A blend of 21st-century realism and fairy tale that should entertain tweens.
Drawing on fairy-tale tropes, this illustrated chapbook offers a back story for the “Jack and Jill” nursery rhyme.
Shang (Living in Hong Kong, 1986, etc.) begins his first children’s book with Jack, 11, and his younger sister, Bella, 7. Jack’s father is a farmer in Happyville, and his mother has died, so Jack does chores, including climbing the nearby hill to fetch water from the pond. On Happyville’s other hill lives the mayor. Self-centered and power-hungry, he forced the townsfolk to elect him, and his character may explain why his wife left him and their daughter, Jill, a 10-year-old extreme-sports enthusiast. The mayor showers Jill with unwanted princess dresses and dollhouses while demanding continual gifts from the townsfolk. Ironically, he forbids any shows of happiness or kind deeds in Happyville—a challenge for Jack, who loves to hum and whistle, and the baker, who loves to treat Happyville children to baked goods. When the mayor thinks Jack’s family is behaving disrespectfully, he demands eight-tenths of all the farm’s produce. Jill, for her part, is tired of her father’s ill-chosen gifts, and she longs for her mother. But things start to change when the mayor hires the kind, yet somewhat witchlike, Nanny Dob to look after Jill. She stuffs all the unwanted gifts into cupboards, buys Jill a skateboard and lets her go out on her own, which leads to Jill’s, for the first time, traveling to the other hill and meeting and becoming friends with Jack, providing hope that Happyville may become happy again. The generic elements from Mother Goose are combined with today’s technology and interests—extreme sports, cellphones, iPads—matter-of-factly, treating the fairy-tale elements as happenstance. Aside from enjoying the cute though not spectacular black-and-white illustrations, young readers may appreciate finding the familiar subplots and characters—the witch, the giant, the duel, the comeuppance for the baddy, the happy ending—in a new setting, although adults may find a bit of heavy-handedness. The epilogue goes quite a bit afield, seeming to portend a sequel.
A blend of 21st-century realism and fairy tale that should entertain tweens.Pub Date: May 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1482896756
Page Count: 80
Publisher: PartridgeSingapore
Review Posted Online: Oct. 20, 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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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