An uneven presentation of a worthwhile story.
A seventh grader with free-spirited parents can’t wait to find a real home and friends of her own.
It’s 1985, and Cayenne and her family have traded in their nomadic ways for a small Montana rental and the hope of more income. But money continues to be tight, her parents are fighting, and Cayenne can’t seem to get the right kind of attention from the popular girls at school. When the discovery of the Titanic wreckage leads to a school assignment on the ship’s passengers, Cayenne finds parallels between her life and the social stratification aboard the doomed vessel, which prompts her to consider what she thought she wanted and what she actually needs. This story centers the valuable perspective of a child growing up in a loving family with alternative norms, and it demonstrates respect for young readers with a bittersweet ending that feels authentic to the characters. While Cayenne comes through as flawed but sympathetic, many of the other cast members feel underdeveloped, and the verse format doesn’t allow for sufficient exploration of and connection among the story’s many emotional turns and themes. Vitalis thoughtfully and age-appropriately incorporates Cayenne’s father’s marijuana use, and she discusses the drug in relation to his PTSD in her author’s note. Aside from the repetitive yet ambiguous racial marking of one of Cayenne’s classmates, most characters are white.
An uneven presentation of a worthwhile story. (Verse historical fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Oct. 29, 2024
ISBN: 9780063314450
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2024
A deceptively simple, tender tale in which respect, resilience, and hope triumph.
Generations of human and animal families grow and change, seen from the point of view of the red oak Wishing Tree that shelters them all.
Most trees are introverts at heart. So says Red, who is over 200 years old and should know. Not to mention that they have complicated relationships with humans. But this tree also has perspective on its animal friends and people who live within its purview—not just witnessing, but ultimately telling the tales of young people coming to this country alone or with family. An Irish woman named Maeve is the first, and a young 10-year-old Muslim girl named Samar is the most recent. Red becomes the repository for generations of wishes; this includes both observing Samar’s longing wish and sporting the hurtful word that another young person carves into their bark as a protest to Samar’s family’s presence. (Red is monoecious, they explain, with both male and female flowers.) Newbery medalist Applegate succeeds at interweaving an immigrant story with an animated natural world and having it all make sense. As Red observes, animals compete for resources just as humans do, and nature is not always pretty or fair or kind. This swiftly moving yet contemplative read is great for early middle grade, reluctant or tentative readers, or precocious younger students.
A deceptively simple, tender tale in which respect, resilience, and hope triumph. (Fantasy. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-250-04322-1
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: Aug. 1, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2017
An emotional, much-needed historical graphic novel.
Sandy and his family, Japanese Canadians, experience hatred and incarceration during World War II.
Sandy Saito loves baseball, and the Vancouver Asahi ballplayers are his heroes. But when they lose in the 1941 semifinals, Sandy’s dad calls it a bad omen. Sure enough, in December 1941, Japan bombs Pearl Harbor in the U.S. The Canadian government begins to ban Japanese people from certain areas, moving them to “dormitories” and setting a curfew. Sandy wants to spend time with his father, but as a doctor, his dad is busy, often sneaking out past curfew to work. One night Papa is taken to “where he [is] needed most,” and the family is forced into an internment camp. Life at the camp isn’t easy, and even with some of the Asahi players playing ball there, it just isn’t the same. Trying to understand and find joy again, Sandy struggles with his new reality and relationship with his father. Based on the true experiences of Japanese Canadians and the Vancouver Asahi team, this graphic novel is a glimpse of how their lives were affected by WWII. The end is a bit abrupt, but it’s still an inspiring and sweet look at how baseball helped them through hardship. The illustrations are all in a sepia tone, giving it an antique look and conveying the emotions and struggles. None of the illustrations of their experiences are overly graphic, making it a good introduction to this upsetting topic for middle-grade readers.
An emotional, much-needed historical graphic novel. (afterword, further resources) (Graphic historical fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: Oct. 5, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5253-0334-0
Page Count: 112
Publisher: Kids Can
Review Posted Online: June 28, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2021
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