A politically charged fable with an important message despite awkward execution.
A young tortoise faces big, life-or-death questions in this children’s novel.
Feno lives in a place called Tutiland, which was once an ecologically rich savanna with “luxuriant grasses,” “overflowing rivers,” and anthills teeming with “lush plants and giant mushrooms,” but it’s since been “baked dry.” Feno’s name means “Fear Nothing,” but he and his father, Negu, and his mother, Iagu, face drought and brutal dictatorship in their beloved homeland. The once-peaceful community of grassland creatures has become divided in the face of scarce resources. In one camp, animals struggle to balance their own survival with their resistance to Koli, the tyrannical elephant king who hoards what remains of water resources. In the other, are “brown-nosers”—including literal dung beetles—who kiss up to Koli in order to stay above water, so to speak. In the thick of Tutiland’s crisis, and with a child’s stubborn altruism, little Feno commits to staying in his homeland and healing the community, but his moral stance is put to the test. Various members of his family and community pressure him toward violent retaliation, flight, or surrender, and later, he weathers a horrific loss and a near-death experience. This fable’s environmentalist message is timely and important, and Nyamidie (Ready for Your Love and Other Poems, 2004) offers an accessible assertion to children to believe that their voices matter in the community. Monahan’s (A Loud Whisper, 2017, etc.) illustrations drive home the effects of drought and dictatorship. However, some other aspects of the book detract from its overall impact. The dialogue is choppy and confusing at times, for example, and the plot feels rushed overall. Characters also morally transform and reconcile with others in ways that feel abrupt and unrealistic. The watercolor illustrations, though lovely and skillful on the cover, lose some of their luster in black-and-white reproductions in the interior.
A politically charged fable with an important message despite awkward execution.Pub Date: March 24, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-5412-8923-9
Page Count: 114
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: July 29, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
In more ways than one, a tale about young creatures testing their wings; a moving, entertaining winner.
A fifth-grade New Orleans girl discovers a mysterious chrysalis containing an unexpected creature in this middle-grade novel.
Jacquelyn Marie Johnson, called Jackie, is a 10-year-old African-American girl, the second oldest and the only girl of six siblings. She’s responsible, smart, and enjoys being in charge; she likes “paper dolls and long division and imagining things she had never seen.” Normally, Jackie has no trouble obeying her strict but loving parents. But when her potted snapdragon acquires a peculiar egg or maybe a chrysalis (she dubs it a chrysalegg), Jackie’s strong desire to protect it runs up against her mother’s rule against plants in the house. Jackie doesn’t exactly mean to lie, but she tells her mother she needs to keep the snapdragon in her room for a science project and gets permission. Jackie draws the chrysalegg daily, waiting for something to happen as it gets larger. When the amazing creature inside breaks free, Jackie is more determined than ever to protect it, but this leads her further into secrets and lies. The results when her parents find out are painful, and resolving the problem will take courage, honesty, and trust. Dumas (Jaden Toussaint, the Greatest: Episode 5, 2017, etc.) presents a very likable character in Jackie. At 10, she’s young enough to enjoy playing with paper dolls but has a maturity that even older kids can lack. She’s resourceful, as when she wants to measure a red spot on the chrysalegg; lacking calipers, she fashions one from her hairpin. Jackie’s inward struggle about what to obey—her dearest wishes or the parents she loves—is one many readers will understand. The book complicates this question by making Jackie’s parents, especially her mother, strict (as one might expect to keep order in a large family) but undeniably loving and protective as well—it’s not just a question of outwitting clueless adults. Jackie’s feelings about the creature (tender and responsible but also more than a little obsessive) are similarly shaded rather than black-and-white. The ending suggests that an intriguing sequel is to come.
In more ways than one, a tale about young creatures testing their wings; a moving, entertaining winner.Pub Date: Nov. 11, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943169-32-0
Page Count: 212
Publisher: Plum Street Press
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2018
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A YA novel that treats its subject and its readers with respect while delivering an engaging story.
In the ninth book in the Bluford young-adult series, a young Latino man walks away from violence—but at great personal cost.
In a large Southern California city, 16-year-old Martin Luna hangs out on the fringes of gang life. He’s disaffected, fatherless and increasingly drawn into the orbit of the older, rougher Frankie. When a stray bullet kills Martin’s adored 8-year-old brother, Huero, Martin seems to be heading into a life of crime. But Martin’s mother, determined not to lose another son, moves him to another neighborhood—the fictional town of Bluford, where he attends the racially diverse Bluford High. At his new school, the still-grieving Martin quickly makes enemies and gets into trouble. But he also makes friends with a kind English teacher and catches the eye of Vicky, a smart, pretty and outgoing Bluford student. Martin’s first-person narration supplies much of the book’s power. His dialogue is plain, but realistic and believable, and the authors wisely avoid the temptation to lard his speech with dated and potentially embarrassing slang. The author draws a vivid and affecting picture of Martin’s pain and confusion, bringing a tight-lipped teenager to life. In fact, Martin’s character is so well drawn that when he realizes the truth about his friend Frankie, readers won’t feel as if they are watching an after-school special, but as though they are observing the natural progression of Martin’s personal growth. This short novel appears to be aimed at urban teens who don’t often see their neighborhoods portrayed in young-adult fiction, but its sophisticated characters and affecting story will likely have much wider appeal.
A YA novel that treats its subject and its readers with respect while delivering an engaging story.Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2004
ISBN: 978-1591940173
Page Count: 152
Publisher: Townsend Press
Review Posted Online: Jan. 26, 2013
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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