Hugely problematic.
A girl who is unaware of her mystical powers inadvertently awakes a monster and tries to imprison it again.
On a family vacation at Lake Itasca, near the Mississippi’s headwaters in Minnesota, 15 year-old Jeni buys an interesting cat statue that looks demonic. Almost immediately, Ice, a “Native American” boy studying to be a “medicine man,” tries to buy it from her. Ice knows that if the statue gets wet, it might awaken a fearsome underwater monster that dwells in the lake. Little does he know that Jeni already has fallen into the lake with the statue in her pocket. Shortly thereafter, people start dying. Ice convinces Jeni that she has some supernatural powers, but he can’t keep her out of his own struggle to defeat the monster. Feeling responsible, Jeni is determined to help, a choice that places both her and Ice in several life-threatening situations. Pietron deftly juggles action, paranormal elements and a burgeoning romance between Jeni and Ice. Characterizations ring true: Jeni comes across as believable and attractive, and so does Ice. Unfortunately, the author’s implicit assertion of an undifferentiated pan–Native American mythos troublingly perpetuates old stereotypes—a mystifying choice, given her care in including tribal affiliations for all the speakers identified in the chapter epigraphs. Had Ice’s religion and culture been equally thoughtfully and authentically developed, this book might have succeeded.
Hugely problematic. (Paranormal suspense. 12 & up)Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-940368-91-7
Page Count: 260
Publisher: Scribe
Review Posted Online: Oct. 5, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
In addition to the supernatural elements, Brosgol interweaves some savvy insights about the illusion of perfection and...
A deliciously creepy page-turning gem from first-time writer and illustrator Brosgol finds brooding teenager Anya trying to escape the past—both her own and the ghost haunting her.
Anya feels out of place at her preppy private school; embarrassed by her Russian heritage, she has worked hard to lose her accent and to look more like everyone else. After a particularly frustrating morning at the bus stop, Anya storms off, only to accidentally fall down a well. Down in the dark hole, she meets Emily, a ghost who claims to be a murder victim trapped down in the dank abyss for 90 years. With Emily’s help, Anya manages to escape, though once free, she learns that Emily has traveled out with her. At first, Emily seems like the perfect friend; however, once her motives become clear, Anya learns that “perfect” may only be an illusion. A moodily atmospheric spectrum of grays washes over the clean, tidy panels, setting a distinct stage before the first words appear. Brosgol’s tight storytelling invokes the chilling feeling of Neil Gaiman’s Coraline (2002), though for a decidedly older set.
In addition to the supernatural elements, Brosgol interweaves some savvy insights about the illusion of perfection and outward appearance. (Graphic supernatural fiction. 12 & up)Pub Date: June 7, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-59643-552-0
Page Count: 224
Publisher: First Second
Review Posted Online: April 18, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2011
A descriptive and atmospheric paranormal social thriller that could be a bit tighter.
After a Nigerian British girl goes off to an exclusive boarding school that seems to prey on less-privileged students, she discovers there might be some truth behind an urban legend.
Ife Adebola joins the Urban Achievers scholarship program at pricey, high-pressure Nithercott School, arriving shortly after a student called Leon mysteriously disappeared. Gossip says he’s a victim of the glowing-eyed Changing Man who targets the lonely, leaving them changed. Ife doesn’t believe in the myth, but amid the stresses of Nithercott’s competitive, privileged, majority-white environment, where she is constantly reminded of her state school background, she does miss her friends and family. When Malika, a fellow Black scholarship student, disappears and then returns, acting strangely devoid of personality, Ife worries the Changing Man is real—and that she’s next. Ife joins forces with classmate Bijal and Benny, Leon’s younger brother, to uncover the truth about who the Changing Man is and what he wants. Culminating in a detailed, gory, and extended climactic battle, this verbose thriller tempts readers with a nefarious mystery involving racial and class-based violence but never quite lives up to its potential and peters out thematically by its explosive finale. However, this debut offers highly visually evocative and eerie descriptions of characters and events and will appeal to fans of creature horror, social commentary, and dark academia.
A descriptive and atmospheric paranormal social thriller that could be a bit tighter. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9781250868138
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: June 8, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
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