An exciting, exotic tale that occasionally overwhelms with its intricacy.
In this middle-grade historical-adventure novel, set in 1912 Morocco, a group of misfit children are kidnapped and sold as slaves to the vicious lord of a casbah.
Tariq is a street-wise orphan from Tangier who has spent his life just trying to survive. Just as he has finally found happiness in the care of the kind Zijuan, slave traders kidnap him and sell him as a camel jockey to the ruthless Caid Ali Tamzali. Also in his company are Margaret, the daughter of a British naval captain, who was kidnapped from her hotel; Fez, a brainiac from the mountains whose entire tribe was murdered; and Aseem, who was sold by his own father when he could no longer care for him. The four become fast friends, united in their desire to escape the evil Caid before they die in his service. Plotlines involve Margaret’s father tangling with pirates, Zijuan negotiating with Moroccan crime lords and a group of rebel fighters plotting to overthrow Caid’s casbah. The complex story, like its main characters, rarely stops to take a breath, hopping around in time to reveal the various back stories of its diverse ensemble. This provides tremendous insight into everyone’s motivations, but it can also grow dizzying. Some of the dialogue falls flat, but the action is so intense that many readers will hardly notice the words being said. Debut author O’Neill incorporates a great deal of cultural and historical context into his story; detailed descriptions of clothes, meals, weather and more will make readers feel as though they have traveled back in time and fallen into that world. The cliffhanger ending all but demands that readers jump to the next installment in the series.
An exciting, exotic tale that occasionally overwhelms with its intricacy.Pub Date: April 2, 2012
ISBN: 978-0985196943
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Black Ship Publishing
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2013
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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A solid series starter for tinkerers and adventurers alike.
Even robot cats have a mind of their own.
All 12-year-old Canadian Lacey Chu’s ever wanted was to become a companioneer like her idol, Monica Chan, co-founder of the largest tech firm in North America, Moncha Corp., and mastermind behind the baku. Bakus, “robotic pets with all the features of a smartphone,” revolutionized society and how people interact with technology. As a companioneer, Lacey could work on bakus: designing, innovating, and building. When she receives a grant rejection from Profectus Academy of Science and Technology, a school that guarantees employment at Moncha Corp., she’s devastated. A happenstance salvaging of a mangled cat baku might just change the game. Suddenly, Lacey’s got an in with Profectus and is one step closer to her dream. Jinx, however, is not quite like the other bakus—he’s a wild cat that does things without commands. Together with Jinx, Lacey will have to navigate competitive classmates and unsettling corporate secrets. McCulloch effectively strikes a balance between worldbuilding and action. High-stakes baku battles demonstrate the emotional bond between (robotic) pet and owner. Readers will also connect to the relationships the Asian girl forges with her diverse classmates, including a rivalry with Carter (a white boy who’s the son of Moncha’s other co-founder, Eric Smith), a burgeoning crush on student Tobias, who’s black, and evolving friendships new and old. While some mysteries are solved, a cliffhanger ending raises even more for the next installment.
A solid series starter for tinkerers and adventurers alike. (Science fiction. 8-13)Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4926-8374-2
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Review Posted Online: Aug. 25, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2019
We challenge anyone to read this and keep a straight face.
Four misunderstood villains endeavor to turn over a new leaf…or a new rap sheet in Blabey's frenzied romp.
As readers open the first page of this early chapter book, Mr. Wolf is right there to greet them, bemoaning his reputation. "Just because I've got BIG POINTY TEETH and RAZOR-SHARP CLAWS and I occasionally like to dress up like an OLD LADY, that doesn't mean… / … I'm a BAD GUY." To prove this very fact, Mr. Wolf enlists three equally slandered friends into the Good Guys Club: Mr. Snake (aka the Chicken Swallower), Mr. Piranha (aka the Butt Biter), and Mr. Shark (aka Jaws). After some convincing from Mr. Wolf, the foursome sets off determined to un-smirch their names (and reluctantly curbing their appetites). Although these predators find that not everyone is ready to be at the receiving end of their helpful efforts, they use all their Bad Guy know-how to manage a few hilarious good deeds. Blabey has hit the proverbial nail on the head, kissed it full on the mouth, and handed it a stick of Acme dynamite. With illustrations that startle in their manic comedy and deadpan direct address and with a narrative that follows four endearingly sardonic characters trying to push past (sometimes successfully) their fear-causing natures, this book instantly joins the classic ranks of Captain Underpants and The Stinky Cheese Man.
We challenge anyone to read this and keep a straight face. (Fiction. 7-11)Pub Date: Jan. 3, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-545-91240-2
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Sept. 18, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2016
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