What red-blooded American youth isn't fascinated by knights in shining armor? The Yues (Christopher Columbus, 1992, etc.) here present the facts behind the shine. They don't romanticize knighthood or flinch from outlining the brutalities of war. But the focus here is, of course, on the outfit. The authors tell how armor was developed, made, and worn, and they provide a fair amount of history. (Armor was one of the most important aspects of warfare from the fall of the Roman empire until the 16th century—about 1,000 years.) They show in great detail how mail and plate were constructed, how the knight got dressed, how the suit was designed for maximum protection and ease of movement. Although detailed, the explanations are never tedious. The one disappointment here are the black-and-white drawings. They are functional, but uninspired. Not soaring, but a clear and informative history. (Nonfiction. 8-12)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1994
ISBN: 0-395-68101-4
Page Count: 92
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 1994
Twins Tod and Tessa face double trouble in a sidesplitting follow-up to Be First in the Universe (2000). When even an infusion of DNA extracted from evil Ned and Nancy Gneiss, descendants of Vlad the Impaler, proves too weak to save Planet Gemini from an invasion of galactic tourists known as Vorons, aliens Gemini Jack and his sister Jill return to Middle Valley Mall in search of more help from humans, renowned as the most annoying creatures in the universe. Meanwhile, not only have the altered Gneiss twins suddenly become sickeningly goody-goody, but veteran rock drummer Nigel Throbber has chosen Tod’s and Tessa’s barn to rehearse his thunderous magnum opus, “Drummerdämmerung.” Happily, relief is but a tangle of subplots, corny jokes, chases, general chaos, and clever twists away; by the end, the Gneiss twins are nasty again, and Throbber has happily departed on a wildly successful interplanetary tour. Though not a sequel that stands on its own, this will have readers rocking with laughter and rolling in the aisles. (Fiction. 9-11)
Pub Date: May 8, 2001
ISBN: 0-385-32690-4
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2001
An exciting and involving rescue tale, especially for horse-loving readers.
When forest fires threaten her family’s horses, a Montana girl puts her courage to the test in this middle-grade novel.
Although her room is overflowing with model horses, Cricket O’Conner finds training the real animals to be irritating, especially when it comes to an ornery blue roan named Gonna Be. But Cricket has to work on the family’s Montana ranch even today—her 12th birthday. With her gift money, she buys a china horse painted with flames; Fuego, as she calls him, sometimes seems more than just a figurine. He stars in her daydream adventures, but when fast-moving wildfires threaten the community, Cricket must put aside imaginary conflicts and pitch in. After helping rescue a neighbor’s many pets (including 30 cats), Cricket returns home to discover that two colts are missing. Her mother, frantically trying to protect the ranch before they must evacuate, says there’s no time to find them. But Fuego seems to tell her a different story: “It’s up to you and Gonna Be. You need to figure out a way to find the colts. They’re in trouble.” Slipping out with Gonna Be, Cricket embarks on an arduous search that will challenge the colt’s mettle and her own. In her novel, Sheila Ruble nicely dovetails the plot with Cricket’s growing maturity. The girl shines in the pet-rescue episode; unlike flustered adults, Cricket pays attention, comes up with a feasible plan, and implements it. And hunting for the lost colts allows Cricket to appreciate what she’s been teaching—and learning from—Gonna Be. Fuego’s supernatural intervention is perhaps unnecessary but works as a symbol of Cricket’s newfound inner direction. Debut illustrator Robert Ruble, the author’s husband, provides appealing images. Though digitally created, they feel like hand-drawn pencil work and enhance the text, including a picture of a grumpy marmalade cat who figures in the plot.
An exciting and involving rescue tale, especially for horse-loving readers.Pub Date: March 24, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-98-525821-4
Page Count: 278
Publisher: Barking Dog Press
Review Posted Online: Aug. 20, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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