by Keir Graff ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 21, 2018
Goose bump–inducing fun.
Welcome to Brunhild Tower, a complicated fortress of an apartment building with a mysterious past.
Colm McShane, his twin brother, Mal (short for Malachy), and their widowed mother move to Chicago from Dallas for Mom’s new job at the University of Chicago. Brunhild Tower is unlike anything the 12-year-olds have seen before. Although “weird and old,” their new apartment, with a maid’s room, butler’s pantry, and two bathrooms, is bigger than their old house. There’s also a view of Lake Michigan. So why is the rent so low? What does Mom’s odd new boss mean when he says it’s “impossible to leave” Brunhild Tower? Their eccentric neighbor, Princess Veronica Margareta of Syldavia (a nod to Tin-Tin, perhaps?) issues an odd warning: Don’t wander the building between the hours of 1 and 2 in the afternoon. Does the elderly princess’s warning have anything to do with the button for the 13th floor—excluded from the elevator panel in accordance with superstition—which only appears for that one hour each day? Colm, who still grieves for his father, is more open to the unknown than his just-the-facts brother. Soon, good-natured narrator Colm, pedantic Mal, and their new friend and neighbor, bibliophile Tamika, find themselves on the phantom 13th floor, exploring what lies beyond the elevator doors. Colm, his brother, and their friend are believable middle graders, and the mystery unfolds into a solid adventure that offers just enough chills to keep the pages flipping. Colm and Mal are white, and Tamika is black.
Goose bump–inducing fun. (Fantasy. 8-13)Pub Date: Aug. 21, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-52473-952-2
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: May 13, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2018
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by Raina Telgemeier ; illustrated by Raina Telgemeier ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 13, 2016
Telgemeier’s bold colors, superior visual storytelling, and unusual subject matter will keep readers emotionally engaged and...
Catrina narrates the story of her mixed-race (Latino/white) family’s move from Southern California to Bahía de la Luna on the Northern California coast.
Dad has a new job, but it’s little sister Maya’s lungs that motivate the move: she has had cystic fibrosis since birth—a degenerative breathing condition. Despite her health, Maya loves adventure, even if her lungs suffer for it and even when Cat must follow to keep her safe. When Carlos, a tall, brown, and handsome teen Ghost Tour guide introduces the sisters to the Bahía ghosts—most of whom were Spanish-speaking Mexicans when alive—they fascinate Maya and she them, but the terrified Cat wants only to get herself and Maya back to safety. When the ghost adventure leads to Maya’s hospitalization, Cat blames both herself and Carlos, which makes seeing him at school difficult. As Cat awakens to the meaning of Halloween and Day of the Dead in this strange new home, she comes to understand the importance of the ghosts both to herself and to Maya. Telgemeier neatly balances enough issues that a lesser artist would split them into separate stories and delivers as much delight textually as visually. The backmatter includes snippets from Telgemeier’s sketchbook and a photo of her in Día makeup.
Telgemeier’s bold colors, superior visual storytelling, and unusual subject matter will keep readers emotionally engaged and unable to put down this compelling tale. (Graphic fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-545-54061-2
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: July 1, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2016
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by Christina Li ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 12, 2021
Charming, poignant, and thoughtfully woven.
An aspiring scientist and a budding artist become friends and help each other with dream projects.
Unfolding in mid-1980s Sacramento, California, this story stars 12-year-olds Rosalind and Benjamin as first-person narrators in alternating chapters. Ro’s father, a fellow space buff, was killed by a drunk driver; the rocket they were working on together lies unfinished in her closet. As for Benji, not only has his best friend, Amir, moved away, but the comic book holding the clue for locating his dad is also missing. Along with their profound personal losses, the protagonists share a fixation with the universe’s intriguing potential: Ro decides to complete the rocket and hopes to launch mementos of her father into outer space while Benji’s conviction that aliens and UFOs are real compels his imagination and creativity as an artist. An accident in science class triggers a chain of events forcing Benji and Ro, who is new to the school, to interact and unintentionally learn each other’s secrets. They resolve to find Benji’s dad—a famous comic-book artist—and partner to finish Ro’s rocket for the science fair. Together, they overcome technical, scheduling, and geographical challenges. Readers will be drawn in by amusing and fantastical elements in the comic book theme, high emotional stakes that arouse sympathy, and well-drawn character development as the protagonists navigate life lessons around grief, patience, self-advocacy, and standing up for others. Ro is biracial (Chinese/White); Benji is White.
Charming, poignant, and thoughtfully woven. (Fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: Jan. 12, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-06-300888-5
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2020
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