An engaging mix of escapades and financial advice.
An anthropomorphic alligator searches for relics around the world while imparting financial advice in this middle-grade novel.
Allister Banks is an alligator. Not the kind of gator readers are used to, but one who walks upright, talks, and is an Indiana Jones–type hero who travels the globe searching for rare relics. He and his fellow reptiles live in Gator City on a continent called Alligatros; use the Alligatros internet; and work at places like Gator States Bancorp. Allister works in the bank in the present day, but his adventures begin with a flashback, when he and his friend Maxitrillion Greenback are searching for a relic called the Jade Scarab. They find it, lose it, and have a falling-out only to cross paths—along with an archivist named Christina—two years later on the hunt for the Ruby Blade, a sword also known as Excalibur. The bulk of the book focuses on this pursuit, but it’s an escapade with a twist. Sprinkled throughout are financial lessons, from sections on expenses and income to others on loans and financial advisers. There are 20 financial lessons, which start with the basics: “A credit card is a tool that allows you to borrow money from a company in order to buy things.” It’s an odd marriage of financial help and quest tale, particularly for the young readers for which this book is written. They will certainly respond well to Allister’s exploits, filled with fights and creatures like poisonous beetles. Payne has created an imaginative world, although the nearly 450-page tome drags in places. This story is definitely an epic, as Allister travels extensively and deals with the human world and the secrets surrounding the famous sword. Some readers will be put off by the financial lessons, which occasionally seem to materialize out of nowhere, but others will delight in the author’s inventiveness. It is a bit of “a spoonful of sugar”—young readers enjoying Allister’s heroics may learn something about finances in the process.
An engaging mix of escapades and financial advice.Pub Date: Sept. 16, 2022
ISBN: 978-1737460008
Page Count: 461
Publisher: Adventure Finance LLC
Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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
A pleasing premise for book lovers.
A fantasy-loving bookworm makes a wonderful, terrible bargain.
When sixth grader Poppy Woodlock’s historic preservationist parents move the family to the Oregon coast to work on the titular stately home, Poppy’s sure she’ll find magic. Indeed, the exiled water nymph in the manor’s ruined swimming pool grants a wish, but: “Magic isn’t free. It cosssts.” The price? Poppy’s favorite book, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. In return she receives Sampson, a winged lion cub who is everything Poppy could have hoped for. But she soon learns that the nymph didn’t take just her own physical book—she erased Narnia from Poppy’s world. And it’s just the first loss: Soon, Poppy’s grandmother’s journal’s gone, then The Odyssey, and more. The loss is heartbreaking, but Sampson’s a wonderful companion, particularly as Poppy’s finding middle school a tough adjustment. Hartman’s premise is beguiling—plenty of readers will identify with Poppy, both as a fellow bibliophile and as a kid struggling to adapt. Poppy’s repeatedly expressed faith that unveiling Sampson will bring some sort of vindication wears thin, but that does not detract from the central drama. It’s a pity that the named real-world books Poppy reads are notably lacking in diversity; a story about the power of literature so limited in imagination lets both itself and readers down. Main characters are cued White; there is racial diversity in the supporting cast. Chapters open with atmospheric spot art. (This review has been updated to reflect the final illustrations.)
A pleasing premise for book lovers. (Fantasy. 9-12)Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9780316448222
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2023
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