A coming-of-age tale that’s as engaging as it is inspiring.
An unassertive young girl adjusts to life in a new town and away from her beloved sibling in Mireles’ middle-grade novel.
Leaving home is the last thing 11-year-old Florencia “Fay” Beaufort wants. Her Aunt Carol moves them both to a “ghostly beach town” of Los Pinos, while her older sister, Aurelia, attends college hours away in Washington state. Even before the move, the once-close siblings had been drifting apart, which Fay struggles to understand. What the tween lacks in confidence, she makes up for in warmheartedness, which earns her friends around the neighborhood and at her middle school. Things start looking up when she joins the school’s art club, as drawing is one of her passions. However, budgetary concerns result in the club’s removal, and the students’ only alternative is an art class that charges fees. Fay and a couple of her friends plan a rally in protest and turn to the community for support. As a result, the typically reserved Fay will have to work hard to overcome her anxiety. Mireles, who’s nearly the same age as her tween hero, excels at character development. Fay will easily garner readers’ sympathy, as she’s constantly nervous about such things as socialization and speechmaking and disheartened when Aurelia doesn’t have time for her. A sublime cast surrounds her, including outgoing pal Athena, whose confidence Fay admires, and likably goofy neighbor Donovan. The author’s simple, crisp prose deftly illustrates narrator Fay’s perspective; for example, it’s difficult not to feel disappointed when Aunt Carol isn’t on hand to give Fay advice, or when Aurelia abruptly ends a phone call. The young artist, when happy or hopeful, often appealingly imagines floating butterflies—her favorite subject to sketch or sculpt. Fay’s personal journey, throughout much of one school year, culminates in an unexpected and unforgettable ending.
A coming-of-age tale that’s as engaging as it is inspiring.Pub Date: Dec. 1, 2022
ISBN: 9798985230345
Page Count: 188
Publisher: Create Sparkle
Review Posted Online: Oct. 23, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Broccoli: No way is James going to eat broccoli. “It’s disgusting,” says James. Well then, James, says his father, let’s consider the alternatives: some wormy dirt, perhaps, some stinky socks, some pre-chewed gum? James reconsiders the broccoli, but—milk? “Blech,” says James. Right, says his father, who needs strong bones? You’ll be great at hide-and-seek, though not so great at baseball and kickball and even tickling the dog’s belly. James takes a mouthful. So it goes through lumpy oatmeal, mushroom lasagna and slimy eggs, with James’ father parrying his son’s every picky thrust. And it is fun, because the father’s retorts are so outlandish: the lasagna-making troll in the basement who will be sent back to the rat circus, there to endure the rodent’s vicious bites; the uneaten oatmeal that will grow and grow and probably devour the dog that the boy won’t be able to tickle any longer since his bones are so rubbery. Schneider’s watercolors catch the mood of gentle ribbing, the looks of bewilderment and surrender and the deadpanned malarkey. It all makes James’ father’s last urging—“I was just going to say that you might like them if you tried them”—wholly fresh and unexpected advice. (Early reader. 5-9)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-547-14956-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists.
How to raise money for a coveted poster: put your friends to work!
John, founder of the FUBU fashion line and a Shark Tank venture capitalist, offers a self-referential blueprint for financial success. Having only half of the $10 he needs for a Minka J poster, Daymond forks over $1 to buy a plain T-shirt, paints a picture of the pop star on it, sells it for $5, and uses all of his cash to buy nine more shirts. Then he recruits three friends to decorate them with his design and help sell them for an unspecified amount (from a conveniently free and empty street-fair booth) until they’re gone. The enterprising entrepreneur reimburses himself for the shirts and splits the remaining proceeds, which leaves him with enough for that poster as well as a “brand-new business book,” while his friends express other fiscal strategies: saving their share, spending it all on new art supplies, or donating part and buying a (math) book with the rest. (In a closing summation, the author also suggests investing in stocks, bonds, or cryptocurrency.) Though Miles cranks up the visual energy in her sparsely detailed illustrations by incorporating bright colors and lots of greenbacks, the actual advice feels a bit vague. Daymond is Black; most of the cast are people of color. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists. (Picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: March 21, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-593-56727-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2023
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