Not so much one story as three (with a spectral onlooker); fans of the original may enjoy picking out the tweaks.
The March family marches on…in 1942.
Taking Beth, Jo, Meg, and Amy as point-of-view characters, the authorial quartet begins this spinoff with Beth dead but contributing free verse observations between chapters and the surviving sisters estranged. In the least developed storyline, Meg stays home, flirting briefly with being unfaithful to absent fellow teacher and beau John. Jo stalks off to work as a riveter in an airplane factory and (confirming the speculations of generations of nuance-sensitive readers) discovers her queerness. True to character, Amy lies about both her age and her admission to art school in Montreal so she can secretly join the Red Cross and is shipped off to London—where she runs into and falls for wounded airman Laurie. Though linked to the original by names, themes (notably the outwardly calm, saintly Marmee’s admission of inner anger, which is reflected here in her daughters), and incidents that are similar in type, there are enough references to period details to establish a weak sense of setting. Giving Meg and Amy chances to reflect on their racial attitudes through the introduction of a Japanese American student and, in a single quick encounter, a Black serviceman feels perfunctory given the otherwise all-White cast. Jo’s slower ride to self-knowledge, though heavily foreshadowed, comes off as more authentic. If the sisters’ eventual fence-mending is predictable, it’s also refreshingly acerbic.
Not so much one story as three (with a spectral onlooker); fans of the original may enjoy picking out the tweaks. (Historical fiction. 12-16)Pub Date: March 8, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-37259-3
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Jan. 25, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2022
Not up to the standards of Peyton's best.
With this book, the 86-year-old Peyton celebrates her 70th year as a published author.
For his 17th birthday, in 1921, white upper-class Eton student Antony Sylvester asks his father for an airplane. No one knows how his father makes his riches, but Antony and his deaf and blind sister, Helena, live in splendor on a palatial estate, Lockwood Hall, with an army of servants. Antony gets his plane, but only Lily, the 13-year-old daughter of the estate's head gardener, will dare go up in it with him. Antony then involves her in a complicated scheme to throw a house party in his father's absence, during which Helena drowns. Antony's father returns, murders a policeman, then forces Antony to fly him to France. Just when this melodrama is gathering steam, it falls apart entirely: Antony's father is never heard from again, the house is sold, Antony fumbles about trying to gain employment. Lily grows into an adult who never stops carrying a torch for wet, unambitious Antony. Peyton's writing is as smooth as ever; her evocation of English society and the early days of flight are all spot-on, but Antony's both unlikable and strangely powerless. Lily's more inspiring, but very little of the book is told from her perspective, and her continued adoration of Antony as she ages feels off.
Not up to the standards of Peyton's best. (Historical fiction. 12-16)Pub Date: Feb. 28, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-338-08160-2
Page Count: 336
Publisher: David Fickling/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Nov. 1, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2016
A mostly well-crafted historical whodunit.
A debutante eschews convention to investigate the suspicious disappearance of her best friend.
With her bobbed hair and plucky attitude, Piper Sail pushes boundaries, but she isn’t quite a flapper. Living in 1920s Chicago with her brother and father—a powerful and wealthy attorney—the white teen has enjoyed a life of privilege alongside her best friend, Lydia LeVine, also white and the daughter of an affluent doctor. Lydia suffers from devastating seizures, which her father dismisses until they occur publicly. When Lydia suddenly disappears, Piper, unable to quietly sit by with her hands folded, launches her own investigation. Soon the spirited ingénue finds herself entrenched in a dark web of secrets, speak-easies, and Mafiosi, and everyone—from Lydia's family to their hired help (including a black housekeeper with distressingly stereotyped speech patterns) to Lydia's employer—seems like a prime suspect. Aided by a handsome young detective, Piper plunges herself further into the case, going undercover in an effort to bring Lydia justice, which leads Piper to face some hard truths about her society life. After a somewhat slow and stiff start, readers will be rewarded for their patience as tensions grow and red herrings abound. Morrill has a keen eye for historical details and setting, making Jazz Age Chicago Piper's invisible yet omnipresent sidekick. Here’s hoping this won’t be the last case for this strong and admirable female sleuth to solve.
A mostly well-crafted historical whodunit. (Historical mystery. 12-16)Pub Date: Feb. 7, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-310-75838-9
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Blink
Review Posted Online: Nov. 22, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2016
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