An engaging, empowering tale of journalistic activism and ecological awareness.
Aspiring journalist Ruth investigates potential water pollution in her town.
On a fishing trip to her local lake, 13-year-old Ruth encounters an unusual slimelike substance and a dead fish on the shore. This unsettling discovery prompts her to initiate an investigation. Ruth spotlights the mystery in her self-published online newsletter, earning her more subscribers and pressure for bigger stories. As she dives deeper into the situation, she learns important lessons about sound journalistic practices. After a test reveals the town’s tap water is unsafe, Ruth starts to gather more evidence and reaches out to the community to collect personal accounts about the pollution’s harmful health effects. Eventually the culprit is exposed—and Ruth’s integrity is challenged when some adults try to manipulate the exposé to their advantage. Ruth is a strong, realistic protagonist. Her passionate determination for uncovering the truth sometimes negatively influences her choices, but she’s willing to learn and admit her mistakes. This environmentally focused story incorporates information about the water poisoning coverup in Flint, Michigan, and highlights the investigative process and ethics in journalism. The simple panel layouts with cartoonlike illustrations in muted, natural tones succeed in clearly portraying the action. Brown-skinned Ruth’s parents’ appearances cue her as biracial; secondary characters are ethnically diverse.
An engaging, empowering tale of journalistic activism and ecological awareness. (afterword) (Graphic fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: March 16, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-250-21796-7
Page Count: 240
Publisher: First Second
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
PERSPECTIVES
An emotional, much-needed historical graphic novel.
Sandy and his family, Japanese Canadians, experience hatred and incarceration during World War II.
Sandy Saito loves baseball, and the Vancouver Asahi ballplayers are his heroes. But when they lose in the 1941 semifinals, Sandy’s dad calls it a bad omen. Sure enough, in December 1941, Japan bombs Pearl Harbor in the U.S. The Canadian government begins to ban Japanese people from certain areas, moving them to “dormitories” and setting a curfew. Sandy wants to spend time with his father, but as a doctor, his dad is busy, often sneaking out past curfew to work. One night Papa is taken to “where he [is] needed most,” and the family is forced into an internment camp. Life at the camp isn’t easy, and even with some of the Asahi players playing ball there, it just isn’t the same. Trying to understand and find joy again, Sandy struggles with his new reality and relationship with his father. Based on the true experiences of Japanese Canadians and the Vancouver Asahi team, this graphic novel is a glimpse of how their lives were affected by WWII. The end is a bit abrupt, but it’s still an inspiring and sweet look at how baseball helped them through hardship. The illustrations are all in a sepia tone, giving it an antique look and conveying the emotions and struggles. None of the illustrations of their experiences are overly graphic, making it a good introduction to this upsetting topic for middle-grade readers.
An emotional, much-needed historical graphic novel. (afterword, further resources) (Graphic historical fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: Oct. 5, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5253-0334-0
Page Count: 112
Publisher: Kids Can
Review Posted Online: June 28, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Series fans, at least, will take this outing (and clear evidence of more to come) in stride.
Zipping back and forth in time atop outsized robo–bell bottoms, mad inventor Tippy Tinkletrousers (aka Professor Poopypants) legs his way to center stage in this slightly less-labored continuation of episode 9.
The action commences after a rambling recap and a warning not to laugh or smile on pain of being forced to read Sarah Plain and Tall. Pilkey first sends his peevish protagonist back a short while to save the Earth (destroyed in the previous episode), then on to various prehistoric eras in pursuit of George, Harold and the Captain. It’s all pretty much an excuse for many butt jokes, dashes of off-color humor (“Tippy pressed the button on his Freezy-Beam 4000, causing it to rise from the depths of his Robo-Pants”), a lengthy wordless comic and two tussles in “Flip-o-rama.” Still, the chase kicks off an ice age, the extinction of the dinosaurs and the Big Bang (here the Big “Ka-Bloosh!”). It ends with a harrowing glimpse of what George and Harold would become if they decided to go straight. The author also chucks in a poopy-doo-doo song with musical notation (credited to Albert P. Einstein) and plenty of ink-and-wash cartoon illustrations to crank up the ongoing frenzy.
Series fans, at least, will take this outing (and clear evidence of more to come) in stride. (Fantasy. 10-12)Pub Date: Jan. 15, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-545-17536-4
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Dec. 12, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2013
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