This suspenseful sci-fi story packs the kind of energy and danger teen readers thrive on.
Fifteen-year-old author DeBellis’ debut young adult novel is a futuristic, dystopian tale that pits a group of teens against a new virus.
This science fiction story opens as protagonist January makes one last desperate trip into the chaotic, decimated town of Dyruit. A bubonic plague–like disease has been tearing through the region in the wake of a devastating economic collapse that wore the country’s resources down to bare bones. January and her sister, Cara, are fleeing south to Traxa, the capital, where it’s said to be safe—and where they believe their parents have been living since they mysteriously left the girls seven years earlier. This sisterly bond and inevitable rivalry keeps these characters sympathetic and relatable throughout the book. As they drive south in one of the area’s few remaining cars, they see scenes of depleted natural resources and devastation. When their car dies, the girls pick up their belongings and begin to walk—a gun in easy reach. Soon they happen across a boy named Nev and coerce their way into his car. The close quarters make it easy for Cara to begin trusting Nev, but January’s suspicion takes longer to wear off. Upon arriving in Traxa, the sisters start the fearful search for their parents’ whereabouts. As the story progresses, readers see Nev become only the first of several friends for the girls; it’s these friendships that help the teens survive the challenges ahead and regain hope. The plot, characters and voice of DeBellis’ novel will engage teen readers from the very first page. The pacing is spot-on, keeping things moving without leaving readers in the dust. While the events are far from readers’ experiences, the characters’ emotions and interactions are relatable to today’s teens. Though the story doesn’t draw strict references to the present, some readers might consider it a disturbingly realistic vision of the future.
This suspenseful sci-fi story packs the kind of energy and danger teen readers thrive on.Pub Date: Jan. 9, 2012
ISBN: 2940013737808
Page Count: -
Publisher: Amy DeBellis
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2012
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Playful, engaging, and full of opportunities for empathy—a raucous storytime hit.
Readers try to dislodge a monster from the pages of this emotive and interactive read-aloud.
“OH NO!” the story starts. “There’s a monster in your book!” The blue, round-headed monster with pink horns and a pink-tipped tail can be seen cheerfully munching on the opening page. “Let’s try to get him out,” declares the narrator. Readers are encouraged to shake, tilt, and spin the book around, while the monster careens around an empty background looking scared and lost. Viewers are exhorted to tickle the monster’s feet, blow on the page, and make a really loud noise. Finally, shockingly, it works: “Now he’s in your room!” But clearly a monster in your book is safer than a monster in your room, so he’s coaxed back into the illustrations and lulled to sleep, curled up under one page and cuddling a bit of another like a child with their blankie. The monster’s entirely cute appearance and clear emotional reactions to his treatment add to the interactive aspect, and some young readers might even resist the instructions to avoid hurting their new pal. Children will be brought along on the monster’s journey, going from excited, noisy, and wiggly to calm and steady (one can hope).
Playful, engaging, and full of opportunities for empathy—a raucous storytime hit. (Picture book. 2-7)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-5247-6456-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: June 4, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Visually accomplished but marred by stereotypical cultural depictions.
Ellis, known for her illustrations for Colin Meloy’s Wildwood series, here riffs on the concept of “home.”
Shifting among homes mundane and speculative, contemporary and not, Ellis begins and ends with views of her own home and a peek into her studio. She highlights palaces and mansions, but she also takes readers to animal homes and a certain famously folkloric shoe (whose iconic Old Woman manages a passel of multiethnic kids absorbed in daring games). One spread showcases “some folks” who “live on the road”; a band unloads its tour bus in front of a theater marquee. Ellis’ compelling ink and gouache paintings, in a palette of blue-grays, sepia and brick red, depict scenes ranging from mythical, underwater Atlantis to a distant moonscape. Another spread, depicting a garden and large building under connected, transparent domes, invites readers to wonder: “Who in the world lives here? / And why?” (Earth is seen as a distant blue marble.) Some of Ellis’ chosen depictions, oddly juxtaposed and stripped of any historical or cultural context due to the stylized design and spare text, become stereotypical. “Some homes are boats. / Some homes are wigwams.” A sailing ship’s crew seems poised to land near a trio of men clad in breechcloths—otherwise unidentified and unremarked upon.
Visually accomplished but marred by stereotypical cultural depictions. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 24, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-7636-6529-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Nov. 17, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2014
© 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
