A solid, entertaining and thoughtful fantasy tale, aside from a few small hitches.
MacLaine’s debut novel delivers a new twist on an old classic, complete with pirates, dragons, pixies, childhood adventure and a twee fairyland.
Peter Pan long ago left the Neverland, grew up, grew old and died. His former companion, Tinkerbell, never forgave this betrayal; after renaming herself “Belle,” she departed the Neverland as well. Now the enchanted place is in the hands of Cap’n Hook’s successor, the merciless Capt. Li’l Jack, and his dread dragon, Sincoraz. If Belle wants to save the Neverland, she’s going to need the help of Peter Pan’s heir, Piper Pizzinni, who’s unknowingly his granddaughter. Piper is in the foster system, where her life hasn’t been conducive to the happy thoughts she’ll need in the coming struggle. With the help of some other “Lost Girls” (foster kids who refer to themselves as “the Lifers”), Piper joins the mission to save the Neverland, although she and Belle will have to overcome their differences to do so. MacLaine does an admirable job of capturing the feel of a classic children’s adventure novel, with genuine touches of magic and adventure throughout. The characters, however, keep the story grounded. Piper, in particular, is a strong, relatable protagonist motivated by the disappearance of her parents but not solely defined by it. The author’s depiction of Belle shows what might happen if the somewhat vain Tinkerbell had to truly face losing Peter forever. The story might have benefited from even more thoughtful, direct interactions with the source material; unfortunately, the book ends with jarring abruptness and little resolution, although this may be remedied by future books in the series.
A solid, entertaining and thoughtful fantasy tale, aside from a few small hitches.Pub Date: March 12, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-9898692-7-0
Page Count: 188
Publisher: Artisan Bookworks
Review Posted Online: Sept. 28, 2014
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
What if the market was closed when you wanted to bake a pie? You could embark for Europe, learn Italian en route, and pick up some semolina wheat in Italy, an egg in France, kurundu bark for cinnamon in Sri Lanka, and an entire cow in England (butter) before coming home via Jamaica (sugar) and Vermont (apples). The expertly designed illustrations in which a dark-haired lass journeys by various means to these interesting places to get her groceries are lovely and lively, and the narrative, too, travels at a spritely pace. The journey is neither quite logical enough to be truly informative nor quite bizarre enough to be satisfyingly silly, while the rich, sweet recipe that's appended will take some adult assistance. Still, fun. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: May 2, 1994
ISBN: 0-679-83705-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1994
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
bookshelf
