Born of sparks from trains, the working fires of homesteaders and miners, the campfires of hoboes, and lightning coursing down from the summer sky, the fires joined as a wall of flame, an “orange hell” that consumed two-and-a-half-million acres of public forest land by the time it was done. It was called the Big Burn, and “August 20, 1910, would be remembered as the day the mountains roared.” Ingold (Airfield, 1999, etc.) develops the stories of three teens involved in and affected by the drama of the raging fires. Their narratives are leisurely developed, and it is almost two-thirds of the way into the long novel before the pace of their stories escalates to parallel the rise of the fire itself. Jarrett, the brother of the forest ranger, Lizbeth, the homesteader determined to keep her land, and Seth, the enlisted man in the all-black Twenty-fifth Infantry hoping to find and prove his courage, are the three characters whose lives intertwine in the face of a natural disaster. When the fires finally join and the story picks up its pace, an exciting tale ensues. The air turns orange, the gale-force winds rage, trees tumble through the air like sticks, and the roar of the fire bounces off of the canyon walls as the fire sweeps through Idaho and into Montana. Readers with a taste for sprawling tales will find their efforts rewarded. An afterword by the author and suggestions for further reading will inform readers more about this spectacular but little-known event in American history. (Fiction. 12-15)
Pub Date: June 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-15-216470-7
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2002
When 16-year-old Haley accompanies her geologist father to Iceland, she’s determined to discover exactly what happened the previous year when her mother disappeared. She finds that out, as well as discovering that she, too, is in danger from a centuries-old magical spell. Simner’s second book, a fantasy set in modern times but rooted in ancient Icelandic sagas, has great reader appeal. The plot is compelling—a page-turner that catapults Haley and Ari, an attractive Icelandic berserker, from crisis to crisis. The main characters and the animals—natural and mythological—are engaging but may not satisfy those looking for a fully developed cast. The climax is a humdinger, and while the resolution is bittersweet, it makes sense and is consistent with the magical rules of the book. There’s some innocent romance to pique reader interest, while dark magic will attract readers who enjoy touches of Norse mythology in their fantasy reading. Liberties taken with Norse mythology are explained in the text and author’s note. Light, romantic fiction with an engaging fantasy punch. (Fantasy. 12-15)
Pub Date: April 27, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-375-86670-8
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 26, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2010
Across a barren post-apocalyptic landscape, Callum is running for his life. Kidnapped by outlaws and forced to perform in a traveling circus, he escapes in an effort to get back home. But there’s virtually nowhere to hide when he can’t run far or fast enough. He’s rescued by Bo, another young survivor, who joins Callum on the run. But the danger is now even more extreme, because Bo is a female…a gender thought wiped out by bird flu ages ago. Now they are running for more than their lives—they’re running to find not just safety but freedom in an entirely new world. Murray populates Callum’s world with futuristic terminology and gadgets (Callum has a toy iPenguin in which his fathers have left him a message, Bo has a clutch of roboraptors that do her hunting and they ride a peyote-fueled motorbike called a Daisy-May). This is an interesting premise, but it needs more pages and development to fully rise to its promise. With a strong start, this story will probably carry readers through to the end, even though the last half falters in pace and credibility. (Science fiction. 12-15)
Pub Date: April 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-8234-2282-1
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: Jan. 14, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2010
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