This irresistible tale about the descendants of fairies should have readers smiling from the first page to the last.
A new middle-grade fantasy series focuses on the Fair Ones, who watch over Earth children from afar.
In Hadley Beach, California, 13-year-old Tenley Tylwyth wants to appear on the TV show America’s Next Most Inspirational Teen. At Hadley Middle School, she hands out fliers so classmates will vote for her nomination. Suddenly, a Frisbee zooms toward her head. From his skateboard, Holden Wonderbolt yells, “Watch out!” He tries to intercept the Frisbee and crashes. The Frisbee somehow zips off in another direction. Meanwhile, far above the Earth in Fair City, Fair One Lara B3 uses his 3rdi-All viewing device to witness the calamity. Just as he acknowledges that his client, Holden, is a klutz, the Fair Force arrests him and orders him to City Hall. At the other end of Fair City, the same thing happens to Fair One Penn 1 as she watches over Tenley. Eventually, Pennie and Laraby face Lord and Lady Fairships, who accuse the two of using Renegade Weather—wind, of course—to interfere in the lives of Tenley and Holden. When Pennie admits that Tenley can manipulate winds, the Fairships threaten to erase the teen from existence so that Mother Nature can’t absorb her power and harm her further. In this madcap opening volume of her new series, Hummer (Girl Unmoored, 2013) invites readers of all ages into a world where the bureaucratic descendants of fairies watch teens from a drab asteroid belt, use propellers instead of wings (they fell off), and battle a cranky Mother Nature, who wants humans wiped out. With insightful characterization and superior comedic timing, Hummer sculpts a bright pink brick of silliness into a deeply heartfelt narrative. When Pennie lands on Earth to help the insufferable, vote-obsessed Tenley, she’s stuck with “no instructions, no tools, no pants.” As readers learn that Tenley’s single-mindedness stems from hoping to reconnect with her estranged dad, Pennie’s mission earns a grounded nobility. At one point, Pennie confesses: “I think she’s determined to get famous so her father will see her on TV.” A lovely ending should encourage fantasy fans to return to see the protagonists grow.
This irresistible tale about the descendants of fairies should have readers smiling from the first page to the last.Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-942664-99-4
Page Count: 280
Publisher: Month9Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 31, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2016
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A pleasing premise for book lovers.
A fantasy-loving bookworm makes a wonderful, terrible bargain.
When sixth grader Poppy Woodlock’s historic preservationist parents move the family to the Oregon coast to work on the titular stately home, Poppy’s sure she’ll find magic. Indeed, the exiled water nymph in the manor’s ruined swimming pool grants a wish, but: “Magic isn’t free. It cosssts.” The price? Poppy’s favorite book, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. In return she receives Sampson, a winged lion cub who is everything Poppy could have hoped for. But she soon learns that the nymph didn’t take just her own physical book—she erased Narnia from Poppy’s world. And it’s just the first loss: Soon, Poppy’s grandmother’s journal’s gone, then The Odyssey, and more. The loss is heartbreaking, but Sampson’s a wonderful companion, particularly as Poppy’s finding middle school a tough adjustment. Hartman’s premise is beguiling—plenty of readers will identify with Poppy, both as a fellow bibliophile and as a kid struggling to adapt. Poppy’s repeatedly expressed faith that unveiling Sampson will bring some sort of vindication wears thin, but that does not detract from the central drama. It’s a pity that the named real-world books Poppy reads are notably lacking in diversity; a story about the power of literature so limited in imagination lets both itself and readers down. Main characters are cued White; there is racial diversity in the supporting cast. Chapters open with atmospheric spot art. (This review has been updated to reflect the final illustrations.)
A pleasing premise for book lovers. (Fantasy. 9-12)Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9780316448222
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
Rich and strange (and kitted out with an eye-catching cover), but stronger in the set pieces than the internal logic.
Chainani works an elaborate sea change akin to Gregory Maguire’s Wicked (1995), though he leaves the waters muddied.
Every four years, two children, one regarded as particularly nice and the other particularly nasty, are snatched from the village of Gavaldon by the shadowy School Master to attend the divided titular school. Those who survive to graduate become major or minor characters in fairy tales. When it happens to sweet, Disney princess–like Sophie and her friend Agatha, plain of features, sour of disposition and low of self-esteem, they are both horrified to discover that they’ve been dropped not where they expect but at Evil and at Good respectively. Gradually—too gradually, as the author strings out hundreds of pages of Hogwarts-style pranks, classroom mishaps and competitions both academic and romantic—it becomes clear that the placement wasn’t a mistake at all. Growing into their true natures amid revelations and marked physical changes, the two spark escalating rivalry between the wings of the school. This leads up to a vicious climactic fight that sees Good and Evil repeatedly switching sides. At this point, readers are likely to feel suddenly left behind, as, thanks to summary deus ex machina resolutions, everything turns out swell(ish).
Rich and strange (and kitted out with an eye-catching cover), but stronger in the set pieces than the internal logic. (Fantasy. 11-13)Pub Date: May 14, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-06-210489-2
Page Count: 496
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2013
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