A boisterous, slapstick adventure that will entertain budding readers, despite its skimpy character development.
A trio of adventurous kids and two oddball adults find unexpected treasure in this middle-grade adventure by siblings Wilhelm (The Price of Denial, 2013) and Terrat (True Shoes, 2012).
Youngsters Luis, Speedup and Hayley B. have heard the story of the pirate Jean Lafitte, and how he may have left some buried treasure in their hometown of Sandy Feet, Florida. One day, they finally decide to go after the treasure themselves, with nothing more than Hayley B.’s “intuition” and her grandfather’s shovel to aid them. Cue the arrival of big, dumb Yuke Johnson, and his only slightly smarter friend, Bug Luck—two slapstick prospectors who hopped a train car expecting to arrive in Alaska rather than Florida. All Yuke knows is digging, so when Bug gets upset about being so far south, Yuke reacts by digging up the street all the way down to the water main, sending the police chief's car up in a geyser. Of course, the kids recruit these wacky strangers to help them in their own quest to find Lafitte’s treasure. Although they don’t discover Spanish doubloons under the Sandy Feet beach, they do accidentally discover another historical treasure, and the friendships they build are an even better payoff. The diversity of the main trio of friends is refreshing. However, there are some stereotypical elements that don’t make the best use of the cast; for example, Hayley B., the only girl, is the one with intuition, and the town’s police chief is a fun-hating doughnut eater. Yuke and Bug are ridiculous and unbelievable, but that’s part of their charm. This Kickstarter-funded chapter book is designed for readers who are just moving on from beginner books, but not yet ready for larger novels. As a result, the vocabulary and high-interest topic are sure to please readers in that niche. The notes on pirate history at the end of the book extend the fun beyond the story.
A boisterous, slapstick adventure that will entertain budding readers, despite its skimpy character development.Pub Date: April 20, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-9857836-4-8
Page Count: 67
Publisher: Long Stride Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 5, 2015
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant.
Robot Roz undertakes an unusual ocean journey to save her adopted island home in this third series entry.
When a poison tide flowing across the ocean threatens their island, Roz works with the resident creatures to ensure that they will have clean water, but the destruction of vegetation and crowding of habitats jeopardize everyone’s survival. Brown’s tale of environmental depredation and turmoil is by turns poignant, graceful, endearing, and inspiring, with his (mostly) gentle robot protagonist at its heart. Though Roz is different from the creatures she lives with or encounters—including her son, Brightbill the goose, and his new mate, Glimmerwing—she makes connections through her versatile communication abilities and her desire to understand and help others. When Roz accidentally discovers that the replacement body given to her by Dr. Molovo is waterproof, she sets out to seek help and discovers the human-engineered source of the toxic tide. Brown’s rich descriptions of undersea landscapes, entertaining conversations between Roz and wild creatures, and concise yet powerful explanations of the effect of the poison tide on the ecology of the island are superb. Simple, spare illustrations offer just enough glimpses of Roz and her surroundings to spark the imagination. The climactic confrontation pits oceangoing mammals, seabirds, fish, and even zooplankton against hardware and technology in a nicely choreographed battle. But it is Roz’s heroism and peacemaking that save the day.
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant. (author’s note) (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9780316669412
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A thrilling first installment in an adventurous new series.
An orphaned street urchin is recruited into an elite school for thieves.
In an alternate world where France is the dominant world power, 13-year-old Tom Morgan has had to scrimp, starve, and steal on the streets of London to survive. Born into a workhouse, he doesn’t know anything about his father, while his mother may have been from North Africa. One thing he does know is the sort of cruelty that awaits the poor who are sent to the workhouse, and he’s determined not to go back. But when their camp is raided and his friends are captured by workhouse agents, the only thing Tom can think of is how to get them out. Enter the Corsair, a cunning and mysterious man with a proposition: He wants to recruit Tom into Beaufort’s School for Deceptive Arts. From nabbing treasures to forging identity papers, Beaufort’s promises to teach Tom everything he needs to know to become a Shadow Thief and a member of the Shadow League, the secret global organization that helps keep the world’s political power in balance. But Beaufort’s has its own rules and secrets, and if Tom is to survive long enough to help his friends, he’ll need to figure them out quickly. Clever and gripping, this fast-paced boarding school story will appeal to fans of the Mysterious Benedict Society and Spy School series.
A thrilling first installment in an adventurous new series. (Adventure. 10-14)Pub Date: Aug. 26, 2025
ISBN: 9781665982283
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Aladdin
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2025
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