by Dan Gutman ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 2016
Breezy, good-natured fun and a fair amount of history, too.
Gutman kicks off a new time-travel series featuring four 12-year-olds ready for adventure.
Wheelchair-bound billionaire genius Chris Zandergoth has found a way to warp space and time to make time travel possible, and with her smartboard—which she smugly calls “the smartest smartboard in the world”—she plans to send the foursome back in time to gather photographs for her collection. She starts by sending David, the one African-American in the group, to 1962 to witness Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point basketball game for the Philadelphia Warriors. When he returns with a souvenir program, he has proven that the Board works, but Miss Z. worries that taking artifacts from the past risks altering the course of history, a concern reminiscent of Ray Bradbury’s “A Sound of Thunder” and many other tales in the genre. Next, they go to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, to witness—and photograph—Lincoln giving the Gettysburg Address. Of course, adventure ensues. The third-person narrative works to keep track of the Flashback Four, the narrator frequently addressing readers directly to fill in historical details. When the Four come across John Wilkes Booth, an interesting historical moral dilemma is raised: is it right to kill a person to prevent a future assassination?
Breezy, good-natured fun and a fair amount of history, too. (author’s note, recommended reading, websites, recommended sites, museums, and living history) (Science fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Feb. 23, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-237441-7
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 13, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2015
Share your opinion of this book
More In The Series
More by Dan Gutman
BOOK REVIEW
by Dan Gutman ; illustrated by Allison Steinfeld
BOOK REVIEW
by Dan Gutman ; illustrated by Allison Steinfeld
BOOK REVIEW
by Dan Gutman
by Stuart Gibbs ; illustrated by Anjan Sarkar ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 5, 2024
Will satisfy fans but could be better.
Young CIA agent-in-training Benjamin Ripley switches sides—or is he just going undercover?—in this graphic version of the third Spy School caper.
Sticking to the plot of the 2015 original, this episode sees the talented math whiz recruited by nefarious organization SPYDER after being (unjustly, he fumes) kicked out of the CIA’s academy. While training in a hidden school for evildoers with other prospective villains, including Ashley Sparks, a gushy former competitive gymnast with a fondness for portmanteau words (sweet + awesome = swawesome), Ben gets wind of a dastardly scheme to make billions on government construction projects. Hot if inept pursuit by both rival espionage agencies takes Ben from a secret underground command center to the top of the Statue of Liberty. But while the action has a rapid flow in the art (Sarkar is good at portraying fights, high-speed chases, and explosions), several characters are drawn with generic features and such a limited range of expressions that even with help from the cast gallery, it’s hard to tell them apart easily. Still, along with coming through in the suspenseful climax—thanks to clever deductions and quick thinking—by the end, Ben has also achieved a long-sought breakthrough with Erica Hale (code name “Ice Queen”), a superbly omnicompetent schoolmate who has his heart as well as his back. The cast largely presents white.
Will satisfy fans but could be better. (Graphic thriller. 8-12)Pub Date: March 5, 2024
ISBN: 9781665931946
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
Share your opinion of this book
More by Stuart Gibbs
BOOK REVIEW
by Stuart Gibbs ; illustrated by Stacy Curtis
BOOK REVIEW
by Stuart Gibbs ; illustrated by Stacy Curtis
BOOK REVIEW
by Stuart Gibbs
by Annie Matthew ; developed by Kobe Bryant ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 24, 2021
A worthy combination of athletic action, the virtues of inner strength, and the importance of friendship.
A young tennis champion becomes the target of revenge.
In this sequel to Legacy and the Queen (2019), Legacy Petrin and her friends Javi and Pippa have returned to Legacy’s home province and the orphanage run by her father. With her friends’ help, she is in training to defend her championship when they discover that another player, operating under the protection of High Consul Silla, is presenting herself as Legacy. She is so convincing that the real Legacy is accused of being an imitation. False Legacy has become a hero to the masses, further strengthening Silla’s hold, and it becomes imperative to uncover and defeat her. If Legacy is to win again, she must play her imposter while disguised as someone else. Winning at tennis is not just about money and fame, but resisting Silla’s plans to send more young people into brutal mines with little hope of better lives. Legacy will have to overcome her fears and find the magic that allowed her to claim victory in the past. This story, with its elements of sports, fantasy, and social consciousness that highlight tensions between the powerful and those they prey upon, successfully continues the series conceived by late basketball superstar Bryant. As before, the tennis matches are depicted with pace and spirit. Legacy and Javi have brown skin; most other characters default to White.
A worthy combination of athletic action, the virtues of inner strength, and the importance of friendship. (Fantasy. 9-12)Pub Date: Aug. 24, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-949520-19-4
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Granity Studios
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2021
Share your opinion of this book
More by Annie Matthew
BOOK REVIEW
by Annie Matthew ; developed by Kobe Bryant
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.