A rousing, plot-driven fantasy with important environmental themes.
Two siblings try to save a group of sea turtles from pirates on a mysterious, magic island in this chapter book.
As 10-year-old Reese Walters, an aspiring marine biologist, and her younger brother, Dean, watch an internet video of a sea turtle gliding through magnificent waters, they find themselves sucked in and transported to the beach in the work. Although the kids discover they are invisible to other humans, they overhear someone saying they are in “Erutuf National Park” on an island in the Pacific Ocean. They are also shocked to learn that they can communicate with animals, including Emma, a “three-foot-long, three-hundred-pound” sea turtle, who asks them to help save the island from pirates attempting to take it over. Emma explains that the pirates have no concern for the animal inhabitants and even disrupted “baby turtle hatch time and blocked the path to the ocean for a number of the babies.” The kids agree, and later Emma promises to help the siblings find their way back home. Reese and Dean learn that the island is a magical place. For instance, when a sea turtle pal needs rescuing, Reese develops a mermaid tail and the ability to breathe underwater when she jumps in to assist the animal. The kids embark on a mission to locate a special map and hide it from the pirates. Despite the magical surroundings, danger lurks nearby. Reese and Dean eventually find themselves face to face with some threatening pirates. But with guidance from the enchanted residents of the sea turtles’ Sand Dancer Castle, the kids utilize bravery, quick thinking, and teamwork to defeat the foes. This fast-paced read will engage fantasy and adventure fans. Readers will root for the spirited siblings and their daring actions while being inspired to care for nature, the environment, and the myriad creatures in the world. Cherry’s detailed descriptions of the scenic locale have major kid appeal. The siblings enjoy spending time in Sand Dancer Castle, a gigantic, opulent dwelling with themed rooms and magical accents, including communicative creatures that move in the wallpaper. The castle’s highlights include a rainbow playroom and a candy-scented room with real butterflies.
A rousing, plot-driven fantasy with important environmental themes.Pub Date: Aug. 18, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-66571-054-1
Page Count: 110
Publisher: Archway Publishing
Review Posted Online: Dec. 6, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
However the compelling fitness of theme and event and the apt but unexpected imagery (the opening sentences compare the...
At a time when death has become an acceptable, even voguish subject in children's fiction, Natalie Babbitt comes through with a stylistic gem about living forever.
Protected Winnie, the ten-year-old heroine, is not immortal, but when she comes upon young Jesse Tuck drinking from a secret spring in her parents' woods, she finds herself involved with a family who, having innocently drunk the same water some 87 years earlier, haven't aged a moment since. Though the mood is delicate, there is no lack of action, with the Tucks (previously suspected of witchcraft) now pursued for kidnapping Winnie; Mae Tuck, the middle aged mother, striking and killing a stranger who is onto their secret and would sell the water; and Winnie taking Mae's place in prison so that the Tucks can get away before she is hanged from the neck until....? Though Babbitt makes the family a sad one, most of their reasons for discontent are circumstantial and there isn't a great deal of wisdom to be gleaned from their fate or Winnie's decision not to share it.
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1975
ISBN: 0312369816
Page Count: 164
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: April 13, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1975
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
We challenge anyone to read this and keep a straight face.
Four misunderstood villains endeavor to turn over a new leaf…or a new rap sheet in Blabey's frenzied romp.
As readers open the first page of this early chapter book, Mr. Wolf is right there to greet them, bemoaning his reputation. "Just because I've got BIG POINTY TEETH and RAZOR-SHARP CLAWS and I occasionally like to dress up like an OLD LADY, that doesn't mean… / … I'm a BAD GUY." To prove this very fact, Mr. Wolf enlists three equally slandered friends into the Good Guys Club: Mr. Snake (aka the Chicken Swallower), Mr. Piranha (aka the Butt Biter), and Mr. Shark (aka Jaws). After some convincing from Mr. Wolf, the foursome sets off determined to un-smirch their names (and reluctantly curbing their appetites). Although these predators find that not everyone is ready to be at the receiving end of their helpful efforts, they use all their Bad Guy know-how to manage a few hilarious good deeds. Blabey has hit the proverbial nail on the head, kissed it full on the mouth, and handed it a stick of Acme dynamite. With illustrations that startle in their manic comedy and deadpan direct address and with a narrative that follows four endearingly sardonic characters trying to push past (sometimes successfully) their fear-causing natures, this book instantly joins the classic ranks of Captain Underpants and The Stinky Cheese Man.
We challenge anyone to read this and keep a straight face. (Fiction. 7-11)Pub Date: Jan. 3, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-545-91240-2
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Sept. 18, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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