A captivating novel that sheds new light on black childhood.
As compelling as Brown Girl Dreaming, as character-driven as One Crazy Summer, and as historically illuminating as Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry.
Eleven-year-old Ella Hankerson yearns to know her absent father, but her mother, Lucy, and grandparents constantly evade her questions. Teased by other black kids for her light skin and white-seeming features, Ella indulges in wild speculation—maybe it’s Cab Calloway? Lucy has left Ella in Alcolu, South Carolina, for work and a jazz career in Boston, and although Granny and Poppy provide a loving home for Ella and two of her cousins (who share narration duties with Ella), 14-year-old orphan Myrna and Ella’s best friend, 12-year-old Henry, the rural South in the 1940s can be dangerous for black folks. Racists charge George Stinney, a quiet, shy boy, with murdering two little white girls, and Myrna once encountered a black family lynched and hanging from the trees. Although Ella eagerly leaves the farm to stay with her mother, she finds Boston also imperfect, as she must spend hours alone in the tiny apartment while Lucy and her roommate, Helen, work as shipfitters. A riveting read, this novel masterfully presents Southern and Northern conflicts through the perspective of a no-nonsense kid who is trying to find her place in the world. Ella’s realistic voice and passionate responses to injustices make her a credible, flawed, and likable character who sees the truth in front of her but often doesn’t recognize it.
A captivating novel that sheds new light on black childhood. (Historical fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: March 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-316-48400-8
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Nov. 25, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2018
Falters in its oversimplified portrayal of a complicated region and people.
Parallel storylines take readers through the lives of two young people on Sept. 11 in 2001 and 2019.
In the contemporary timeline, Reshmina is an Afghan girl living in foothills near the Pakistan border that are a battleground between the Taliban and U.S. armed forces. She is keen to improve her English while her twin brother, Pasoon, is inspired by the Taliban and wants to avenge their older sister, killed by an American bomb on her wedding day. Reshmina helps a wounded American soldier, making her village a Taliban target. In 2001, Brandon Chavez is spending the day with his father, who works at the World Trade Center’s Windows on the World restaurant. Brandon is heading to the underground mall when a plane piloted by al-Qaida hits the tower, and his father is among those killed. The two storylines develop in parallel through alternating chapters. Gratz’s deeply moving writing paints vivid images of the loss and fear of those who lived through the trauma of 9/11. However, this nuance doesn’t extend to the Afghan characters; Reshmina and Pasoon feel one-dimensional. Descriptions of the Taliban’s Afghan victims and Reshmina's gentle father notwithstanding, references to all young men eventually joining the Taliban and Pasoon's zeal for their cause counteract this messaging. Explanations for the U.S. military invasion of Afghanistan in the author’s note and in characters’ conversations too simplistically present the U.S. presence.
Falters in its oversimplified portrayal of a complicated region and people. (author’s note) (Fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: Feb. 2, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-338-24575-2
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Dec. 14, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2021
Oozing with fun.
The new kid in town finds himself caught up in a slime-selling battle.
Twelve-year-old Alex Manalo is passionate about two things: slime and business. So when he and his dad (his mother has died) move from Silicon Valley to Sacramento to take over his grandparents’ struggling Filipino market, he is excited that they’ll have their own business. Being the new kid isn’t easy, and while Alex isn’t sporty or tall like the popular kids at his old school, he soon discovers that his new middle school is big on slime. Alex makes all kinds of slime with different ingredients, textures, and smells, garnering the attention of his classmates. A new friend convinces him to sell his slime, but that spurs a slime war with the girl who holds the slime monopoly at school. It isn’t going to be easy, especially when his dad thinks slime is a waste of time and that Alex should be playing soccer. With his hands in many different activities, Alex fights to win sticky battles with his family, new friends, and himself. Respicio has written an exciting, fast-paced story of friendship, family, and community. Throughout the book, Alex often struggles to make his opinions heard, but he eventually finds his voice and understands what it really means to be a winner. Alex and his family are Filipino; there is diversity in the supporting cast. The book includes different slime recipes.
Oozing with fun. (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 14, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-30267-5
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Wendy Lamb/Random
Review Posted Online: July 7, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2021
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
