by Amy Fellner Dominy ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 18, 2012
Tatum's maturing recognition of her own self-worth and realistic outcomes—sadly not everything works out the way she would...
Tatum is facing her stressful eighth-grade audition for a clarinet seat in the District Honor Band and must also cope with her best friend's first romance.
Tatum and Lori, BFF for years, are so close that their friends call them "Tay-Lo." Now Michael, a new clarinet player, has moved into the school. Not only is he cute and seemingly in love with Lori, but rumor has it that he's a fine player—and only three clarinets can be selected for the prestigious band. Lori, on flute, has always accompanied Tatum during auditions, a lot less scary than playing solo, but now she wants to accompany Michael. She even suggests that Tatum deliberately fail so her boyfriend can make the band. As Tatum navigates these betrayals, she also must deal with the recent breakup of her parents' marriage. Aaron, the clarinet player with whom she shares a music stand and friendship, now becomes a lot more supportive and even begins to gently evolve into a romantic interest in a nicely low-key portrayal of young love. Dominy's characters and situations—shown through Tatum's authentic voice—ring wholly true as newly developing boy/girl connections inevitably affect the life-defining girl/girl friendships that preceded them.
Tatum's maturing recognition of her own self-worth and realistic outcomes—sadly not everything works out the way she would wish—make this a satisfying and believable read . (Fiction. 10-14)Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-8027-2374-1
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Walker
Review Posted Online: July 21, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2012
Share your opinion of this book
More by Amy Fellner Dominy
BOOK REVIEW
by Amy Fellner Dominy & Nate Evans ; illustrated by AG Ford
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
by Amy Fellner Dominy & Nate Evans ; illustrated by AG Ford
by Mitali Perkins ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 1, 2010
Well-educated American boys from privileged families have abundant options for college and career. For Chiko, their Burmese counterpart, there are no good choices. There is never enough to eat, and his family lives in constant fear of the military regime that has imprisoned Chiko’s physician father. Soon Chiko is commandeered by the army, trained to hunt down members of the Karenni ethnic minority. Tai, another “recruit,” uses his streetwise survival skills to help them both survive. Meanwhile, Tu Reh, a Karenni youth whose village was torched by the Burmese Army, has been chosen for his first military mission in his people’s resistance movement. How the boys meet and what comes of it is the crux of this multi-voiced novel. While Perkins doesn’t sugarcoat her subject—coming of age in a brutal, fascistic society—this is a gentle story with a lot of heart, suitable for younger readers than the subject matter might suggest. It answers the question, “What is it like to be a child soldier?” clearly, but with hope. (author’s note, historical note) (Fiction. 11-14)
Pub Date: July 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-58089-328-2
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Charlesbridge
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2010
Share your opinion of this book
More by Mitali Perkins
BOOK REVIEW
by Mitali Perkins ; illustrated by Khoa Le
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
by Mitali Perkins ; illustrated by Kevin Howdeshell & Kristen Howdeshell
by Jack Gantos ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 13, 2011
Characteristically provocative gothic comedy, with sublime undertones. (Autobiographical fiction. 11-13)
An exhilarating summer marked by death, gore and fire sparks deep thoughts in a small-town lad not uncoincidentally named “Jack Gantos.”
The gore is all Jack’s, which to his continuing embarrassment “would spray out of my nose holes like dragon flames” whenever anything exciting or upsetting happens. And that would be on every other page, seemingly, as even though Jack’s feuding parents unite to ground him for the summer after several mishaps, he does get out. He mixes with the undertaker’s daughter, a band of Hell’s Angels out to exact fiery revenge for a member flattened in town by a truck and, especially, with arthritic neighbor Miss Volker, for whom he furnishes the “hired hands” that transcribe what becomes a series of impassioned obituaries for the local paper as elderly town residents suddenly begin passing on in rapid succession. Eventually the unusual body count draws the—justified, as it turns out—attention of the police. Ultimately, the obits and the many Landmark Books that Jack reads (this is 1962) in his hours of confinement all combine in his head to broaden his perspective about both history in general and the slow decline his own town is experiencing.
Characteristically provocative gothic comedy, with sublime undertones. (Autobiographical fiction. 11-13)Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-374-37993-3
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: April 5, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2011
Share your opinion of this book
More by Jack Gantos
BOOK REVIEW
by Jack Gantos ; illustrated by Jack Gantos
BOOK REVIEW
by Jack Gantos
BOOK REVIEW
by Jack Gantos
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
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.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.