Publicized as the first in a series of mysteries featuring Bianca Balducci, 15-year-old high-school sleuth, this effort from first-time novelist Sternberg should satisfy mystery lovers, though it will likely annoy forward-thinking young women. High-school sophomore Bianca confines most of her attention to attracting Doug, whom she hopes will become her first official boyfriend, until Sadie Sinclair suddenly arrives in her school. Sadie exudes mystery. She dresses like an extrovert, yet appears to be shy, and is pitifully happy when Bianca and the other girls accept her as a friend. She’s supposed to be only 15, yet she drives a car. Consumed with curiosity about Sadie and with hero-worship of her older sister Connie, a private detective, Bianca decides to investigate the strange new girl. What she discovers puts herself and Sadie into serious trouble, as well as continually interfering with Bianca and Doug’s romantic progress. While Sternberg emphasizes mystery and action elements, she doesn’t ignore deeper issues. She portrays Bianca as someone who genuinely cares about Sadie even while digging into Sadie’s past, rationalizing her actions with the idea the she’s really helping the girl. Too much moralizing at the end helps to tidy up Bianca’s growth experience, but the emphasis remains on mystery and suspense. It’s an extra entertainment for mystery fans, one for those who want a puzzle without a ghost or a murder and who don’t mind the retro girl stuff. (Fiction. 12-16)
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2003
ISBN: 1-890862-23-1
Page Count: 190
Publisher: Bancroft Press
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2002
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Reading like a long term paper, this dry, abstract recitation of teams and players brings neither the game nor the people who played and are playing it to life. McKissack (with Patricia C. McKissack, Black Diamond, 1994, not reviewed, etc.) opens with a chapter on basketball’s invention and original rules, closes with a look at women’s basketball, and in between chronicles the growth of amateur, college, and pro ball, adding clipped quotes, technical observations about changing styles of play and vague comments about how players black and white respected each other. The information is evidently drawn entirely from previously published books and interviews. A modest selection of black-and-white photographs give faces to some of the many names the author drops, but readers won’t find much more about individual players beyond an occasional biographical or statistical tidbit. McKissack frequently points to parallels in the history of African Americans in basketball and in baseball, but this account comes off as sketchy and unfocused compared to Black Diamond. (glossary, bibliography, index) (Nonfiction. 12-14)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-590-48712-4
Page Count: 148
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 1999
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An unusual, coach's-eye view of small, shy Evelyn Ashford, the dominant sprinter of the late 70's and early 80's. Despite the sometimes awkward prose (``Eugene was a dangerous place for anyone who was allergic to the numerous pollens in the air''), Connolly has a gift for making even the most routine workouts sound intriguing and gives a clear idea of a coach's multiple roles: not just physical and psychological conditioner but parent, buddy, even business manager. Herself a former Olympian, Connolly describes her innovative training techniques in general terms, plus giving many instances of sexism, racism, and financial irregularity in the world of ``amateur'' track and field; she also takes a passionate stand against drugs and steroids. Ashford comes across as rather passive and biddable off the track but totally different in competition: a day after miscarrying, she won an important race and later (1984) earned a gold medal despite a massively torn muscle. Ashford and Connolly severed formal ties after those games; aside from a very short epilogue, that's where this frank, engaging book ends. (Biography. 13-16)
Pub Date: May 15, 1991
ISBN: 0-06-021282-9
Page Count: 224
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 1991
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