Merlin Tuttle, the ``Batman'' subject of this brief biography, dates his enthusiasm for biology to capturing a toad at the age of two. At nine he was keeping a notebook of his wildlife observations and memorizing the scientific names of all the mammals of California. Bat advocate, photographer, researcher, author, and founder of Bat Conservation International, Dr. Tuttle is an excellent example of a contemporary working scientist. Pringles includes fascinating tidbits about bats and their importance to the balance of nature; Tuttle's close-up color photos are stunning. Further reading; index.~(Nonfiction. 10-12)
Pub Date: March 29, 1991
ISBN: 0-684-19232-2
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Scribner
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1991
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
If only the heroines of this tale—Nora, almost 13, and sibling Patsy, just 12—didn't seem so much older than their ages suggest, Greene would have a near-perfect tale about the hauntings of the heart. Three years ago, the girls' mother died of cancer, a death her sorrowful portrait and many of her photos seem to have foretold. Now that their father is remarrying, Nora's sadness is reawakened and she imagines that her mother is occasionally with her—next to her on a couch or laughing in her ear. Nora has long lived in her sister's shadow; Patsy's an attention-getter, disbelieving when the boy both girls like prefers Nora's company. The subtitle's ``maybe'' cues readers in: the mother's spirit presence, if it's there, is gentle and tenuous. Still, the story is affecting—not as a testimonial to the paranormal but as a study of a young girl's delayed reaction to loss. No wonder Chuck finds Nora's quiet ways likable; as her wry narration demonstrates, she's perfectly capable of nabbing the attention she needs, and entertaining her audience in the process. (Fiction. 10-12)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1993
ISBN: 0-15-277696-6
Page Count: 202
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1993
BOOK REVIEW
When, by page 15, Cassie decides to keep her father's stamp collection even though she's angrily throwing out all his other possessions, any suspense as to the outcome of this novel of divorce's aftermath is effectively void. At 11, Cassie takes her father's actions (including his upcoming marriage) hard, invoking a ``no boys'' rule to which she wants her older sister and mother to adhere. She fights with best friend Bob (one-note and too wise, and by taking the adults' side, he gives Cassie plenty of new reasons to dislike men) and is grudging about the arrival of great-uncle Harry, who moves in to recuperate from a heart attack. While her mother gets a job and becomes more assertive, Cassie gets busy collecting stamps and working a paper route; by the last page, she's ready to mail her father a conciliatory letter. Cassie's clichÇ-ridden narration offers few insights (``I started to sob deep, wrenching sobs as I mourned the loss of my father''—but she's happy enough next day to make dates with newly introduced characters). A slick journey through well- traveled, much-abused territory; it's hard to care about Cassie's superficially reported woes. (Fiction. 10-12)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1993
ISBN: 0-8167-3135-7
Page Count: 124
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1993
BOOK REVIEW
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