.
Book courtesy of the author.
Originally reviewed at Kid Lit Reviews @
February 11, 2015
Review by Award Winning Children's Book Author, Diane Mae Robinson
From the back cover: Queen Gobbledeegook has gone missing and it is up to Sir Nathan, the Hero of Mariskatania, to find her. Along the way he meets all sorts of odd folks, including pixies and wizards and a hulking creature named Mitzy that likes to knit.The land of Mariskatania is a colorful one, filled with bright Jubb Jubb Trees and fuzzy, blue Hobnobber Squirrels who spend all their time looking for a snack guaranteed to poison them.
This very clever and very silly adventure book is definitely one of my new favorites. The writing is crisp and exciting, and the totally out-of-the-box humor is amazing. I laughed, and I mean, I laughed a lot!
Sir Nathan is a great character: he is short, determined, somewhat scatter-brained, and he "hates evil" most of all. And although the "evils" don't turn out to be so evil after all, Sir Nathan tackles each evil situation with the utmost fierceness.
Princess Abbey, Tupolev, Sir Nathan's talking horse, and all of the other characters are quirky, interesting, and just plain fun.
The interior illustrations are black and white line drawings by Derek K. Gebler and are a wonderful addition to the story.
This book is imaginative and lively. A book that is easy and fun to read, and a book that any reluctant reader would definitely stick with. It is also a book that anybody, of any age, would thoroughly enjoy.
From the back cover: Queen Gobbledeegook has gone missing and it is up to Sir Nathan, the Hero of Mariskatania, to find her. Along the way he meets all sorts of odd folks, including pixies and wizards and a hulking creature named Mitzy that likes to knit.The land of Mariskatania is a colorful one, filled with bright Jubb Jubb Trees and fuzzy, blue Hobnobber Squirrels who spend all their time looking for a snack guaranteed to poison them.
This very clever and very silly adventure book is definitely one of my new favorites. The writing is crisp and exciting, and the totally out-of-the-box humor is amazing. I laughed, and I mean, I laughed a lot!
Sir Nathan is a great character: he is short, determined, somewhat scatter-brained, and he "hates evil" most of all. And although the "evils" don't turn out to be so evil after all, Sir Nathan tackles each evil situation with the utmost fierceness.
Princess Abbey, Tupolev, Sir Nathan's talking horse, and all of the other characters are quirky, interesting, and just plain fun.
The interior illustrations are black and white line drawings by Derek K. Gebler and are a wonderful addition to the story.
This book is imaginative and lively. A book that is easy and fun to read, and a book that any reluctant reader would definitely stick with. It is also a book that anybody, of any age, would thoroughly enjoy.
December 17, 2012
The Queen of Mariskantania is missing, and it is up to the hero, Sir Nathan to smite all the evil in the land and rescue
her. In this colorful adventure we travel with Sir Nathan across the land, past beautiful puffy Jubb Jubb trees, through the Swamp Forest of Misery, past Mount Thunder and all the way to Flying Hills of Blort. This perilous journey is wrought with danger as our hero must outsmart pixies, evil wizards, the mini Prestidigitator (who really thinks he’s ten feet tall) and baby giants. Through everything the Hero manages to overcome his challenges and in the end makes a number of new friends.
This book is an enchanting tale of adventure and fun. I smiled the entire time I was reading it to the point that my cheeks hurt. Author Mark Simon Smith has created an entertaining world for children and adults alike. There was a number of laugh-out-loud moments and even a few places where I found myself holding my breath to find out what was
going to happen to our hero. In addition to the great descriptions and clever adventures that Sir Nathan experienced, I think that readers have an opportunity to learn about overcoming obstacles, using your head to solve problems and making new friends in the process -- lessons we can all use no matter our age or experience.
(This book was provided to Compulsion Reads for review by the author.)
her. In this colorful adventure we travel with Sir Nathan across the land, past beautiful puffy Jubb Jubb trees, through the Swamp Forest of Misery, past Mount Thunder and all the way to Flying Hills of Blort. This perilous journey is wrought with danger as our hero must outsmart pixies, evil wizards, the mini Prestidigitator (who really thinks he’s ten feet tall) and baby giants. Through everything the Hero manages to overcome his challenges and in the end makes a number of new friends.
This book is an enchanting tale of adventure and fun. I smiled the entire time I was reading it to the point that my cheeks hurt. Author Mark Simon Smith has created an entertaining world for children and adults alike. There was a number of laugh-out-loud moments and even a few places where I found myself holding my breath to find out what was
going to happen to our hero. In addition to the great descriptions and clever adventures that Sir Nathan experienced, I think that readers have an opportunity to learn about overcoming obstacles, using your head to solve problems and making new friends in the process -- lessons we can all use no matter our age or experience.
(This book was provided to Compulsion Reads for review by the author.)
May 23, 2012
Queen Gobbledeegook is missing from the kingdom of Mariskatania! The hero of the land, Sir Nathan, and his trusty steed are sent to find her and bring her back. With the help of many strange and unique people (and things), our hero and his horse go through a long and difficult quest to find the queen. Will they succeed and not meet a horrible fate? Will they survive the giant-sized toddlers that want to eat them? Will our hero EVER get to finally smite someone (or thing)? Read the book to find out!!
This not somewhat silly, but VERY silly adventure has it all! I think the story is a great adventure story and there is so much silly humor in the book I was laughing out loud at a bunch of places! Sir Nathan is an AWESOME character and Tupolev, Sir Nathan’s talking horse, is another character I really liked. There are some simple illustrations throughout the book which were a nice addition. I really liked how each “evil� character Sir Nathan ran into actually turned out to be pretty nice! The book is completely clean of and bad language but packed full of silly humor! I recommend the book to advanced young readers and anyone who likes a good laugh!
This not somewhat silly, but VERY silly adventure has it all! I think the story is a great adventure story and there is so much silly humor in the book I was laughing out loud at a bunch of places! Sir Nathan is an AWESOME character and Tupolev, Sir Nathan’s talking horse, is another character I really liked. There are some simple illustrations throughout the book which were a nice addition. I really liked how each “evil� character Sir Nathan ran into actually turned out to be pretty nice! The book is completely clean of and bad language but packed full of silly humor! I recommend the book to advanced young readers and anyone who likes a good laugh!
May 8, 2013
Sir Nathan and the Quest for Queen Gobbledeegook by Mark Simon Smith is definitely not a book that I would pick up off a bookstore shelf. However, it was written by the brother of a former co-worker, so I wanted to give it a try. I also have to admit that I needed to get out of my “adult thinking� and see this book as my former third graders would see it. When I did that…I can honestly say that it was a fun read. I think some kids will need to grow into the humor, but could be enjoyed if parents read the book to their younger kids the first time around. Being able to read between the lines is a skill that children need to experience and appreciate and this book offers many opportunities for just that. In today’s world, it is a great thing to find books that children can enjoy that will keep their imaginations flying into new worlds…and this book takes them to the land of Mariskatania, with all sorts of characters. Mr. Simon does a great job of describing both the setting and the characters, so children will be able to “see� this book happening in their mind’s eye.
March 27, 2012
My nine year old is a voracious reader and has read this twice already! We read the e-book and he LOVED it so we bought the paperback that is available with illustrations. My son was so excited he took it to his teacher and they are reading it in his class now. I think it's a great book to read out loud for any age!
May 10, 2012
A really delightful and wacky tale that reminded me of the good old days, when having fun was my job as a kid. This one has humor that can be enjoyed by kids and Big kids of all ages from 8 to 88!! I would highly recommend this to anyone who likes throwback tales of knights and giants with more silliness than a company of leprechauns traveling with a clown-troupe.
March 11, 2012
Very witty and fun story. Well written, with lots of clever and absurd humor. My ten-year old daughter LOVED it, and kept reading quotes and passages out loud to us. We can't wait for the sequel!
March 26, 2012
Great, funny, laugh out loud fairy tale meets fantasy. Something for every boy and girl. I can't wait to read Book 2!
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