"In life, a person will come and go from many homes. We may leave a house, a town, a room, but that does not mean those places leave us. Once entered, we never entirely depart the homes we make for ourselves in the world. They follow us, like shadows, until we come upon them again, waiting for us in the mist."
|
__________________________________
News and Upcoming Events __________________________________
|
*
Ari's first novel, DEATH WATCH, out now!
|
*
Praise for DEATH WATCH . . .
"Berk’s writing style and language are reminiscent of the classic gothic works of Nathaniel Hawthorne and Shirley Jackson. The plot and pacing have a haunting, dreamlike quality--the type of dream that morphs into nightmares that jolt sleepers awake with a pounding heart and shaking hands."
— School Library Journal
"Ari Berk writes deftly about loss and love, mining a rich vein of ghostly folklore with vivid prose, style and wit. A marvelous tapestry of a book." — Holly Black, New York Times bestselling author
"A+ ~ A book for those who love stories with rich, deep histories, with detailed descriptions that make you feel like you were there. Not for readers looking for a gushy love story, or driveling characters that need a significant other to make up their minds for them. Death Watch is for lovers of literature, those readers who revel in the velvety texture of words as they roll off the tongue. It is for those who read aloud at night to empty rooms, just to hear each line sing. This will go on my shelf of favorites..."
— little squeed blog [Read the whole review at little squeed here]
"If any book deserves crazy hype and buzz, it's this one. Simply put, this was one of the most original and atmospheric reads I have come across this year. The writing is gorgeous. The descriptive passages are out of this world. And the characters? Oh. My. God." — Great Imaginations
"While there are other books featuring those tasked with helping spirits move to the other side, Ari Berk manages to craft a unique tone which focuses more on the protagonist’s tumultuous life than the job he’s overtaking. The result is the belief that real people occupy these pages." — BrodartVibe
"Ari Berk has created a wonderfully eerie, half-decayed world filled with nuanced characters, both living and dead. Deathwatch haunts, not only with its restless spirits, but also with its psychological honesty. Berk offers a masterly portrayal of a boy’s struggle to deal with the loss of his father. With lyrical prose, the tale speaks to the destructive power of unresolved grief, the ageless need to mourn our dead, and the unquenchable longing to understand what comes next."
— Larissa N. Niec, Ph.D., Clinical Child Psychologist and author of the novel Shorn: Book One of the Sky Seekers
Berk’s writing is thick and glorious like some kind of delicious creamy potato soup. ...And this might just be one of the creepiest and darkest books I have ever read. Some darker books will give you glimpses of darkness and then for whatever reason, lets up. This book doesn’t. Seriously, if you love...Ransom Riggs’ Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, read this. — Novel Thoughts [Read the whole review at Novel Thoughts here]
"Death Watch is rich with imagery and well researched lore about death and the dead. Berk masterfully weaves together different cultural traditions and rituals about death into an interesting and engaging story. Some might classify this as a horror story but it is much more than that. It is also a coming of age story about a boy who must decide what path he should follow and how growing up means that you have to accept new found responsibilities and learn to forgive to move forward. One of the best books I have read in a long time."
— Bay Area Young Adult Librarians (BAYA)
"...one of the most imaginative tales bound between two covers. Ari Berk has crafted a unique world that many will wish actually existed. Be patient with the first fifty pages, and we guarantee you’ll be very upset that the sequel is not out yet. Excellent and compelling."
— Yaroos! Young Adult Book Reviews
*
|
"How to Double Your Allowance" graphite on paper, 2011. By Robin Berk (age 9)
|
*
The Life and Times of William Shakespeare wins the School Library Association Children's Choice Award for children's favorite information book in the UK!
*
|
|
|
