A masterfully spun tale well worth the yearslong wait
At long last, fantasy master Nix returns to the story of Lirael.
Six months after the close of Abhorsen (2003), half sisters Sabriel and Lirael, Abhorsen and Abhorsen-in-Waiting, respectively, stand in Death. Their quarry: Chlorr of the Mask. Chlorr’s body was dispatched, but her spirit didn’t pass the Ninth Gate to the final death. Now one of the Greater Dead, Chlorr won’t die until her anchor in Life is found and severed. Meanwhile, in the North, pursued by enemies, a fiercely determined nomad called Ferin journeys to deliver a vital message to the Clayr. Chapters alternate between Ferin and Lirael, who first travels to nonmagical Ancelstierre to assist friend Nicholas Sayre and later converges with Ferin at the Clayr’s Glacier. Ferin’s message: a warning and instructions concerning Chlorr from Lirael’s long-dead mother. Never lacking in action, the story is equally concerned with showcasing Lirael’s evolution: experience has cultivated her confidence in herself and her abilities—though she’s still quiet and endearingly uncertain at times (especially regarding her romantic interest in Nick). Devotees will find her growth immensely satisfying and empathize with her aching, enduring grief over the loss of her best friend, the Disreputable Dog. Nix’s signature talent is in full effect, creating strong female characters, lucid descriptions, and an absorbing plot. Knowledge of previous Old Kingdom stories isn’t a prerequisite, but readers who take the time to go back to them will not regret it. Brown-skinned Ferin brings cultural diversity to Nix’s largely white England-analogue world.
A masterfully spun tale well worth the yearslong wait . (Fantasy. 14 & up)Pub Date: Oct. 11, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-156158-0
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: July 1, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away.
A Mexican American boy takes on heavy responsibilities when his family is torn apart.
Mateo’s life is turned upside down the day U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents show up unsuccessfully seeking his Pa at his New York City bodega. The Garcias live in fear until the day both parents are picked up; his Pa is taken to jail and his Ma to a detention center. The adults around Mateo offer support to him and his 7-year-old sister, Sophie, however, he knows he is now responsible for caring for her and the bodega as well as trying to survive junior year—that is, if he wants to fulfill his dream to enter the drama program at the Tisch School of the Arts and become an actor. Mateo’s relationships with his friends Kimmie and Adam (a potential love interest) also suffer repercussions as he keeps his situation a secret. Kimmie is half Korean (her other half is unspecified) and Adam is Italian American; Mateo feels disconnected from them, less American, and with worries they can’t understand. He talks himself out of choosing a safer course of action, a decision that deepens the story. Mateo’s self-awareness and inner monologue at times make him seem older than 16, and, with significant turmoil in the main plot, some side elements feel underdeveloped. Aleman’s narrative joins the ranks of heart-wrenching stories of migrant families who have been separated.
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-7595-5605-8
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
This grittily provocative debut explores the horrors of self-harm and the healing power of artistic expression.
After surviving a suicide attempt, a fragile teen isn't sure she can endure without cutting herself.
Seventeen-year-old Charlie Davis, a white girl living on the margins, thinks she has little reason to live: her father drowned himself; her bereft and abusive mother kicked her out; her best friend, Ellis, is nearly brain dead after cutting too deeply; and she's gone through unspeakable experiences living on the street. After spending time in treatment with other young women like her—who cut, burn, poke, and otherwise hurt themselves—Charlie is released and takes a bus from the Twin Cities to Tucson to be closer to Mikey, a boy she "like-likes" but who had pined for Ellis instead. But things don't go as planned in the Arizona desert, because sweet Mikey just wants to be friends. Feeling rejected, Charlie, an artist, is drawn into a destructive new relationship with her sexy older co-worker, a "semifamous" local musician who's obviously a junkie alcoholic. Through intense, diarylike chapters chronicling Charlie's journey, the author captures the brutal and heartbreaking way "girls who write their pain on their bodies" scar and mar themselves, either succumbing or surviving. Like most issue books, this is not an easy read, but it's poignant and transcendent as Charlie breaks more and more before piecing herself back together.
This grittily provocative debut explores the horrors of self-harm and the healing power of artistic expression. (author’s note) (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: Aug. 30, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-101-93471-5
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2016
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