This psychological mystery explores a child’s deepest genetic need for belonging. Sam has darkly unfathomable dreams and vague memories: a cat, a boat, a storm, a bold castle, a mean woman, the number 11. As he turns 11, questioning his own identity, these dreams and memories drive him to take devious, even dangerous, risks to uncover the truth. His sleuthing is thwarted by his inability to read—literally—the clues he finds in concealed papers and on the Internet. He is joined in his search by Caroline, another seeker, who reads voraciously but is never in one school long enough to achieve acceptance. Together the two form a friendship, building a castle as a classroom project and exposing secrets that empower Sam to confront his family about his clouded history. In a satisfyingly poignant conclusion, both children stand at the threshold of inclusion and kinship. An engrossing examination of a profound theme in the deft hands of a discerning author. (Fiction. 9-12)
Pub Date: Jan. 8, 2008
ISBN: 978-0-385-73069-3
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Wendy Lamb/Random
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2007
Eleven-year-old Dawn Buckle, with her nondescript appearance and mushroom-colored knee socks, is constantly ignored and overlooked—even by her own parents. This natural knack for invisibility, while personally frustrating, pays off when Dawn is recruited by an English spy-busting organization known as P.S.S.T. (Pursuit of Scheming Spies and Traitors), a division of S.H.H. (Strictly Hush-Hush). Dawn’s assigned mission is to go undercover as Kitty Wilson, infiltrating an Essex village in pursuit of the missing Angela Bradshaw, a spy at P.S.S.T. for 40 years who may have been captured by the villainous traitor Murdo Meek. While genuine danger looms, silliness trumps all in this giddy novel, complete with torturing turtles, secret staircases, magpie messengers and a school of red herrings. Readers will not care so much about the dizzying dénouement as revel in the details of the hunt and the tools of the trade (like a shell-shaped telephone and disappearing purple ink). Amid the madcap spy antics is the story of a once-invisible girl who happily loses her knack for going unnoticed. (Fiction. 9-12)
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2005
ISBN: 1-58234-657-7
Page Count: 350
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2005
Bunny Brown and Jack Jones, ace detectives, join forces again to solve their third easy-reader mystery in this snappy new series from Newbery Medalist Rylant, author of the beloved Henry and Mudge books. Bunny the bunny is the practical brains of the detective duo, and Jack the raccoon is her humorous sidekick, who is even funnier in this book than in the previous volumes, The Case of the Missing Monkey (not reviewed) and The Case of the Climbing Cat (2000). In this case, Bunny and Jack solve the chronic disappearance (and reappearance) of a trombone from a neighborhood music store. The puzzling possum of the title, Freddy, has been repeatedly "borrowing" the trombone so he can play at hayride entertainments with Gus's Big Brass Boys. Bunny and Jack nab him red-handed, and Bunny offers the practical solution of paying for the trombone by giving lessons at the music store. The combination easy-reader, easy-mystery follows the established format of a few clues, a mild neighborhood mystery, and lots of clever puns and jokes that will delight the intended audience. The humor is exactly on track for the early elementary grades, including a squashed marshmallow on Jack's seat and a quick rush to the bathroom following some dizzying explanations by the music-store owner (just the sort of jokes first graders adore). Karas's engaging illustrations in acrylic, gouache, and pencil help create unique personalities for Bunny and Jack. It's no mystery why this series is successful, and this endearing duo seems destined to crack many more cases of minor mischief in their urban neighborhood. (Easy reader. 6-8)
Pub Date: Feb. 28, 2001
ISBN: 0-688-16308-4
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2001
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