A gifted teenager agonizes over career choices while learning to separate her desires from those of others in this leisurely ballet-school fantasy from the author of Firegold (1999). Forget about a credible plot line. Believing that she has failed the entrance exam, Cerinthe finds a way into the School of Royal Dancers as a laundry maid. In fact, she received top marks, and once she’s discovered she’s not only promoted over the heads of others, but also given a lead role in an upcoming production staged for the royal family. There are two flies in the ointment, however: an arrogant, vicious rival, Elliana; and, in the wake of her failure to save her own mother’s life after an accident, her utter refusal to use her training in herb lore and healing to help those in need. The author, a trained dancer, vividly evokes the school’s high-strung atmosphere, as well as the joys and challenges of dance. She is not so sure-handed with characters, though, as aside from Cerinthe and Elliana no one here steps beyond wafer-thin conventional supporting roles, and as Cerinthe chews over one inner conflict or another the story’s pace sometimes slows to a crawl. Still, melodramatic incidents are not confined to the stage, Cerinthe’s final realization that dance is not her deepest vocation is not easily achieved, and Elliana, driven, physically abused, mentally unbalanced though she may be, is allowed the potential to change, perhaps in a sequel. The intensity may flag here and there, but when it peaks, readers will be drawn in. Elegant cover illustration, too. (Fiction. 11-15)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2000
ISBN: 1-890817-25-2
Page Count: 262
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2000
Rich and strange (and kitted out with an eye-catching cover), but stronger in the set pieces than the internal logic.
Chainani works an elaborate sea change akin to Gregory Maguire’s Wicked (1995), though he leaves the waters muddied.
Every four years, two children, one regarded as particularly nice and the other particularly nasty, are snatched from the village of Gavaldon by the shadowy School Master to attend the divided titular school. Those who survive to graduate become major or minor characters in fairy tales. When it happens to sweet, Disney princess–like Sophie and her friend Agatha, plain of features, sour of disposition and low of self-esteem, they are both horrified to discover that they’ve been dropped not where they expect but at Evil and at Good respectively. Gradually—too gradually, as the author strings out hundreds of pages of Hogwarts-style pranks, classroom mishaps and competitions both academic and romantic—it becomes clear that the placement wasn’t a mistake at all. Growing into their true natures amid revelations and marked physical changes, the two spark escalating rivalry between the wings of the school. This leads up to a vicious climactic fight that sees Good and Evil repeatedly switching sides. At this point, readers are likely to feel suddenly left behind, as, thanks to summary deus ex machina resolutions, everything turns out swell(ish).
Rich and strange (and kitted out with an eye-catching cover), but stronger in the set pieces than the internal logic. (Fantasy. 11-13)Pub Date: May 14, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-06-210489-2
Page Count: 496
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK TO SCREEN
Gratuity Tucci (“Tip” for short) has a problem. Aliens have invaded Earth, stolen her mother, and now she and the rest of humanity are being shunted onto small reservations while the invaders (the Boov) take over the rest of the planet. In avoiding this plan, via her family car, Tip runs across J.Lo, a renegade Boov with problems of his own. Together, girl and alien attempt to locate Tip’s mother only to discover that an even greater alien threat is imminent. It’s up to the two heroes to defeat the invaders, Boov and otherwise, and save the day. The humor in this story is undeniably unique, containing a skewed worldview that children will certainly enjoy. Yet while the first half of the book is an entirely funny road trip of the Kerouac-meets-E.T. variety, the second half slows down considerably. Rex has such a nice grasp of small tender moments amidst a world gone haywire, it’s a pity the book wasn’t pared down significantly. Inspired but problematic. (Fiction. 11-15)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2007
ISBN: 978-0-7868-4900-0
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2007
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
bookshelf
