by Lynn Katz ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 8, 2023
An uplifting middle-grade story that meets sadness head-on and cuddles up to what’s important in life.
Awards & Accolades
Our Verdict
GET IT
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
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Share your opinion of this book
by Peter Brown ; illustrated by Peter Brown ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 26, 2023
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
Share your opinion of this book
More by Aaron Reynolds
BOOK REVIEW
by Aaron Reynolds ; illustrated by Peter Brown
BOOK REVIEW
by Peter Brown ; illustrated by Peter Brown
BOOK REVIEW
by Peter Brown ; illustrated by Peter Brown
by E.B. White illustrated by Garth Williams ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 15, 1952
The three way chats, in which they are joined by other animals, about web spinning, themselves, other humans—are as often...
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
Share your opinion of this book
More by E.B. White
BOOK REVIEW
by E.B. White & illustrated by Maggie Kneen
BOOK REVIEW
by E.B. White illustrated by Fred Marcellino
BOOK REVIEW
by E.B. White illustrated by Garth Williams
More About This Book
PERSPECTIVES
SEEN & HEARD
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
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.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.