A clever modern-day quest with an unfortunate case of attention deficit disorder.
In Rowan’s (The Mooring, 2012) modern-day retelling of The Hobbit, a Seattle loner gets recruited by a band of quirky geekerati to help recover a technological treasure.
Bill Bowens just wants a quiet life at home with his books. But when an old friend of his father’s drops by—with some oddly assorted tech-whiz friends—he accepts their offer of an adventurous treasure hunt. They want to recover some intellectual property (considered stolen) they’d developed, now hidden beneath a layer of puzzles and riddles that Bill, they’re sure, is the right guy to solve. The riddles are simple and few, so it’s hard to see why the group needs a puzzle master. Regardless, their quest takes them around Seattle, where solving riddles at certain locations opens a series of back-door entrances leading to the treasure. All of this is overlaid with a thick crust of technospeak that the hero is the first to admit he doesn’t understand; despite endless explanations, readers may not either. Though never made explicit, it will be clear to readers familiar with The Hobbit that this is a retelling of that novel. Spotting the parallels is enjoyable; Bill for Bilbo, Dr. Agon for the dragon, a random-number generator gadget that, like Gollum’s ring, makes the user invisible (to computers, anyway). Rowan worked out the similarities very cleverly; however, a retelling must hold together on its own, and this story bogs down in confusing episodes thick with description but not with action. A simple trip to get coffee at the mall (based on the wargs episode in The Hobbit) goes on forever, with diatribes about yuppies, enormous SUVs and baby strollers, the evils of corporate coffee joints, and pages of explanation about random-number generation. Often, though, any sense of danger or excitement drains away in overwrought wordiness. As unwieldy as the book becomes, Rowan has some wonderful moments: “Woods are beautiful until you know what is in them,” his narrator notes. Still, for a man on a quest, Bill Bowens has a tough time keeping his eyes on the prize.
A clever modern-day quest with an unfortunate case of attention deficit disorder.Pub Date: March 21, 2012
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Amazon Digital Services
Review Posted Online: May 14, 2012
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
In more ways than one, a tale about young creatures testing their wings; a moving, entertaining winner.
A fifth-grade New Orleans girl discovers a mysterious chrysalis containing an unexpected creature in this middle-grade novel.
Jacquelyn Marie Johnson, called Jackie, is a 10-year-old African-American girl, the second oldest and the only girl of six siblings. She’s responsible, smart, and enjoys being in charge; she likes “paper dolls and long division and imagining things she had never seen.” Normally, Jackie has no trouble obeying her strict but loving parents. But when her potted snapdragon acquires a peculiar egg or maybe a chrysalis (she dubs it a chrysalegg), Jackie’s strong desire to protect it runs up against her mother’s rule against plants in the house. Jackie doesn’t exactly mean to lie, but she tells her mother she needs to keep the snapdragon in her room for a science project and gets permission. Jackie draws the chrysalegg daily, waiting for something to happen as it gets larger. When the amazing creature inside breaks free, Jackie is more determined than ever to protect it, but this leads her further into secrets and lies. The results when her parents find out are painful, and resolving the problem will take courage, honesty, and trust. Dumas (Jaden Toussaint, the Greatest: Episode 5, 2017, etc.) presents a very likable character in Jackie. At 10, she’s young enough to enjoy playing with paper dolls but has a maturity that even older kids can lack. She’s resourceful, as when she wants to measure a red spot on the chrysalegg; lacking calipers, she fashions one from her hairpin. Jackie’s inward struggle about what to obey—her dearest wishes or the parents she loves—is one many readers will understand. The book complicates this question by making Jackie’s parents, especially her mother, strict (as one might expect to keep order in a large family) but undeniably loving and protective as well—it’s not just a question of outwitting clueless adults. Jackie’s feelings about the creature (tender and responsible but also more than a little obsessive) are similarly shaded rather than black-and-white. The ending suggests that an intriguing sequel is to come.
In more ways than one, a tale about young creatures testing their wings; a moving, entertaining winner.Pub Date: Nov. 11, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943169-32-0
Page Count: 212
Publisher: Plum Street Press
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2018
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A YA novel that treats its subject and its readers with respect while delivering an engaging story.
In the ninth book in the Bluford young-adult series, a young Latino man walks away from violence—but at great personal cost.
In a large Southern California city, 16-year-old Martin Luna hangs out on the fringes of gang life. He’s disaffected, fatherless and increasingly drawn into the orbit of the older, rougher Frankie. When a stray bullet kills Martin’s adored 8-year-old brother, Huero, Martin seems to be heading into a life of crime. But Martin’s mother, determined not to lose another son, moves him to another neighborhood—the fictional town of Bluford, where he attends the racially diverse Bluford High. At his new school, the still-grieving Martin quickly makes enemies and gets into trouble. But he also makes friends with a kind English teacher and catches the eye of Vicky, a smart, pretty and outgoing Bluford student. Martin’s first-person narration supplies much of the book’s power. His dialogue is plain, but realistic and believable, and the authors wisely avoid the temptation to lard his speech with dated and potentially embarrassing slang. The author draws a vivid and affecting picture of Martin’s pain and confusion, bringing a tight-lipped teenager to life. In fact, Martin’s character is so well drawn that when he realizes the truth about his friend Frankie, readers won’t feel as if they are watching an after-school special, but as though they are observing the natural progression of Martin’s personal growth. This short novel appears to be aimed at urban teens who don’t often see their neighborhoods portrayed in young-adult fiction, but its sophisticated characters and affecting story will likely have much wider appeal.
A YA novel that treats its subject and its readers with respect while delivering an engaging story.Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2004
ISBN: 978-1591940173
Page Count: 152
Publisher: Townsend Press
Review Posted Online: Jan. 26, 2013
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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
