by Valerie Hobbs ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 7, 2012
Ultimately, this important topic deserves a more in-depth exploration than this brief, albeit thoughtful, effort offers.
A shy sixth-grader learns to speak out against prejudice when her community rushes to judge an unusual teacher.
Minnie is new to the school; her family has downsized since her father lost his job after objecting to an employee’s unfair treatment. Minnie's newly minted teacher, Miss Marks, whose jeans and T-shirts, multiple ear piercings, tattoo and rumored lesbianism immediately raise eyebrows, captivates her language arts class with her unique teaching style. She's thoughtful and wise, challenging the class to think objectively, especially about prejudice. Minnie observes growing bias against not just Miss Marks, but also her new Muslim friend, Amira, but she’s torn between remaining safely unobtrusive or taking a stand for what’s right. Her Uncle Bill, an amputee war veteran, provides just the right nudge to Minnie as he begins to take control of his life. While Minnie’s character is well-developed, others are painted with a frustratingly broad brush. Astute readers may wonder why Minnie’s mother makes such a rush to judgment, facilely dismissing her daughter's opinion, and why there is such a sharp, seemingly swift response against a largely effective teacher. Some side stories lack sufficient development: that of a classmate who's abruptly withdrawn from school and another about a possible breach of Miss Marks’ privacy at home by older students.
Ultimately, this important topic deserves a more in-depth exploration than this brief, albeit thoughtful, effort offers. (Fiction. 10-13)Pub Date: Aug. 7, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-374-32496-4
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Frances Foster/Farrar, Straus & Giroux
Review Posted Online: Sept. 25, 2012
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by Soman Chainani ; illustrated by Iacopo Bruno ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 14, 2013
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
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by Soman Chainani ; illustrated by Iacopo Bruno
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by Stacy McAnulty ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2020
Cinematic, over-the-top decadence, a tense race against time, and lessons on what’s truly valuable.
A reward of $5,000,000 almost ruins everything for two seventh graders.
On a class trip to New York City, Felix and Benji find a wallet belonging to social media billionaire Laura Friendly. Benji, a well-off, chaotic kid with learning disabilities, swipes $20 from the wallet before they send it back to its owner. Felix, a poor, shy, rule-follower, reluctantly consents. So when Laura Friendly herself arrives to give them a reward for the returned wallet, she’s annoyed. To teach her larcenous helpers a lesson, Laura offers them a deal: a $20,000 college scholarship or slightly over $5 million cash—but with strings attached. The boys must spend all the money in 30 days, with legal stipulations preventing them from giving anything away, investing, or telling anyone about it. The glorious windfall quickly grows to become a chore and then a torment as the boys appear increasingly selfish and irresponsible to the adults in their lives. They rent luxury cars, hire a (wonderful) philosophy undergrad as a chauffeur, take their families to Disney World, and spend thousands on in-app game purchases. Yet, surrounded by hedonistically described piles of loot and filthy lucre, the boys long for simpler fundamentals. The absorbing spending spree reads like a fun family film, gleefully stuffed with the very opulence it warns against. Major characters are White.
Cinematic, over-the-top decadence, a tense race against time, and lessons on what’s truly valuable. (mathematical explanations) (Fiction. 10-12)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-17525-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: June 29, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2020
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