Though it lacks depth, the book will connect with its audience. (Fantasy. 8-12)
Albert, Leroy, Birdie, and newcomer Holt make up Team Hydra, a young group of Balance Keepers that have been called upon to save the planet from destruction.
A series of powerful earthquakes signals that there is an Imbalance in the Realm of Belltroll, and Albert, Leroy, and Birdie are summoned to the Core for a conclave of Balance Keepers. When Team Hydra, now with the addition of Holt, sets off to Troll Mountain to investigate the Core's instability, they discover that the giant Trolls of Troll Mountain are in deep hibernation. It is the job of the sleeping Trolls to awaken and maintain the planet’s stability when the bells ring, and the static bells have been tampered with by a traitor within the Realm. The traitor leaves a note for Albert, wearer of a magical Master Tile, triggering fears that the traitor will steal the Tile from Albert to utilize its power to finish the destruction of the planet. Things do get worse before Albert is ultimately led to learn of past betrayals, in turn leading to a surprise revelation as to the identity of the mysterious traitor of Belltroll. Although this fantasy trilogy lacks originality, younger readers may become fans of Team Hydra, as out of the gate Cummings leads them right into a nicely set up, tense world in a tale that can stand alone without reading the previous two installments. The kids who make up Team Hydra appear to be white.
Though it lacks depth, the book will connect with its audience. (Fantasy. 8-12)Pub Date: Nov. 8, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-227524-0
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: July 25, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2016
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant.
Robot Roz undertakes an unusual ocean journey to save her adopted island home in this third series entry.
When a poison tide flowing across the ocean threatens their island, Roz works with the resident creatures to ensure that they will have clean water, but the destruction of vegetation and crowding of habitats jeopardize everyone’s survival. Brown’s tale of environmental depredation and turmoil is by turns poignant, graceful, endearing, and inspiring, with his (mostly) gentle robot protagonist at its heart. Though Roz is different from the creatures she lives with or encounters—including her son, Brightbill the goose, and his new mate, Glimmerwing—she makes connections through her versatile communication abilities and her desire to understand and help others. When Roz accidentally discovers that the replacement body given to her by Dr. Molovo is waterproof, she sets out to seek help and discovers the human-engineered source of the toxic tide. Brown’s rich descriptions of undersea landscapes, entertaining conversations between Roz and wild creatures, and concise yet powerful explanations of the effect of the poison tide on the ecology of the island are superb. Simple, spare illustrations offer just enough glimpses of Roz and her surroundings to spark the imagination. The climactic confrontation pits oceangoing mammals, seabirds, fish, and even zooplankton against hardware and technology in a nicely choreographed battle. But it is Roz’s heroism and peacemaking that save the day.
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant. (author’s note) (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9780316669412
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023
Is this the end? Well, no…the series will stagger on through at least one more scheduled sequel.
Sure signs that the creative wells are running dry at last, the Captain’s ninth, overstuffed outing both recycles a villain (see Book 4) and offers trendy anti-bullying wish fulfillment.
Not that there aren’t pranks and envelope-pushing quips aplenty. To start, in an alternate ending to the previous episode, Principal Krupp ends up in prison (“…a lot like being a student at Jerome Horwitz Elementary School, except that the prison had better funding”). There, he witnesses fellow inmate Tippy Tinkletrousers (aka Professor Poopypants) escape in a giant Robo-Suit (later reduced to time-traveling trousers). The villain sets off after George and Harold, who are in juvie (“not much different from our old school…except that they have library books here.”). Cut to five years previous, in a prequel to the whole series. George and Harold link up in kindergarten to reduce a quartet of vicious bullies to giggling insanity with a relentless series of pranks involving shaving cream, spiders, effeminate spoof text messages and friendship bracelets. Pilkey tucks both topical jokes and bathroom humor into the cartoon art, and ups the narrative’s lexical ante with terms like “pharmaceuticals” and “theatrical flair.” Unfortunately, the bullies’ sad fates force Krupp to resign, so he’s not around to save the Earth from being destroyed later on by Talking Toilets and other invaders…
Is this the end? Well, no…the series will stagger on through at least one more scheduled sequel. (Fantasy. 10-12)Pub Date: Aug. 28, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-545-17534-0
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: June 19, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2012
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