Further breathlessly paced escapades, well stocked with moments of terror and undersea wonders.
A visit to an undersea research lab off the Florida Keys plunges siblings Ezzy and Luke into life-threatening discoveries of environmental malfeasance in this third series entry.
Considering recent experiences in the Galápagos and Greenland, 14-year-old Ezzy is hardly surprised when she and her more adventurous 12-year-old brother, Luke, find themselves involved in two potentially hazardous mysteries, one involving odd local changes in water chemistry and massive blooms of green algae. The other (and more immediately deadly threat) is scary encounters with really big and highly aggressive specimens of venomous, invasive lionfish on the reef. In a double investigation that leads to a resort with iffy wastewater disposal practices and an experimental genetics lab run by an unprincipled marine biologist, Prager, a marine scientist herself, folds in plenty of suspense as well as real places, actual environmental issues, and personal experiences of marine wonders on which she expands in a substantial afterword. The siblings and their widowed father present as White, but to other characters the author attributes a range of skin colors suggesting racial diversity. Readers need not be familiar with previous entries to enjoy this latest installment. The book concludes with websites pointing readers to youth-friendly organizations working in ocean conservation as well as those offering guidance on marine science careers.
Further breathlessly paced escapades, well stocked with moments of terror and undersea wonders. (map) (Adventure. 9-12)Pub Date: Dec. 15, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-943431-80-9
Page Count: 248
Publisher: Tumblehome Learning
Review Posted Online: Nov. 28, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2022
Charming, poignant, and thoughtfully woven.
An aspiring scientist and a budding artist become friends and help each other with dream projects.
Unfolding in mid-1980s Sacramento, California, this story stars 12-year-olds Rosalind and Benjamin as first-person narrators in alternating chapters. Ro’s father, a fellow space buff, was killed by a drunk driver; the rocket they were working on together lies unfinished in her closet. As for Benji, not only has his best friend, Amir, moved away, but the comic book holding the clue for locating his dad is also missing. Along with their profound personal losses, the protagonists share a fixation with the universe’s intriguing potential: Ro decides to complete the rocket and hopes to launch mementos of her father into outer space while Benji’s conviction that aliens and UFOs are real compels his imagination and creativity as an artist. An accident in science class triggers a chain of events forcing Benji and Ro, who is new to the school, to interact and unintentionally learn each other’s secrets. They resolve to find Benji’s dad—a famous comic-book artist—and partner to finish Ro’s rocket for the science fair. Together, they overcome technical, scheduling, and geographical challenges. Readers will be drawn in by amusing and fantastical elements in the comic book theme, high emotional stakes that arouse sympathy, and well-drawn character development as the protagonists navigate life lessons around grief, patience, self-advocacy, and standing up for others. Ro is biracial (Chinese/White); Benji is White.
Charming, poignant, and thoughtfully woven. (Fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: Jan. 12, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-06-300888-5
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
More escapades are promised in this improbable but satisfying series starter
A smart kid foils big-time thieves in the nation’s capital—and joins the FBI.
Using a method he invented called the Theory of All Small Things, white seventh-grader Florian Bates solves mysteries by piecing together seemingly trivial clues in this engaging, humorous, but not always logical caper. When Florian easily helps the FBI recover three masterpieces stolen from the National Gallery of Art, the dazzled feds supply him with an alias and train him at Quantico. Collaborating with his African-American best friend, superbright, athletic Margaret, Florian finds that even with TOAST, sleuthing gets dangerous when the pair, working undercover, come up against a European crime syndicate—and another spectacular art heist in the form of a forgery substituted for an iconic Monet. Exciting adventures ensue, and clues accumulate until the culprit is revealed and the genuine painting located. Missteps intrude, though: a few lapses in logic may leave readers puzzled; some clues seem contrived; and a subplot involving Florian’s discovery of the startling identity of adopted Margaret’s biological father falls flat. The solution is also a letdown: the thief is a minor figure, and the means by which the painting was stolen and the forgery set in its place aren’t explained. The real draws here are the two resourceful leads’ solid, realistic friendship, bolstered by snappy dialogue, brisk pacing, and well-crafted ancillary characters—not to mention behind-the-scenes glimpses of the FBI.
More escapades are promised in this improbable but satisfying series starter . (Mystery. 9-12)Pub Date: Aug. 23, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4814-3630-4
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Aladdin
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2016
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