This dark twist on the old legend of stolen children is a spooky, compelling read.
When a man-people moves into the old cottage in the woods, Wicked Nix isn’t happy.
Having been given temporary responsibility for the forest, Wicked Nix is afraid that when the Good Queen returns from the Summer Country, she’ll be angry to see a people living in the woods. That’s not allowed, according to fairy rule. And if the Good Queen is angry at Wicked Nix, she might leave him behind again when all the other fairies go to the Summer Country at next Midsummer, like she did last year. So Wicked Nix sets to work trying to trick the man-people into leaving, using ideas inspired by his friends Mr. Green and Rose the Wise, a little girl-people with “strange and amazing powers.” But as Wicked Nix learns more about the man-people, he begins to suspect all is not what it seems. Coakley offers up a secretive tale with an abundance of turns and surprises, illustrated with Zollars’ black-and-white sketches (in which Rose the Wise presents black and the man-people and Wicked Nix have pale skin). The worldbuilding in this short tale occasionally feels forced and at times inconsistent, but readers pulled in by the premise will enjoy puzzling through unreliable-narrator Wicked Nix’s mysteries.
This dark twist on the old legend of stolen children is a spooky, compelling read. (Fantasy. 8-12)Pub Date: Oct. 9, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4197-2869-3
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Amulet/Abrams
Review Posted Online: July 2, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Warm, delicious and filling.
What do you get when you take some scrumptious pie recipes, stir in a mix-up of a mystery involving an overweight cat and a legacy, then add a sly satirical nod to the Newbery Medal? This irresistible confection.
In 1955, 10-year-old Alice’s beloved Aunt Polly, the peerless “Pie Queen of Ipswitch,” who has always given away the extraordinary products of her oven simply because it makes her happy, dies. She bequeaths her incomparable piecrust recipe to Lardo, her cat—or does she?—and leaves Lardo to Alice. Thus the stage is set for a rich, layered and funny tale about friendship, family relationships and doing what’s right. The characters are wonderfully drawn. While doing her best to carry on Aunt Polly’s legacy, trying to figure out how to wrest the secret from the cat, dealing with a nefarious woman poking around town and learning about the renowned “Blueberry Medal,” which everyone in town is trying to win, Alice draws closer to her mom, a resolution Aunt Polly would have cherished. Alice and her family eventually discover the solution to the mystery in a plot twist that is both comical and plausible. An epilogue, set in 1995, is deeply poignant and gratifying. In addition to the beautifully wrought story, readers will savor and want to attempt the 14 recipes, each of which precedes a chapter.
Warm, delicious and filling. (recipes, pie credits) (Historical fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-545-27011-3
Page Count: 192
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2011
This successful sequel offers relatable heroes for a new generation.
Ava and her friends return for another year at their magical school.
After narrowly avoiding expulsion during her first year and discovering her link to the goddess Medusa, eighth grader Ava Baldwin returns to Accademia del Forte, a boarding school in Venice for kids who are descended from mythological monsters. Though she’s eager to reunite with her friends, Ava is committed to her new mission: challenging the lies that the Olympian gods have told to keep themselves in power and conceal their misdeeds. Instead, however, Ava finds herself consumed with jealousy over her friend Layla’s newfound beauty, popularity, and boyfriend. Her efforts are further interrupted by bullies like Cyclops descendant Zale, as well as the new headmaster, demigod Perseus, who infuses the school with toxic hero worship. Disaster strikes when Layla, like many girls and women before her, is punished by the gods for her beauty and confidence. Committed vegan Layla is transformed into a bloodthirsty Empusa and must choose between compromising her morals or starving to death; can Ava and her friends save her before it’s too late? As in the series opener, this second installment skillfully weaves familiar mythology with coming-of-age concerns, all filtered through a feminist lens. Full of humor, adventure, and heart, this story, with its diverse cast of international characters, will delight readers.
This successful sequel offers relatable heroes for a new generation. (map) (Fantasy. 8-12)Pub Date: April 22, 2025
ISBN: 9780063303799
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Storytide/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: March 8, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2025
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