The setup for Volume 3 at the close means more medieval mischief on the way; cue further chortles.
A young king can’t stand by when a monster terrorizes a neighboring country…but adventures can be dangerous.
King Edwin Flashypants is just 9, so he still administers his country, Edwinland, with the help of Minister Jill (who has some less-than-yummy ideas about vegetables) and Megan the Jester (who shares Edwin’s love of candy). When a hermit named Baxter comes running into the village (seemingly wearing only a beard), Edwin learns the many-eyed Voolith is attacking the people of Crong, which is situated north of neighboring Nurbisonia. Something must be done! Meanwhile, the wicked Emperor Nurbison of Nurbisonia is enjoying the influx of new subjects fleeing the Voolith. Nurbison hatches the kind of dastardly, evil plan he’s famous for (in his own mind, at least) to rid himself of Edwin and gain control of everything. Can the many candy shops of Edwinland be preserved? Riley’s second King Flashypants tale of folderol and foolishness is as much fun as the first (think Monty Python and the Holy Grail for 7-year-olds), with a bit of poo-humor thrown in for giggles. The author’s cartoon illustrations combine with occasional trickery of typesetting to hit the right mix of deadpan and slapstick. Minister Jill and Baxter appear to have dark skin, while the rest of the primary characters are pale; background characters are diverse.
The setup for Volume 3 at the close means more medieval mischief on the way; cue further chortles. (Humor. 7-10)Pub Date: March 27, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-62779-811-2
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: Feb. 2, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
With plenty left to be resolved, the next entry will be eagerly sought after.
Drake has been selected by the king to serve as a Dragon Master, quite a change for an 8-year-old farmer boy.
The dragons are a secret, and the reason King Roland has them is a mystery, but what is clear is that the Dragon Stone has identified Drake as one of the rare few children who have a special connection with dragons and the ability to serve as a trainer. Drake’s dragon is a long brown creature with, at first, no particular talents that Drake can identify. He calls the dragon Worm. It isn’t long before Drake begins to realize he has a very strong connection with Worm and can share what seem to be his dragon’s thoughts. After one of the other Dragon Masters decides to illicitly take the dragons outside, disaster strikes. The cave they are passing through collapses, blocking the passageway, and then Worm’s special talent becomes evident. The first of a new series of early chapter books, this entry is sure to attract fans. Brief chapters, large print, lots of action, attractive illustrations in every spread, including a maplike panorama, an enviable protagonist—who wouldn’t want to be a Dragon Master?—all combine to make an entertaining read.
With plenty left to be resolved, the next entry will be eagerly sought after. (Fantasy. 7-10)Pub Date: Aug. 24, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-545-64624-6
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Branches/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: June 3, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A feel-good tale of a clever and determined stallion set against a well-developed landscape.
In mid-19th-century Nevada, a colt named Sky grows up to lead his band of wild horses.
Parry’s moving story follows the pattern of her recent animal tales, A Wolf Called Wander (2019) and A Whale of the Wild (2020), chronicling a wild animal’s life in the first person, imagining its point of view, and detailing and appreciating the natural world it inhabits. As Sky grows from wobbly newborn to leader of his family, he faces more than the usual challenges for colts who must fight their stallions or leave their herds when they are grown up. Fagan’s appealing black-and-white illustrations help readers envision this survival story. Sky’s adventures include forced service with the Pony Express; being befriended by an enslaved Paiute boy; escaping to find his now-captured band; and helping them escape the silver miners who’d destroyed their world. Animal lovers will applaud his ingenuity and stubbornness. Although Sky’s band has suffered serious injuries (his mother is blind), he and Storm, a mare who was his childhood companion, lead them toward safety in a new wilderness. The writer’s admiration for these wild horses and her concerns about human destruction of their environment come through even more clearly in a series of concluding expository essays discussing the wild horses, the Indigenous Americans, the natural history of the Great Basin, silver mining, and the Pony Express.
A feel-good tale of a clever and determined stallion set against a well-developed landscape. (author’s note, resources) (Fiction. 7-10)Pub Date: Aug. 29, 2023
ISBN: 9780062995957
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2023
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