The rescue of an at-risk adolescent with light and dark sides takes center stage, but the unfolding mystery adds a dramatic...
Bad seed wars with good in an orphaned teenager who finds out that his mother’s death wasn’t an accident.
Originally published a decade ago in Canada, this series opener set in Toronto hooks Michael—a troubled teen surrounded by poor companions and role models— up with his history teacher, quiet ex-cop John Riel. Four years after the loss of his loving, hardworking mother, Mike’s life seems to be going down the tubes thanks to failing grades, a breakup with his girlfriend and sudden unemployment following an arrest for a minor theft. The electrifying discovery that his new teacher had been in charge of his mom’s never-solved case, though, leads to new questions and clues that implicate both the uncle who is his sole remaining family member and a pair of shady associates. It also leads to an initially hostile but growing mutual attachment that culminates, following a second sudden death and nearly a third, in Mike gaining a steady new foster father. Look for more role modeling and crime solving in two sequels that publish simultaneously: Truth and Lies and Dead and Gone.
The rescue of an at-risk adolescent with light and dark sides takes center stage, but the unfolding mystery adds a dramatic subplot. (Mystery. 12-14)Pub Date: March 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4677-2611-5
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Darby Creek
Review Posted Online: Jan. 14, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2014
As a highly specific thesaurus it excels; as a story, not so much. Alan Cumyn covers much the same ground with considerably...
The story of a boy and his boners.
"Weinerschnitzel." "Wang." "Sky-high pork pipe." "Baloney pony." Those are just some of the names 13-year-old Bobby calls his errant penis (within the first three pages), which becomes erect at the most inconvenient times. After accidently shocking his math teacher into early retirement when she gets a gander at his tent pole, Bobby is sentenced to several hours of school therapy with a counselor who needs couch time herself. In addition, he must deal with his clueless parents, randy grandfather, angry sister and moronic best friend, Finkelstein. His life is further complicated by the fact that he has a crush on the new math teacher’s daughter and doesn’t know how to ask her to the Big Dance. Will Bobby’s wayward pecker continue to obstruct his path to true love? To say this lacks the subtlety and character development of Judy Blume’s classic male-puberty title, Then Again, Maybe I Won’t (1971), is putting it lightly. Stereotypical characterizations combined with a plot that reads like a rejected Family Guy script assure that the novel will find an enthusiastic audience with middle-school boys who share Sitomer’s dubious sense of humor, if with no one else. However, the excessive penis and fart jokes may tire even them.
As a highly specific thesaurus it excels; as a story, not so much. Alan Cumyn covers much the same ground with considerably more nuance, though for slightly older readers, in Tilt (2011). (Fiction. 12-14)Pub Date: Sept. 15, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-399-25498-7
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: Aug. 2, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The new kid in a near-reform school finds himself caught up in a disturbing animal-abuse case.
Accused of theft at his Las Vegas school, Danny Lopez needs a fresh start in a structured environment, and his parents think they've found just the place in Colorado: Cobalt Junior High Charter School, with a strict dress code, a draconian policy on communication and tightly outlined class instruction. As Danny adjusts to the silence and the scripts, he also gets caught up in the student sects, each of which claims to run the school. Meanwhile, a serial killer is murdering cats, and Danny is determined to uncover the secret before his cat is sacrificed. Generic protagonist Danny's lack of personality and distinctive voice is underscored by the stream of pop-culture references that pepper the narrative, seemingly in an attempt to reach out to the teen audience. Many of the plot points (rote memorization over critical thinking, absentee parents, religious instruction in schools) come across as social critique rather than narrative elements, and none of them feel particularly suited to the middle-school audience. Though the cat killings are slightly gruesome, the serial killer is never truly scary and has flimsiest motivation at best. The publisher has labeled this book for ages 14 and up, perhaps because of the serial killings. The gore isn't particularly gory, though, and protagonist, writing and setting all seem to skew this book to middle-school audiences. Bloody without terror, this tale barely deviates from formula. (Mystery. 12-13)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-8109-8420-2
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Amulet/Abrams
Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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