A classic structure and the power of myth carry this novel, despite its thin plot.
Young authors Ankita Chatterjee (The Magic Key, 2012) and Riya Chatterjee offer a YA novel about four siblings with the power to save the world.
The Genesis children—Storm, Twister, Gale and Nilla—are living ordinary lives pulling pranks on each other, texting their friends, playing sports and going to school, when a phone call changes everything. Their parents tell them that the whole family needs to pick up and move to Nevada now, and there’s no time for questions. At the airport, however, there’s another twist: Their parents, who work for a secretive organization called the Virtuous Co., have been called in on separate, even more urgent business in California, so the children must go on alone. After a brief, unpleasant stay at the home of a former principal, the children learn that their parents are in trouble, and that they must go to the Virtuous Co. headquarters. There, they discover a training facility for unusual young people: “Specials” with secret superpowers. It turns out that Storm can control the sky and clouds, Twister the wind, Gale the water, and Nilla the ground and what grows in it. Their time at the training center is, however, very brief. Their parents are being held by a shadowy organization called the Thieves, and it’s up to the Genesis children to save them—and the world. It’s a narrative that will be familiar to fans of great children’s literature, but one that’s truly beloved: Ordinary children discover they’re not as ordinary as they’d thought, and are whisked off to a strange land where they face new challenges. As ever, it’s a good framework to hang a story on. But this short, easy chapter book (the second in a series) often feels like it’s all framework and no story: What exactly is the Virtuous Co.? What’s the actual threat to the world, and what does it have to do with the Genesis family? Why do the kids, and no one else, have to save their parents? Young readers may not mind these holes, however, or the plot’s naïveté. Instead, they may be captivated by the details—such as the weapons the children receive before they head off on their quest—and the fantasy of one day discovering that they, too, may be special.
A classic structure and the power of myth carry this novel, despite its thin plot.Pub Date: May 7, 2014
ISBN: 978-1494762674
Page Count: 126
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2014
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
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
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