The Puddlejumpers—11-inch-tall creatures—are fighting the Trogs, huge troll-like monsters, but they need to borrow a human Rainmaker to succeed. They choose Shawn Frazier, whose mother died giving birth to him, kidnapping him and raising him to fulfill his destiny. Meanwhile, young Ernie Banks (who uses the name of the famous Cubs shortstop) struggles to grow up in an urban orphanage, where compliance-minded supervisor Mrs. McGinty disapproves of both his love of baseball and his independent streak. Their separate worlds mesh in a surprising climax on the farm run by Shawn’s bereaved father, where the tale’s mythic elements meet oil and machinery. It’s an altogether engaging blend of fantasy and reality, but the mingling of two characters’ blood in a bonding ritual seriously mars the whole. It’s unfortunate that the plot logic depends so heavily on this rather hackneyed trope, as modern-day kids may well find themselves distracted by the notion of the commingling of blood rather than focusing on the true bonding of their partnership. Fatally flawed fun. (Fiction. 10-14)
Pub Date: April 15, 2008
ISBN: 978-1-4231-0759-0
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2008
Did you like this book?
Sofia, growing up in an urban Latino neighborhood in McAllen, Texas, has a chance to attend an expensive boarding school in Austin on scholarship. Like her father, Sofia lives the life of the mind, rich with story and possibility. How can she convince her mother to let her take this opportunity? By learning to dance and showing her that she can leave home and still learn to become a good comadre. Canales, the author of the story collection Orange Candy Slices and Other Secret Tales (2001), is a graduate of Harvard Law School, suggesting that Sofia’s story at least closely parallels her own. She is an accomplished storyteller, though not yet, perhaps, a successful novelist. The episodic narrative has disconcerting leaps in time at the beginning, and a sense of completion, or a moral displayed, at several points throughout—all lacking the tension to carry the reader forward. This said, the characters and setting are so real to life that readers who connect with Sofia at the start will find many riches here, from a perspective that is still hard to find in youth literature. (Fiction. 10-14)
Pub Date: Aug. 9, 2005
ISBN: 0-385-74674-1
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Wendy Lamb/Random
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2005
Categories: TEENS & YOUNG ADULT FICTION | TEENS & YOUNG ADULT FAMILY
Did you like this book?
BOOK REVIEW
A gripping thriller in dystopic future Los Angeles.
Fifteen-year-olds June and Day live completely different lives in the glorious Republic. June is rich and brilliant, the only candidate ever to get a perfect score in the Trials, and is destined for a glowing career in the military. She looks forward to the day when she can join up and fight the Republic’s treacherous enemies east of the Dakotas. Day, on the other hand, is an anonymous street rat, a slum child who failed his own Trial. He's also the Republic's most wanted criminal, prone to stealing from the rich and giving to the poor. When tragedies strike both their families, the two brilliant teens are thrown into direct opposition. In alternating first-person narratives, Day and June experience coming-of-age adventures in the midst of spying, theft and daredevil combat. Their voices are distinct and richly drawn, from Day’s self-deprecating affection for others to June's Holmesian attention to detail. All the flavor of a post-apocalyptic setting—plagues, class warfare, maniacal soldiers—escalates to greater complexity while leaving space for further worldbuilding in the sequel.
This is no didactic near-future warning of present evils, but a cinematic adventure featuring endearing, compelling heroes . (Science fiction. 12-14)Pub Date: Nov. 29, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-399-25675-2
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: April 8, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2011
Did you like this book?
© Copyright 2021 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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.
