While this story is sometimes bogged down by moralizing and adventures that don't always seem to support the plot,...
In her first fantasy, Pura Belpré winner McCall (Under the Mesquite, 2011)tells the story of five sisters and their myriad adventures as they travel from their home in Texas to Mexico.
When narrator and eldest Odilia and her sisters, Juanita, Velia, Delia and Pita, find a dead man in their swimming hole, Odilia wants to call the authorities. She is soon overruled by her sisters, who clamor to return the man to his family and visit their grandmother, all of whom live in Mexico. What follows is a series of adventures that hover somewhere on the border between fantasy and magical realism as the sisters are helped and hindered by supernatural forces including Latin American legends La Llorona, lechuzas and chupacabras. Despite multiple decisions that lead them into danger, the younger sisters persist in dismissing Odilia’s warnings, their bad choices ranging from silly to decidedly immature. When they reach their grandmother’s house, the dialogue-heavy story continues with extensive reflection of a level of maturity incongruous with the behavior exhibited in prior pages. The sisters then return home to face real-world problems that may prove most challenging of all.
While this story is sometimes bogged down by moralizing and adventures that don't always seem to support the plot, originality and vibrancy shine through to make it a worthwhile read despite its flaws. (Fantasy. 9-14)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-60060-900-8
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Tu Books
Review Posted Online: July 25, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2012
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The creator of Alex Rider follows his two Horowitz Horror anthologies with a new collection of 14 bloody stories. A would-be writer seeking revenge for stolen ideas stalks and apparently kills author Darren Shan (is this wish fulfillment?). In the far future, a robot nanny malfunctions with horrifying consequences. A girl finds herself put up for auction when her family’s finances tank and is terrified when she discovers what the bidders plan to do with her should they win. The standouts of this uneven collection include the false introduction and conclusion supposedly written by others and a bad dream recounted in verse. Good kids find themselves trapped in bizarre situations and bad kids get just what they deserve and more every time. Inconsistent Americanization and lengthy setups mar these at-times predictable tales. An overreliance on grisly moments and contrived twists for what scares there are guarantees there’s nothing to keep the lights on late, just occasional ick. Fans of the previous collections will be right at home. (Horror/short stories. 9-13)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-399-25451-2
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: July 15, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2010
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
In the first volume of a planned quartet, Myers introduces eighth graders Zander, LaShonda, Bobbi and Kambui, students at Da Vinci Academy, a middle school for the gifted and talented in Harlem, and staff of The Cruiser, an alternative to the school newspaper. The masthead on The Palette reads, “Education is a journey on the high seas of life.” Zander and the Cruisers say, “We weren’t on a journey, we were just cruising.” But when their history teacher invents a role-playing exercise dividing students into Union versus Confederate sympathizers, with Zander and company as peace negotiators, Zander doesn’t think much about it until the Confederates’ editorials in The Palette turn offensive. “Black from locks to ’Boks, from dreads to Keds,” Zander gets involved. Can a school newspaper print such inflammatory articles? Is it free speech? What is the proper response? A serious issue and a group of smart, likable protagonists make this an enjoyable inaugural volume, and readers will look forward to further tales of Zander and his friends as they navigate the high seas—or Cs, in Zander’s case—of middle-school life. (Fiction. 9-13)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-439-91626-4
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: June 15, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2010
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