by Ben H. Winters ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 2010
A seventh-grade history project to "find a mystery, and solve it" transforms a creative preteen and her classmates when she unlocks the secret life of their Music Fundamentals teacher, Ms. Finkleman, who's "so totally unremarkable as to be essentially invisible." Bethesda Fielding's ace research reveals the obscure Ms. Finkleman as Little Miss Mystery, former lead singer of an all-girl punk-rock band in the 1990s, prompting the school principal to demand Ms. Finkleman orchestrate a rock concert for the county choral competition. Ms. Finkleman co-opts Tenny Boyer, a student obsessed with rock music, to covertly create and direct the performance and Bethesda to tutor him in history. Enthusiasm for the concert swells, but things disintegrate when Tenny fails at history and Bethesda makes a bad choice as she tries to help him. Liberally laced with humor and featuring an upbeat heroine, unexpected friendship and rock-music trivia, this witty middle-school drama offers a lighthearted lesson in the importance of getting the facts straight. Readers will rock with laughter. (Fiction. 8-12)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-06-196541-8
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2010
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by Ben H. Winters ; illustrated by Adam F. Watkins
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by Katherine Applegate ; illustrated by Patricia Castelao ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 2, 2023
Certain to steal hearts.
In this follow-up to 2020’s The One and Only Bob, Ruby the elephant is still living at Wildworld Zoological Park and Sanctuary.
She’s apprehensive about her Tuskday, a rite of passage for young elephants when she’ll give a speech in front of the rest of the herd. Luckily, she can confide in her Uncle Ivan, who is next door in Gorilla World, and Uncle Bob, the dog who lives nearby with human friend Julia. Ruby was born in an unspecified part of Africa, later ending up on display in the mall, where she met Ivan, Bob, and Julia. The unexpected arrival of someone from Ruby’s past life on the savanna revives memories both warmly nostalgic and deeply traumatic. An elephant glossary and Castelao’s charming, illustrated guide to elephant body language help immerse readers in Ruby’s world. Goofy, playful, and mischievous Ruby is fully dimensional, as she has shown her bravery during the many hardships of her young life. Applegate deftly tempers themes of grief and loss with compassion and humor as Ruby finds her place in the herd. The author’s note touches on climate change, the illegal ivory trade, and conservation efforts, but the highly emotive framing of the story through the memories of a bewildered baby elephant emphasizes the impact of lines such as “ ‘in Africa,’ I say softly, ‘there were bad people,’ ” without offering readers a nuanced understanding of the broader context that drives poaching.
Certain to steal hearts. (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9780063080089
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: March 13, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2023
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by Katherine Applegate ; illustrated by Patricia Castelao
by Katherine Applegate ; illustrated by Patricia Castelao
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by Katherine Applegate & Gennifer Choldenko ; illustrated by Wallace West
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by Katherine Applegate ; illustrated by Charles Santoso
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by Christina Li ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 12, 2021
Charming, poignant, and thoughtfully woven.
An aspiring scientist and a budding artist become friends and help each other with dream projects.
Unfolding in mid-1980s Sacramento, California, this story stars 12-year-olds Rosalind and Benjamin as first-person narrators in alternating chapters. Ro’s father, a fellow space buff, was killed by a drunk driver; the rocket they were working on together lies unfinished in her closet. As for Benji, not only has his best friend, Amir, moved away, but the comic book holding the clue for locating his dad is also missing. Along with their profound personal losses, the protagonists share a fixation with the universe’s intriguing potential: Ro decides to complete the rocket and hopes to launch mementos of her father into outer space while Benji’s conviction that aliens and UFOs are real compels his imagination and creativity as an artist. An accident in science class triggers a chain of events forcing Benji and Ro, who is new to the school, to interact and unintentionally learn each other’s secrets. They resolve to find Benji’s dad—a famous comic-book artist—and partner to finish Ro’s rocket for the science fair. Together, they overcome technical, scheduling, and geographical challenges. Readers will be drawn in by amusing and fantastical elements in the comic book theme, high emotional stakes that arouse sympathy, and well-drawn character development as the protagonists navigate life lessons around grief, patience, self-advocacy, and standing up for others. Ro is biracial (Chinese/White); Benji is White.
Charming, poignant, and thoughtfully woven. (Fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: Jan. 12, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-06-300888-5
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2020
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by Christina Li
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