Entertaining magics and magical gear, along with polished vignettes from Grant, animate familiar fantasy tropes in this seriocomic debut. Having grown up with a juggling coat rack and other unusual furnishings, one-eyed young Erec isn’t as shocked as he might be when a hidden door near New York’s Grand Central Station opens into kingdoms where magic rules. Working to save his kidnapped mother—with whom he can talk at any time thanks to a pair of special eyeglasses, but who persists in delivering maddeningly vague hints and warnings—Erec finds himself competing for one of three kingdoms offered as prizes for weathering a series of magical games. Tossing in subplots, nefarious schemes, a crew of sneering bullies, sumptuous feasts, allies for Erec, a surprise villain and magic worked by everything from explosive “nitrowisherine” to push-button remotes, Kingsley speeds her tale along to a climax involving an impulsive dragon who gives Erec a two-sided eye to replace his more ordinary glass one. Closing with the news that the young hero still has 12 tasks to fulfill, this light but not insubstantial outing definitely belongs aboard the Potter wagon, but merits a seat toward the front. (Fantasy. 11-13)
Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2006
ISBN: 0-9786555-6-7
Page Count: 349
Publisher: Firelight
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2006
An unconventional aunt blows in from Vancouver to pinch-hit as a babysitter, and offers two sisters and their brother an entrancing view of family history. Mr. and Mrs. Anderson have nonrefundable tickets for a trip to Paris, but their babysitter has canceled on short notice. When all other options fail, mysterious Aunt Sally arrives to spend a week with ten-year-old Melissa, eight-year-old Amanda, and six-year-old Frank, unkindly referred to by his sisters as Pee Wee. With platform shoes that lace up to her knees, and eyes full of mischief, Aunt Sally is unlike anyone they’ve ever met, and has never been discussed by their father—her brother. Her stories are full of colorful characters, such as a beautiful man who coaxes one relative out of mourning; Mrs. Gunderson, the dog next door; and, of course, their father, Robbie, who was the baby of the family. The stories build on each other, made suspenseful by Aunt Sally’s maddening habit of leaving parts of them untold. Some of the stories are downright spooky, especially the ones about the trolls; Robbie was left on the beach with them one night and his and Sally’s relationship was never the same. Most sections are also hilarious, as is the snappy and perfectly timed dialogue. Melissa’s succinct definitions of entries in Aunt Sally’s large vocabulary provide a thread of humor throughout, as does Aunt Sally’s faithful regard for Pee Wee despite his dismissive older sisters. After the last laugh, Aunt Sally’s hard-won understanding of human nature will leave readers with plenty to ponder. (Fiction. 8-12)
Pub Date: March 30, 1999
ISBN: 0-374-37787-1
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 1999
Combining saccharine visuals with a monotonous ditty, this book follows a child from morning wake-up to evening snuggle-down with no fewer than 13 stanzas modeled on “The Farmer in the Dell” and static illustrations in which the young, chubby-cheeked narrator, whose wide eyes are generally looking off to the side, is awkwardly posed’sometimes floating slightly—against generic indoor and outdoor scenes. His mother looks about ten, his father perhaps five years older. The author and illustrator have done much better work in the past; pass this up in favor of Nancy White Carlstrom’s evergreen Jesse Bear, What Will You Wear? (1986). (Picture book. 5-7)
Pub Date: March 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-531-30138-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Orchard
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 1999
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