A tour de force.
In the summer of 1969, 12-year-old Nell confronts confounding, confusing mysteries that intertwine in unexpected ways.
She accompanies her abusive parents on a business trip from their home in Kent to Paris, determined to find her former nanny, Pear, a loving, kind, young Frenchwoman. Pear was abruptly dismissed before Nell was sent to boarding school. They corresponded regularly for five years, but Pear’s letters from Paris stopped six months ago, and Nell’s went unanswered. Nell sets out on her quest, navigating the underground tunnels of Paris with the help of new friend Xavier and other children for whom they are playground, sanctuary, and even home. But strange events are affecting the city: Boulangeries are closing at an alarming rate due to contamination of baked goods by the Thing, while locations of the new Pain-tastique chain are opening. The two are connected and involve high-level greed, corruption, secret codes, and formulas. Self-doubting Nell is prone to paralyzing fears, but she is braver than she knows as she overcomes setbacks and real dangers. Eagle masterfully maintains suspense, dispensing new clues as the events escalate, with twists and turns galore and a cast of charming, loyal friends, all set against the special atmosphere of Paris. Soft, full-page, pencil-and-ink illustrations highlight key events. A satisfying conclusion finds the villains punished, bakeries restored, and a whole new life for Nell. Most characters present White; there is a Tunisian family in the supporting cast.
A tour de force. (Mystery. 10-14)Pub Date: June 14, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-5362-1703-2
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Walker US/Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Jan. 10, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2022
Riveting, inspiring, and sometimes hilarious.
If you made a recording to be heard by the aliens who found the iPod, what would you record?
For 11-year-old Alex Petroski, it's easy. He records everything. He records the story of how he travels to New Mexico to a rocket festival with his dog, Carl Sagan, and his rocket. He records finding out that a man with the same name and birthday as his dead father has an address in Las Vegas. He records eating at Johnny Rockets for the first time with his new friends, who are giving him a ride to find his dead father (who might not be dead!), and losing Carl Sagan in the wilds of Las Vegas, and discovering he has a half sister. He even records his own awful accident. Cheng delivers a sweet, soulful debut novel with a brilliant, refreshing structure. His characters manage to come alive through the “transcript” of Alex’s iPod recording, an odd medium that sounds like it would be confusing but really works. Taking inspiration from the Voyager Golden Record released to space in 1977, Alex, who explains he has “light brown skin,” records all the important moments of a journey that takes him from a family of two to a family of plenty.
Riveting, inspiring, and sometimes hilarious. (Fiction. 10-14)Pub Date: Feb. 28, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-399-18637-0
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 18, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
Some readers may feel that the resolution comes a mite too easily, but most will enjoy the journey and be pleased when...
Two sisters make an unauthorized expedition to their former hometown and in the process bring together the two parts of their divided family.
Dooley packs plenty of emotion into this eventful road trip, which takes place over the course of less than 24 hours. Twelve-year-old Ophelia, nicknamed Fella, and her 16-year-old sister, Zoey Grace, aka Zany, are the daughters of a lesbian couple, Shannon and Lacy, who could not legally marry. The two white girls squabble and share memories as they travel from West Virginia to Asheville, North Carolina, where Zany is determined to scatter Mama Lacy’s ashes in accordance with her wishes. The year is 2004, before the Supreme Court decision on gay marriage, and the girls have been separated by hostile, antediluvian custodial laws. Fella’s present-tense narration paints pictures not just of the difficulties they face on the trip (a snowstorm, car trouble, and an unlikely thief among them), but also of their lives before Mama Lacy’s illness and of the ways that things have changed since then. Breathless and engaging, Fella’s distinctive voice is convincingly childlike. The conversations she has with her sister, as well as her insights about their relationship, likewise ring true. While the girls face serious issues, amusing details and the caring adults in their lives keep the tone relatively light.
Some readers may feel that the resolution comes a mite too easily, but most will enjoy the journey and be pleased when Fella’s family figures out how to come together in a new way . (Historical fiction. 10-14)Pub Date: April 4, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-399-16504-7
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: Jan. 31, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2017
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