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The Seven Keys of Balabad, by Paul Haven
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Inspired by the years he spent in Afghanistan and Pakistan as bureau chief with The Associated Press, Paul Haven's intricately crafted tale is filled with details of everyday life in this remote and frequently overlooked part of the world. Loosely based on the legendary Golden Hoard of Bactria--the renowned hidden treasure discovered in northern Afghanistan in 1978--this fast-paced middle-grade novel will appeal to readers who like their twists and turns filled with mysterious characters, exotic locales, and an utterly relatable protagonist.
Welcome to Balabad, birthplace of the international secret society known as the Brotherhood of Arachosia--and rumored hiding place of the grandest riches the world has ever known. Balabad is also the country Oliver Finch has called home ever since his father was reassigned to this dull, war-torn dust bowl. Each day runs into the next for Oliver until a five-hundred-year-old sacred carpet is stolen. Then one of the few friends he has disappears. Oliver is determined to figure out what exactly is going on. But in order to do that he'll have to consult with a one-eyed warrior, track down the far-flung members of the Brotherhood, and unlock a centuries-old secret! Suddenly, life in Balabad for Oliver has become a whole lot more interesting . . . and dangerous.
- Sales Rank: #2902769 in Books
- Brand: Yearling
- Model: FBA-|318626
- Published on: 2010-06-08
- Released on: 2010-06-08
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 7.45" h x .86" w x 5.28" l, .43 pounds
- Binding: Paperback
- 288 pages
From Booklist
Haven, an Associated Press bureau chief whose postings have included Afghanistan and Pakistan, uses some of the mystery surrounding the Golden Hoard of Bactria, a treasure discovered in Afghanistan in 1978, in crafting this ornate, atmospheric suspense romp. Haven’s writing style here is reminiscent of the lush, exotic adventure tales of H. Rider Haggard, especially of King Solomon’s Mines. The hero, 12-year-old Oliver Finch, has been unwillingly transported from his beloved Manhattan along with his father, a foreign correspondent assigned to Balabad. Finch is ideally positioned, then, to learn about both the latest local doings—in this case, the theft of a 500-year-old sacred carpet. When one of Oliver’s friends is kidnapped, he resolves to find his friend and solve the mystery of the stolen carpet, all of which leads to a satisfying series of dangers, pitfalls, double crosses, and escapes. This adventure follows Haven’s first novel, Two Hot Dogs with Everything (2006). Grades 5-8. --Connie Fletcher
About the Author
Born and raised in New York, Paul Haven joined The Associated Press, working and living in Colombia, New York, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Spain. He currently lives in Cuba with his wife and children.
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
1
The Seven Keys
of Arachosia
Bahauddin Shah stumbled through the darkened passageway, gripping the cold stone wall for balance and keeping his head low to avoid the rocky ceiling. The sound of his footsteps echoed back at him through the gloom, and his heart thumped beneath his loose-fitting shirt.
The old man wore a heavy iron key chain around his belt, and it weighed down on him in more ways than one.
There was so little time!
Bahauddin held a small lantern in his right hand that threw his shadow onto the dark red wall above him, making his face seem impossibly long and his beard even thicker than it really was, which was pretty thick indeed. The shadow would have scared the living daylights out of anyone who'd seen it, except there was no daylight down there, and certainly nobody living to be scared of it.
The tunnel twisted and turned. Every once in a while smaller passageways veered off at odd angles into the darkness. Sometimes Bahauddin came out into vast open rooms that rose up into shapeless voids. There were even enormous darkened ponds, wretched and foul-smelling, like the stink of rotten eggs.
Bahauddin covered his nose with a piece of old cloth and tried to stay focused. A man could easily get lost in the Salt Caverns.
In fact, that was the whole idea.
But Bahauddin would not get lost. He knew every corner of this underground world, and his old body pulled him toward the exit like a falcon returning to his master's arm.
Bahauddin had just turned into a wet, narrow passage and was examining some black markings on the wall when the thud of cannon fire above him jolted him to the ground. Debris rained down from the ceiling as he knelt on the floor, catching his breath.
His hand groped for the key chain, and he smiled when his fingers felt the cold iron.
They were all there. All seven of them.
The blast that had knocked Bahauddin to the ground could not have been more than twenty feet above him. He was nearly at the surface.
For the first time, Bahauddin allowed himself to think what he would find up there, twelve hours after he had set off on the most important mission of his life. What would be left of his city, his family, the palace?
"It does not matter," the old man reassured himself, brushing his clothes off in the darkness. "Baladis are survivors. We will rebuild. It just might take some time."
The outsiders would eventually lose interest, just like all the other outsiders who had come before them, Bahauddin thought.
Balabad's great defense was that it was impossible to hold on to, and any rational outsider eventually came to the same conclusion. There were vast deserts in the south, impossibly tall mountain ranges in the east, endless plains in the west, and ten thousand feuding tribes in the north, all angry about some _long-_ago slight, and all willing to drag a foreigner into their squabbles.
Of course, it usually took a decade or so before the invaders would see that it was not worth sticking around, for invaders do not easily give up.
Bahauddin reached the end of the narrow passageway and held his lantern above his head. A small shaft ran straight up from the stone ceiling, about the size of a chimney and just big enough for a man to climb through. You would never have seen it had you not known where to look.
A deep smile creased Bahauddin's face. He clamped his teeth around the lantern's metal handle and jumped as high as he could. His fingers barely gripped a thick iron rung, the first in a series of handles hammered into the red and pink salt rock, so long ago they'd become a part of it.
Bahauddin grunted as he pulled himself up, his strong hands climbing the rungs one after another and his legs dangling below him. He could feel the warmth of the lantern through his beard and hoped it wouldn't catch fire.
This really was a job for a much younger man, Bahauddin thought, but he would have to do. In any case, a much younger man would not have known the secrets of the Salt Caverns. A much younger man most certainly could not have been trusted to take the king's most prized possession into the bowels of the earth, and then to seal the Royal Vault shut. A much younger man would have valued his life too much to return to the surface and to almost certain death.
There was more cannon and musket fire from above, and it was louder now, closer. Bahauddin gripped the cold rungs as hard as he could. He could hear the screams of townsfolk above him now, the fall of horses' hooves, and the angry shouts of soldiers. He took a deep breath and continued to climb.
Waiting somewhere in all that chaos were the king's seven sons, young men whose very lives depended on Bahauddin's success. Each clutched a _hand-_drawn map of the known world, and each had been assigned one of Agamon's seven fastest stallions. Bahauddin prayed he would not be too late.
At the top of the shaft was a large iron cover. Bahauddin released the lantern from his teeth and let it fall in a streak of suicidal light--one second, two seconds, three seconds--until it shattered against the passageway below.
No matter. He would not need it anymore.
The old man took one hand off the last rung and pushed up on the iron cover. It took all his might to ease it aside.
Bahauddin Shah, patriarch of the Shah clan, most trusted adviser to King Agamon the Great, and sacred keeper of the Seven Keys of Arachosia, clambered up into the daylight.
From the Hardcover edition.
Most helpful customer reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful.
An intriguing story set in an exotic location
By KidsReads
Oliver Finch has a difficult time adjusting to life in the dusty, old-world country of Balabad, where his father has been reassigned as a reporter and his mother volunteers at the National Museum. Oliver misses his New York home. He misses his friends. He also misses pizza, ice cold sodas and the New York Yankees.
After six months Oliver has made only one friend his age, Zaheer Mohammed Warzat ul-Hazis (Zee for short). The British-educated Zee is the oldest son of one of the most prominent families in war-ravaged Balabad. When the International School that Oliver attends closes for the summer, there's not much for him to do.
To pass time, Oliver and Zee hang out in Balabad's noisy, dusty marketplace. Oliver is forbidden to venture into the ancient "Thieves' Market," so he and Zee spend time visiting with Mr. Haji in his crowded, one-room carpet shop. On summer afternoons the boys sip sweet green tea and listen to Mr. Haji --- the unofficial historian of Balabad --- haggle with customers and tell great tales.
While visiting Mr. Haji's shop one day, Oliver finds the carpet seller anxiously thumbing his amber prayer beads. Oliver learns Mr. Haji is upset after reading news that a one-of-a-kind carpet has been stolen from a mosque. When Oliver asks what's so important about a missing carpet, Zee explains its significance and the treasures of King Agamon.
The stolen carpet and a missing government official ignite events in Balabad and trigger bold thefts of centuries-old keys from secret locations around the world.
In Balabad, a land of ancient mysteries where nothing is as it seems and no one is who he appears to be, Oliver, Zee and Alamai --- their beautiful new friend --- become ensnared in a brave and dangerous quest. After Mr. Haji disappears, the children join forces and must overcome their fears to rescue him and save the sacred treasures.
THE SEVEN KEYS OF BALABAD is an intriguing story set in an exotic location. I recommend this book to middle-grade readers, especially boys who enjoy suspenseful mysteries and adventure stories with surprising twists and turns and thoroughly likable characters.
--- Reviewed by Donna Volkenannt
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful.
So much potential...
By Amazon Customer
I really wanted to like this book. It has a great premise, and it is set in a part of the world that I wanted my kids to learn more about. I read it over a month ago, and was disappointed, but I decided to give my 10year old a chance to read it - but he stopped reading this book this week - and he was about half way through. So I think it's time I review it.
In my eyes, there are two main problems with this book, and several little ones. The most difficult hurdle when beginning to read this book is that, initially, the setting of the chapters alternate between "long ago" and present time. However, it is not obvious that this is what is happening. In fact, I didn't realize that this was what was happening until at least 1/4 of the way into the book. I know this technique is sometimes used to build tension and suspense, but in this case it was executed so poorly that it was just annoying. The second main problem is that the characters are weak. Some are extremely stereotyped, and some, like the main character, are boring. There's just very little character development going on. The "mystery" is the only thing that keeps developing in this book.
A final, smaller thing that I was personally disappointed with was that there was no "author's note" or "background note" on the event that sparked this author's story. The book flap says "...loosely based on the legendary Golden Hoard of Bactria." Once I googled that event, the story became much more interesting to me, even though it is "loosely" based. Why couldn't an explanation be included?
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.
I love this book
By Reviewer
I never read, but when I got this book and read the back, I wanted to read it. This book is interesting and it makes me rather read then listen in class. Every chance i get, i'm reading this book. Overall, great book!
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