A sludgy, overwritten tale of young lovers coming to grief after they protest a proposed mall near their upstate New York town. When Kris and Jason learn of plans to plow down Pinehaven, the closest thing to wilderness near their town, they form a group dubbed Pulse to fight the proposal. Despite the opposition of the school principal—who has political ambitions tied to the development—Pulse attracts many ardent activists and stages a tense but nonviolent demonstration. The planning board nonetheless approves the mall, and Jason and Kris head for the Adirondacks to regroup; Don Lopus, a cartoonish villain, follows them and torches their tent. Kris burns to death before Jason's eyes. These events are related in mawkish prose marked by trite conversations, tedious details, and somewhat purple passages: ``Kris gently blew out her laughter in a long, warm stream that flowed through my sweatshirt like the thin breath of a thousand bees after they'd finished eating honey. My whole body sweetened. . . .'' Heavy foreshadowing leaves the tragic climax unsurprising, and between extraneous characters and sketchy subplots, the book concludes almost before it is underway. Pinehaven is saved by the fortuitous discovery of a burial site; Lopus, Pulse, and the corrupt politicians drop abruptly from the story. Readers with an appreciation for long professions of teenage love may like this, but the superficial treatment of environmental and empowerment issues, plus the unresolved plot elements, won't win many hearts. (Fiction. 12-15)
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1996
ISBN: 0-525-45396-2
Page Count: 198
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1996
Certain to provoke controversy and difficult to see as a book for children, who could easily miss the painful point.
After Hitler appoints Bruno’s father commandant of Auschwitz, Bruno (nine) is unhappy with his new surroundings compared to the luxury of his home in Berlin.
The literal-minded Bruno, with amazingly little political and social awareness, never gains comprehension of the prisoners (all in “striped pajamas”) or the malignant nature of the death camp. He overcomes loneliness and isolation only when he discovers another boy, Shmuel, on the other side of the camp’s fence. For months, the two meet, becoming secret best friends even though they can never play together. Although Bruno’s family corrects him, he childishly calls the camp “Out-With” and the Fuhrer “Fury.” As a literary device, it could be said to be credibly rooted in Bruno’s consistent, guileless characterization, though it’s difficult to believe in reality. The tragic story’s point of view is unique: the corrosive effect of brutality on Nazi family life as seen through the eyes of a naïf. Some will believe that the fable form, in which the illogical may serve the objective of moral instruction, succeeds in Boyne’s narrative; others will believe it was the wrong choice.
Certain to provoke controversy and difficult to see as a book for children, who could easily miss the painful point. (Fiction. 12-14)Pub Date: Sept. 12, 2006
ISBN: 0-385-75106-0
Page Count: 224
Publisher: David Fickling/Random
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2006
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
Despite the stale fat-to-curvy pattern, compelling world building with a Southern European, pseudo-Christian feel,...
Adventure drags our heroine all over the map of fantasyland while giving her the opportunity to use her smarts.
Elisa—Princess Lucero-Elisa de Riqueza of Orovalle—has been chosen for Service since the day she was born, when a beam of holy light put a Godstone in her navel. She's a devout reader of holy books and is well-versed in the military strategy text Belleza Guerra, but she has been kept in ignorance of world affairs. With no warning, this fat, self-loathing princess is married off to a distant king and is embroiled in political and spiritual intrigue. War is coming, and perhaps only Elisa's Godstone—and knowledge from the Belleza Guerra—can save them. Elisa uses her untried strategic knowledge to always-good effect. With a character so smart that she doesn't have much to learn, body size is stereotypically substituted for character development. Elisa’s "mountainous" body shrivels away when she spends a month on forced march eating rat, and thus she is a better person. Still, it's wonderfully refreshing to see a heroine using her brain to win a war rather than strapping on a sword and charging into battle.
Despite the stale fat-to-curvy pattern, compelling world building with a Southern European, pseudo-Christian feel, reminiscent of Naomi Kritzer's Fires of the Faithful (2002), keeps this entry fresh. (Fantasy. 12-14)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-06-202648-4
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2011
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