Amusing, if a little clunky.
Eleven-year-old witch Della Dupree must muster all her courage when she’s stranded in the 13th century.
If only Della were brave enough to stand up against the school bullies. But Della knows that if she does, the mean girls will turn on her next. It’s already hard enough to share a name with the famous Della Dupree, who founded Ruthersfield Academy in 1223 to educate witches. Della lives in a Britain where nonmagical people know about and love witches, and her own nonwitchy family is supportive. But what if Della were to travel back in time to meet the historic Della, and what if she were to learn what it’s like to live in a time when witches are hated and feared? Della’s soon stranded in 1223, having lost the magical necklace that enabled her spur-of-the-moment illicit jaunt into the past. As Lowe writes it, history smells atrocious and features hideous food—one particularly “nasty pottage” prompts Della to make a quick magical lasagna, and a disgusting pheasant stew leads her to magic up a chicken curry—but the witch girls Della meets are lovely. She just wishes she were brave enough to save them from the dungeon. In the mildly anachronistic past of her apparently all-white village of Potts Bottom, Della finds her spunk. Slightly awkward prose with odd explanatory asides distracts from both humor and pacing, but scenes in which these medieval characters first experience modern food are mouthwatering.
Amusing, if a little clunky. (recipes, crafts) (Fantasy. 8-11)Pub Date: Aug. 4, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-5344-4367-9
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Paula Wiseman/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 2, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Cinderella Smith cannot keep track of her shoes. It doesn’t seem to matter the type or the brand—she is always searching for missing footwear. The new school year has meant another loss too. Former pals Rosemary W. and Rosemary T. have become such close friends that they have squeezed Cinderella out of their tight friendship. The Rosemarys took summer dance class together, got their ears pierced, discovered boys and cell phones and are on their way to becoming the manipulative mean girls of their class. It looks like old friend and neighbor Charlie Prince might be Cinderella’s only buddy. Enter Erin, the new confident girl in the class. She needs Cinderella’s help figuring out her new stepfamily, and she instantly and correctly sizes up the Rosemarys. Together, these new friends figure out the mystery of stepsisters, missing shoes and the joys of tap dancing. Cinderella has a penchant for acting without thinking, causing her mother to arch her eyebrow in disappointment and judgment. Endearingly, though, Cinderella always tries to do the right thing. Though the first-person narration sounds a little too close to the voice of Sara Pennypacker’s Clementine, the richness of this new friendship and the gentle resolution will make readers hope for another installment. (Fiction. 8-11)
Pub Date: April 24, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-06-196423-7
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: April 8, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
As they learn to take responsibility for their mini-fiascoes, Melonhead and Sam deliver sniggers galore in this sweet and...
Melonhead and his buddy Sam deliver their third goofball romp when they go undercover to catch one of the FBI’s Most Wanted.
Having earned “Junior Special Agent” status from their numerous visits to FBI headquarters, Melonhead and Sam decide that a woman they meet on the bus is The Chameleon, master of disguise and wanted by the FBI. They get so caught up in their self-imposed spy mission that, despite their perpetual good intentions, things run amok. In particular, they bungle a pastry delivery, to the delight of the squirrels, when they hide in a tree outside the suspect’s home. As in the first two books of this series, the story is liberal with such tomfoolery as nose picking, butt walking and a dog-pee mishap. The boys have a witty repartee and are fond of rhyming: “E-Z P-Z, rice and cheezie” or “Unbend, my friend.” As the pair works at fixing their delivery bungle while still continuing to track and report on The Chameleon, they learn that fear and bravery go hand in hand and that sometimes tomato-soup blunders turn out to be a good thing. Combined with appearances from neighborhood favorites met in earlier volumes and Johnson’s snappy sketches, Melonhead’s pure, kid-centric, fun-loving perspective is hard to resist.
As they learn to take responsibility for their mini-fiascoes, Melonhead and Sam deliver sniggers galore in this sweet and funky confection. (Mystery. 8-11)Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-385-73659-6
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Aug. 9, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
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.
