A well-intentioned premise with a few potentially thought-provoking puzzles thrown in for good measure.
When bad weather and a wrong turn accidentally send an art-loving 12-year-old girl to Camp Archimedes, a math camp, instead of her intended destination, Camp Vermeer, things get a bit weird.
Once fate brings Esther Lambert to a brainy camp where she feels like “an alien from the planet Creativity,” she finds herself unwittingly drawn in by compelling algebraic puzzles and logic challenges. Being the first to solve the inaugural brainteaser of the summer with an original solution gives her confidence. But then mysterious notes, camp history, and a spooky legend about the man who gave the land to the camp collide to lead her on a wacky hunt for what appears to be a serial murderer. Eventually her transition to newly minted math nerd is complete. Esther herself is solid and earnest, the math aspect is engaging, and the exuberant energy of the story is contagious. However, the pacing feels uneven, character development is limited, and it’s not always clear where and why the plotline goes where it does or what is at stake. The effort to encourage girls to transition from single-minded focus on the arts to also believing in their math abilities feels sincere if a bit heavy-handed. Esther is depicted as white on the cover, and diversity among secondary characters is indicated through naming convention and description.
A well-intentioned premise with a few potentially thought-provoking puzzles thrown in for good measure. (Mystery. 8-12)Pub Date: April 9, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-68119-770-8
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: Jan. 14, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2019
A worthy combination of athletic action, the virtues of inner strength, and the importance of friendship.
A young tennis champion becomes the target of revenge.
In this sequel to Legacy and the Queen (2019), Legacy Petrin and her friends Javi and Pippa have returned to Legacy’s home province and the orphanage run by her father. With her friends’ help, she is in training to defend her championship when they discover that another player, operating under the protection of High Consul Silla, is presenting herself as Legacy. She is so convincing that the real Legacy is accused of being an imitation. False Legacy has become a hero to the masses, further strengthening Silla’s hold, and it becomes imperative to uncover and defeat her. If Legacy is to win again, she must play her imposter while disguised as someone else. Winning at tennis is not just about money and fame, but resisting Silla’s plans to send more young people into brutal mines with little hope of better lives. Legacy will have to overcome her fears and find the magic that allowed her to claim victory in the past. This story, with its elements of sports, fantasy, and social consciousness that highlight tensions between the powerful and those they prey upon, successfully continues the series conceived by late basketball superstar Bryant. As before, the tennis matches are depicted with pace and spirit. Legacy and Javi have brown skin; most other characters default to White.
A worthy combination of athletic action, the virtues of inner strength, and the importance of friendship. (Fantasy. 9-12)Pub Date: Aug. 24, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-949520-19-4
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Granity Studios
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
Delightfully weird and whimsical.
A 13-year-old girl and a colony of bats overcome losses in this middle-grade debut from Ready Player One author Cline.
After Opal B. Flats’ mother dies, she goes to live with Uncle Roscoe on the family farm in the Texas Hill Country. Her first night there, she has an alien encounter and subsequently discovers that she can communicate with the Mexican free-tailed bats living in a nearby cave. Their connection becomes essential when Opal, Uncle Roscoe, and the bats, through differing circumstances, are forced to find new homes. Opal and Uncle Roscoe, who read white, convince the bats to accompany them to Austin, “the only place in this whole stone-hearted state where weirdos are welcome!” If Opal and Uncle Roscoe have a slow start with fitting in, it’s even more difficult for a colony of over a million bats, especially when prejudice against them is being systematically reinforced by a greedy councilman whose pesticide business suffers when the bats start eating insects. The third-person narration unfolds in a homey style that’s colored with references to music and famous names that contribute to the sense of place, including Ann Richards, Selena, and Willie Nelson. Entries from Opal’s scrapbook are interspersed throughout. Readers will be relieved that, despite the hardships Opal and the bats must overcome, they ultimately prevail, succeeding in making friends and new homes for themselves in this celebratory primer on bats and belonging. Westell’s delicate, atmospheric illustrations greatly enhance the text.
Delightfully weird and whimsical. (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: April 9, 2024
ISBN: 9780316460583
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2024
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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