Robert Coles's incisive foreword heralds much of the feeling evoked here: shock, anger, disgust. Concentrating mostly on N.Y.C. (which has the largest need and the largest program for families), free-lancer Berck presents the results of 30+ interviews with children in highly effective sound-bites. Articulate, heartfelt first-person narration alternates with statistics, occasional poems created in workshops for the homeless, and historical overview: Riis, gentrification, the Depression; ``safety nets'' that may not work; reasons for homelessness that most readers without direct contact won't have imagined; and desperate measures taken to avoid it (11 people squashing together in two rooms). Of the ``accommodations'' provided—hotels (a 15th-story walk-up; blood on the sheets), barracks (arbitrary lights-out)—all are horrifying; with social services offered, family-style shelters, even with their oppressively strict rules, present the most hope. Infuriating facts (federal laws that prohibit the exorbitant sums spent on hotels from going instead to permanent housing) punctuate the outrage of such aptly titled chapters as ``School on the Fly,'' in which a teen travels an hour to take siblings to their school before going to his own. Sections on health or ``Dreams and Visions'' make painfully clear how quickly despair sets in. In the words of one youngster, ``Children live/ In darkness and with secrets/ When wanting to talk,/ Sometimes they're speechless.'' A powerful plea that deserves a hearing. Notes; adult-oriented bibliography. Photos not seen. (Nonfiction. 10+)
Pub Date: March 1, 1992
ISBN: 0-395-53350-3
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 1992
Essential.
A guidebook for taking action against racism.
The clear title and bold, colorful illustrations will immediately draw attention to this book, designed to guide each reader on a personal journey to work to dismantle racism. In the author’s note, Jewell begins with explanations about word choice, including the use of the terms “folx,” because it is gender neutral, and “global majority,” noting that marginalized communities of color are actually the majority in the world. She also chooses to capitalize Black, Brown, and Indigenous as a way of centering these communities’ voices; "white" is not capitalized. Organized in four sections—identity, history, taking action, and working in solidarity—each chapter builds on the lessons of the previous section. Underlined words are defined in the glossary, but Jewell unpacks concepts around race in an accessible way, bringing attention to common misunderstandings. Activities are included at the end of each chapter; they are effective, prompting both self-reflection and action steps from readers. The activities are designed to not be written inside the actual book; instead Jewell invites readers to find a special notebook and favorite pen and use that throughout. Combining the disruption of common fallacies, spotlights on change makers, the author’s personal reflections, and a call to action, this powerful book has something for all young people no matter what stage they are at in terms of awareness or activism.
Essential. (author’s note, further reading, glossary, select bibliography) (Nonfiction. 10-18)Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-7112-4521-1
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Frances Lincoln
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
PROFILES
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK TO SCREEN
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