A girl whose parents are going through a breakup clings to the belief that her rescue dog has psychic powers in Katz’s middle-grade novel.
Twelve-year-old Georgia wants a dog. She always has, but even more so now that her best friend, Emma, is away and her parents are fighting all the time. With her dad absent at work, Georgia convinces her mom to check out the dogs at the Humane Society. They fall in love with Chester, a gentle, affectionate, toothless schnoodle (a cross between a schnauzer and a poodle), but don’t consult Georgia’s dad before signing the adoption papers. Her dad promptly dubs Chester “Last Straw” and walks out on them. Georgia is distraught. She takes comfort in Chester but can’t help feeling that bringing him home drove her dad away. Then she discovers that Chester is psychic: Using Georgia’s Magic 8 Ball toy to give answers, he can predict the future—an ability that Georgia hopes to make use of in bringing her parents back together. But Georgia has other problems. Not only is Emma drifting into the friendship circle of Reagan (Georgia’s elementary school ex-friend and nemesis), she is also diagnosed with cancer. Can Georgia cope with both losing her best friend and her parents’ split? Does she even want to know the future? The author imbues Georgia with an upbeat voice and wild, fluctuating hopes (“I need a dog to love, to play with, a dog who will listen to me, and hang out with me, and maybe a dog who will stop my parents from arguing so much and bring us all together”) but also the doubts, insecurities, and moody despair one might expect from a 12-year-old going through tough times. The prose is a polished mix of dialogue, inner voice, and narrative. The characters all feel authentic (children and adults alike), and the story rattles along at a good pace through a series of short chapters, drawing the reader into Georgia’s world. While Katz tackles difficult issues of relevance to young readers—neither shying away from Georgia’s pain nor offering a trite, happy ending—Chester’s presence is a constant reassurance both to the characters and readers.
An uplifting middle-grade story that meets sadness head-on and cuddles up to what’s important in life.Pub Date: Feb. 8, 2023
ISBN: 9781685131340
Page Count: 209
Publisher: Black Rose Writing
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S FAMILY | CHILDREN'S SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY
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Utterly believable, this bittersweet story, complete with an author’s note identifying the real Ivan, will inspire a new...
14
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How Ivan confronts his harrowing past yet stays true to his nature exemplifies everything youngsters need to know about courage.
Living in a "domain" of glass, metal and cement at the Big Top Mall, Ivan sometimes forgets whether to act like a gorilla or a human—except Ivan does not think much of humans. He describes their behavior as frantic, whereas he is a peaceful artist. Fittingly, Ivan narrates his tale in short, image-rich sentences and acute, sometimes humorous, observations that are all the more heartbreaking for their simple delivery. His sorrow is palpable, but he stoically endures the cruelty of humans until Ruby the baby elephant is abused. In a pivotal scene, Ivan finally admits his domain is a cage, and rather than let Ruby live and die in grim circumstances, he promises to save her. In order to express his plea in a painting, Ivan must bravely face buried memories of the lush jungle, his family and their brutal murder, which is recounted in a brief, powerful chapter sure to arouse readers’ passions. In a compelling ending, the more challenging question Applegate poses is whether or not Ivan will remember what it was like to be a gorilla. Spot art captures poignant moments throughout.
Utterly believable, this bittersweet story, complete with an author’s note identifying the real Ivan, will inspire a new generation of advocates. (author’s note) (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Jan. 17, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-06-199225-4
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Sept. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2011
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS
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BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
A successful juvenile by the beloved New Yorker writer portrays a farm episode with an imaginative twist that makes a poignant, humorous story of a pig, a spider and a little girl.
Young Fern Arable pleads for the life of runt piglet Wilbur and gets her father to sell him to a neighbor, Mr. Zuckerman. Daily, Fern visits the Zuckermans to sit and muse with Wilbur and with the clever pen spider Charlotte, who befriends him when he is lonely and downcast. At the news of Wilbur's forthcoming slaughter, campaigning Charlotte, to the astonishment of people for miles around, spins words in her web. "Some Pig" comes first. Then "Terrific"—then "Radiant". The last word, when Wilbur is about to win a show prize and Charlotte is about to die from building her egg sac, is "Humble". And as the wonderful Charlotte does die, the sadness is tempered by the promise of more spiders next spring.
The three way chats, in which they are joined by other animals, about web spinning, themselves, other humans—are as often informative as amusing, and the whole tenor of appealing wit and pathos will make fine entertainment for reading aloud, too.Pub Date: Oct. 15, 1952
ISBN: 978-0-06-026385-0
Page Count: 192
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1952
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES
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