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AFTERSHOCK

Both Makis and his mother show growth and strength under difficult circumstances, and children will be caught by the many...

Football (soccer to Americans), his father’s mandolin and his concern for his widowed mother carry Makis through an earthquake on the Greek island of Kefalonia to a new life in Camden Town in London.

The story moves swiftly, from the earthquake that devastates the island and kills Makis’ father (an earthquake actually did destroy the island in 1953), to the relocation to England, to Makis’ finding a place on the football team. His mother, Sofia, is devastated by her loss of spouse and homeland. She works in a Greek-run factory, but most of the Greeks there and in council housing are Greek-Cypriot and do not treat her kindly. Makis rapidly learns English and shows his strength on the pitch, but the boy he replaces on the school team rags on him because of his nationality. Not only does Makis find a way to teach his mother English, but an upstairs neighbor, a BBC musician, hears him play his father’s mandolin and invites Makis to practice with him. A crucial game, a crisis for his mother, a confrontation with a bully and a coach coming late to understanding combine for a satisfying climax. Ashley packs a lot of information and emotional resonance as well as some wizard football plays into a very simply told story.

Both Makis and his mother show growth and strength under difficult circumstances, and children will be caught by the many strands in this brief but absorbing tale. (Fiction. 8-12)

Pub Date: Dec. 1, 2011

ISBN: 978-1-84780-055-8

Page Count: 144

Publisher: Frances Lincoln

Review Posted Online: Nov. 1, 2011

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2011

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WRECKING BALL

From the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series , Vol. 14

Readers can still rely on this series to bring laughs.

The Heffley family’s house undergoes a disastrous attempt at home improvement.

When Great Aunt Reba dies, she leaves some money to the family. Greg’s mom calls a family meeting to determine what to do with their share, proposing home improvements and then overruling the family’s cartoonish wish lists and instead pushing for an addition to the kitchen. Before bringing in the construction crew, the Heffleys attempt to do minor maintenance and repairs themselves—during which Greg fails at the work in various slapstick scenes. Once the professionals are brought in, the problems keep getting worse: angry neighbors, terrifying problems in walls, and—most serious—civil permitting issues that put the kibosh on what work’s been done. Left with only enough inheritance to patch and repair the exterior of the house—and with the school’s dismal standardized test scores as a final straw—Greg’s mom steers the family toward moving, opening up house-hunting and house-selling storylines (and devastating loyal Rowley, who doesn’t want to lose his best friend). While Greg’s positive about the move, he’s not completely uncaring about Rowley’s action. (And of course, Greg himself is not as unaffected as he wishes.) The gags include effectively placed callbacks to seemingly incidental events (the “stress lizard” brought in on testing day is particularly funny) and a lampoon of after-school-special–style problem books. Just when it seems that the Heffleys really will move, a new sequence of chaotic trouble and property destruction heralds a return to the status quo. Whew.

Readers can still rely on this series to bring laughs. (Graphic/fiction hybrid. 8-12)

Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2019

ISBN: 978-1-4197-3903-3

Page Count: 224

Publisher: Amulet/Abrams

Review Posted Online: Nov. 18, 2019

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BECOMING MUHAMMAD ALI

From the Becoming Ali series , Vol. 1

A stellar collaboration that introduces an important and intriguing individual to today’s readers.

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Two bestselling authors imagine the boyhood of the man who became the legendary boxing icon Muhammad Ali.

Cassius was a spirited child growing up in segregated Louisville, Kentucky. He had a loving home with his parents and younger brother, Rudy. Granddaddy Herman also was an important figure, imparting life lessons. His parents wanted him to succeed in school, but Cassius had difficulty reading and found more pleasure in playing and exploring outdoors. Early on, he and Rudy knew the restrictions of being African American, for example, encountering “Whites Only” signs at parks, but the brothers dreamed of fame like that enjoyed by Black boxer Joe Louis. Popular Cassius was especially close to Lucius “Lucky” Wakely; despite their academic differences, their deep connection remained after Lucky received a scholarship to a Catholic school. When Cassius wandered into the Columbia Boxing Gym, it seemed to be destiny, and he developed into a successful youth boxer. Told in two voices, with prose for the voice of Lucky and free verse for Cassius, the narrative provides readers with a multidimensional view of the early life of and influences on an important figure in sports and social change. Lucky’s observations give context while Cassius’ poetry encapsulates his drive, energy, and gift with words. Combined with dynamic illustrations by Anyabwile, the book captures the historical and social environment that produced Muhammad Ali.

A stellar collaboration that introduces an important and intriguing individual to today’s readers. (bibliography) (Biographical novel. 8-12)

Pub Date: Oct. 5, 2020

ISBN: 978-0-316-49816-6

Page Count: 320

Publisher: Jimmy Patterson/Little, Brown and HMH Books

Review Posted Online: Aug. 3, 2020

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2020

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