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
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by Doug Cornett ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 14, 2020
Delightful fun for budding mystery fans.
Only children, rejoice! A cozy mystery just for you! (People with siblings will probably enjoy it too.)
Debut novelist Cornett introduces the One and Onlys, a trio of mystery-solving only kids: Gloria Longshanks “Shanks” Hill, Alexander “Peephole” Calloway, and narrator Paul (alas, no nickname) Marconi. The trio has a knack for finding and solving low-level mysteries, but they come up against a true head-scratcher when the yard of a resident of their small town is covered in rubber ducks overnight. Working ahead of Officer Portnoy, who’s a little on the slow side, can Paul, Shanks, and Peephole solve the mystery? Cornett has a lot of fun with this adventure, dropping additional side mysteries, a subplot about small businesses, big corporations, and economics, and a town’s love of bratwurst into the mix. Most importantly, he plays fair with the clues throughout, allowing astute readers to potentially solve the case ahead of the trio. The tone and mystery are perfect for younger readers who want to test their detective skills but are put off by anything scary or gory. The pacing would serve well for chapter-by-chapter read-alouds. If there are any quibbles, it’s the lack of diversity of the cast, as it defaults white. Diversity exists in small towns, and this one is crying out for more. Hopefully a sequel will introduce additional faces.
Delightful fun for budding mystery fans. (Mystery. 8-12)Pub Date: April 14, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-9848-3003-6
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Dec. 21, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2020
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by Rajani LaRocca ; illustrated by Chloe Dijon ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 15, 2021
A moving tale of baseball, magic, and former rivals who come together to solve a problem.
A middle schooler struggles to adjust after moving to an idyllic Massachusetts town.
Trish Das is at a crossroads. Not only is the 12-year-old unhappy that her family has moved yet again due to her mother’s cardiology career, she also has to try out for a new baseball team. The fact that one of her new teammates is a former archrival further complicates matters. Math prodigy Ben Messina went head-to-head against fellow math whiz Trish at last spring’s Math Puzzlers Championship. When Trish emerged victorious, Ben was stunned. The two get closer when the team’s mysterious pregame snacks start making everyone play better while also causing magical side effects during games. Equally surprising are the cryptic puzzle booklets Trish and Ben receive in the mail that lead them to even more wins. But as the puzzles get harder to solve, the risk of failing to do so increases. Alternating between Trish’s and Ben’s perspectives, LaRocca’s novel—a companion to 2019’s Midsummer’s Mayhem—is a Much Ado About Nothing homage that explores parental expectations, complicated friendships, and teamwork. The protagonists’ love of problem-solving shines through, and the puzzles themselves are clearly explained. As a third-generation Indian American, Trish also has moving conversations about the circumstances that led her grandparents to emigrate and how those decisions still impact their lives. Ben is implied White. Final illustrations not seen.
A moving tale of baseball, magic, and former rivals who come together to solve a problem. (Fantasy. 8-12)Pub Date: June 15, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-4998-1101-8
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Yellow Jacket
Review Posted Online: March 30, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2021
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