A quiet, philosophical story for thoughtful readers
As she struggles with vision loss, Mafalda takes stock of her gains in this Italian import and debut.
Without her glasses, fifth grader Mafalda sees the world as a mist, a complication of her Stargardt disease, a rare form of macular degeneration. Because the mist will eventually turn into darkness, she keeps a list of “Things I care a lot about (but I won’t be able to do anymore).” In lyrical prose ably translated by Muir, Peretti, who also has Stargardt disease, takes readers through Mafalda’s school year as the preteen tracks the progression of her disease by crossing off the activities she can no longer perform and the decreasing number of steps it takes to reach the schoolyard cherry tree from when she can first see it. Many chapters end with a pleading to Cosimo, the protagonist of Italo Calvino’s The Baron in the Trees, for help. Young readers unfamiliar with this work will still understand Mafalda’s prayerlike requests to this spirited boy who chose to live among the trees and her own decision to live in the cherry tree. The sorrow of imminent darkness is tempered, however, by the girl’s friendships with the school custodian, a Romanian immigrant, and schoolmate Filippo, who lives with his single mother. Both experience their own losses and help Mafalda realize that life goes on with unexpected joys. A minor character is Indian; others are assumed to be white Europeans.
A quiet, philosophical story for thoughtful readers . (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 3, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5344-3962-7
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Atheneum
Review Posted Online: May 21, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2019
Fast-paced and plot-driven.
In his latest, prolific author Gratz takes on Hitler’s Olympic Games.
When 13-year-old American gymnast Evie Harris arrives in Berlin to compete in the 1936 Olympic Games, she has one goal: stardom. If she can bring home a gold medal like her friend, the famous equestrian-turned-Hollywood-star Mary Brooks, she might be able to lift her family out of their Dust Bowl poverty. But someone slips a strange note under Evie’s door, and soon she’s dodging Heinz Fischer, the Hitler Youth member assigned to host her, and meeting strangers who want to make use of her gymnastic skills—to rob a bank. As the games progress, Evie begins to see the moral issues behind their sparkling facade—the antisemitism and racism inherent in Nazi ideology and the way Hitler is using the competition to support and promote these beliefs. And she also agrees to rob the bank. Gratz goes big on the Mission Impossible–style heist, which takes center stage over the actual competitions, other than Jesse Owens’ famous long jump. A lengthy and detailed author’s note provides valuable historical context, including places where Gratz adapted the facts for storytelling purposes (although there’s no mention of the fact that before 1952, Olympic equestrian sports were limited to male military officers). With an emphasis on the plot, many of the characters feel defined primarily by how they’re suffering under the Nazis, such as the fictional diver Ursula Diop, who was involuntarily sterilized for being biracial.
Fast-paced and plot-driven. (Historical fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: Oct. 7, 2025
ISBN: 9781338736106
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Aug. 2, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2025
A sympathetic and amusing account of a young anxiety sufferer navigating life changes.
While Penny adjusts to her noisy newborn siblings, she tries to figure out a complicated treasure map and even more complicated friendships and feelings.
Now that the twins are home from the hospital, Penny and little brother Juice Box are struggling to adjust; it’s tough with all the crying, plus a new babysitter. And Penny and Juice Box have to help choose names for the babies, and they can’t agree. Penny’s also trying to be OK with the fact that bestie Maria is studying for the spelling bee with mutual friend Chloe, though it makes her feel inadequate. The discovery of a bunch of unidentified keys helps Penny and her friends open the locked box they’d found in the attic, and the treasure map inside leads them to the most terrifying house in the neighborhood, where a witch supposedly lives. Amid all this, a school project forces Penny to consider what her own good qualities are. Though ex-friend Riley is still around to (mostly) antagonize Penny, Mrs. Hines, the Feelings Teacher, keeps helping her navigate all the upheaval. This third series entry offers yet more humor and genuine positivity along with an honest portrayal of how anxiety can affect young people. The third volume moves more quickly than the previous two, yet it maintains the wit and warmth (greatly supported by the charming black-and-white cartoon illustrations) that readers have come to expect from Penny’s escapades.
A sympathetic and amusing account of a young anxiety sufferer navigating life changes. (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: March 5, 2024
ISBN: 9780593616833
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: Dec. 16, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2024
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