This newest entry in a dynamic, character-rich middle-grade fiction series doesn’t disappoint.
An orphaned boy in 1930s Pittsburgh faces new dangers and challenges in a continuing series.
Street kid Lewis “Brain” Carter, age 12, and his ragtag Flash Gang first appeared in the launch of Downing and Waugh’s middle-grade fiction series, The Adventures of the Flash Gang: Episode One: Exploding Experiment (2023). Set amid Dickensian realities of poverty and injustice in Depression-era Pittsburgh, it was an impressive debut, offering a smart mix of action and suspense with relatable young characters going up against ruthless moguls, murderers, kidnappers, mobsters, and Nazi sympathizers. In this satisfying sequel, the plot expands and deepens as the stakes are raised even higher for Lewis, who’s now hunkered down in his derelict factory hideout with his kid crew: Duck, Mac, and his best friend, Pearl Alice Clavell, who’s still emulating Lola Lavender, the intrepid hero of her favorite radio show. They’re presumed dead, but their hope that they’ll be able avoid their powerful enemies—including corrupt millionaire Pickering, his murderous henchman Scrugg, and Pearl’s cruel, scheming Aunt Gimlick—is quickly dashed. The malevolent trio have stopped at nothing in their quest to obtain the recipe for a flash-bang explosive that Lewis used as a harmless distraction to steal food for survival. Now, Lewis can’t risk using the flash-bangs that “had made him, only a year before, the most notorious and mysterious food thief in all of Pittsburgh”; as a result, he’s less able to feed himself and others. After Scrugg is released from prison swearing vengeance, questions of loyalty and betrayal threaten the Flash Gang’s solidarity. Also, orphaned street kids are disappearing for a chilling reason, Pearl’s famous, long-absent father returns, and Lewis’ plan to expose criminal behavior in high places, even with the help of a sympathetic reporter, may be impossible.
The authors once again portray Lewis’ world with historical authenticity; they turn real events into compelling plot points as protesting steel workers clash with company thugs, Pittsburgh’s devastating St. Patrick’s Day flood of 1936 is unleashed, and Nazi Germany–inspired fascist groups take root in 1930s America. But these real-life elements don’t compromise the inventive, fictional flow or readers’ ability to relate to the main characters, who act and react according to their own believable personal quirks, strengths, and vulnerabilities. Peripheral players, too, take on more dimension this time around; for example, hard-nosed 15-year-old Dwight, who manages “a battalion of streeters,” proves that he’s more than just a shill for mob boss Fat Joe when he plays a key role in a daring rescue effort. The desire by many of the seemingly self-sufficient, impoverished youth to be cared for by a real family—even as they form found families of their own—is a poignant undercurrent. The book ends, as the first one did, with a suspenseful preview of what’s to come, and it’s a jaw-dropper, with a shocking revelation that will send Lewis and Pearl on a voyage to a deadly destination that neither of them could have imagined.
This newest entry in a dynamic, character-rich middle-grade fiction series doesn’t disappoint.Pub Date: March 5, 2024
ISBN: 9781646034031
Page Count: 218
Publisher: Fitzroy Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 9, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for...
A gentle voice and familiar pitfalls characterize this tale of a boy navigating the risky road to responsibility.
Gavin is new to his neighborhood and Carver Elementary. He likes his new friend, Richard, and has a typically contentious relationship with his older sister, Danielle. When Gavin’s desire to impress Richard sets off a disastrous chain of events, the boy struggles to evade responsibility for his actions. “After all, it isn’t his fault that Danielle’s snow globe got broken. Sure, he shouldn’t have been in her room—but then, she shouldn’t be keeping candy in her room to tempt him. Anybody would be tempted. Anybody!” opines Gavin once he learns the punishment for his crime. While Gavin has a charming Everyboy quality, and his aversion to Aunt Myrtle’s yapping little dog rings true, little about Gavin distinguishes him from other trouble-prone protagonists. He is, regrettably, forgettable. Coretta Scott King Honor winner English (Francie, 1999) is a teacher whose storytelling usually benefits from her day job. Unfortunately, the pizzazz of classroom chaos is largely absent from this series opener.
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for subsequent volumes. (Fiction. 6-9)Pub Date: Dec. 17, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-547-97044-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 1, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
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