A promising beginning for a new writer, but to make the most of his talents, Woodward needs to work on developing an ear for...
Seeking reasons behind the extinction of humankind some 7,000 years before, a team of humanoid dogs uncovers an impending invasion of crystalline aliens and a traitor at the heart of their society.
Woodward’s debut novel is based on the entertaining premise that, after the extinction of humans at the hands of an alien race called crystallen, dogs developed superintelligence and opposable thumbs. This race, which calls itself Canidae, is divided into numerous tribes and recently united as the Unified Canidae Society. Azure is the 19-year-old son of the Chancellor of UCS, and as the story opens, he undergoes a rite of passage that will pinpoint his calling in life. To his surprise, he is revealed as a potential leader, despite his lack of interest in politics. To gain further insight into his path, Azure volunteers to join an expedition investigating the cause of human extinction. Their expedition uncovers journal entries and other documentation of Dr. Zennith, the last human, while they simultaneously encounter the resurgent crystallen. Woodward has developed a strong plot that, unlike many first installments of what is clearly intended as a series, resolves satisfyingly within the volume. The idea of dogs as the dominant species on Earth has great potential, both serious and humorous; however, that potential remains unfulfilled. The Canidae seem to be little more than furry humans with doggy faces (effectively portrayed in DiLeva’s chapter-head illustrations). Canidae families are called “packs,” but they evince little packlike behavior; Vence, who serves as a guide dog—a joke still waiting to be made—has a better sense of smell than the others, but there is otherwise little exploration of how the canine experience of the world differs from humans. And one can’t help thinking that the preservation of human structures and paper documents for 7,000 years would be slightly less unbelievable if that time were in dog years. Either way, the writing is often repetitive and clunky: “ ‘Let’s go to the ruins.’ Azure, Kael, Yasu and Vence all left the tent and began heading toward the ruins.”
A promising beginning for a new writer, but to make the most of his talents, Woodward needs to work on developing an ear for language and worldbuilding.Pub Date: Nov. 24, 2014
ISBN: 978-0692323045
Page Count: 258
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: Jan. 7, 2015
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A first novel, this is also a first person account of Scout's (Jean Louise) recall of the years that led to the ending of a mystery, the breaking of her brother Jem's elbow, the death of her father's enemy — and the close of childhood years. A widower, Atticus raises his children with legal dispassion and paternal intelligence, and is ably abetted by Calpurnia, the colored cook, while the Alabama town of Maycomb, in the 1930's, remains aloof to their divergence from its tribal patterns. Scout and Jem, with their summer-time companion, Dill, find their paths free from interference — but not from dangers; their curiosity about the imprisoned Boo, whose miserable past is incorporated in their play, results in a tentative friendliness; their fears of Atticus' lack of distinction is dissipated when he shoots a mad dog; his defense of a Negro accused of raping a white girl, Mayella Ewell, is followed with avid interest and turns the rabble whites against him. Scout is the means of averting an attack on Atticus but when he loses the case it is Boo who saves Jem and Scout by killing Mayella's father when he attempts to murder them. The shadows of a beginning for black-white understanding, the persistent fight that Scout carries on against school, Jem's emergence into adulthood, Calpurnia's quiet power, and all the incidents touching on the children's "growing outward" have an attractive starchiness that keeps this southern picture pert and provocative. There is much advance interest in this book; it has been selected by the Literary Guild and Reader's Digest; it should win many friends.
Pub Date: July 11, 1960
ISBN: 0060935464
Page Count: 323
Publisher: Lippincott
Review Posted Online: Oct. 7, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 1960
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
The best-selling author of tearjerkers like Angel Falls (2000) serves up yet another mountain of mush, topped off with...
Talk-show queen takes tumble as millions jeer.
Nora Bridges is a wildly popular radio spokesperson for family-first virtues, but her loyal listeners don't know that she walked out on her husband and teenaged daughters years ago and didn't look back. Now that a former lover has sold racy pix of naked Nora and horny himself to a national tabloid, her estranged daughter Ruby, an unsuccessful stand-up comic in Los Angeles, has been approached to pen a tell-all. Greedy for the fat fee she's been promised, Ruby agrees and heads for the San Juan Islands, eager to get reacquainted with the mom she plans to betray. Once in the family homestead, nasty Ruby alternately sulks and glares at her mother, who is temporarily wheelchair-bound as a result of a post-scandal car crash. Uncaring, Ruby begins writing her side of the story when she's not strolling on the beach with former sweetheart Dean Sloan, the son of wealthy socialites who basically ignored him and his gay brother Eric. Eric, now dying of cancer and also in a wheelchair, has returned to the island. This dismal threesome catch up on old times, recalling their childhood idylls on the island. After Ruby's perfect big sister Caroline shows up, there's another round of heartfelt talk. Nora gradually reveals the truth about her unloving husband and her late father's alcoholism, which led her to seek the approval of others at the cost of her own peace of mind. And so on. Ruby is aghast to discover that she doesn't know everything after all, but Dean offers her subdued comfort. Happy endings await almost everyone—except for readers of this nobly preachy snifflefest.
The best-selling author of tearjerkers like Angel Falls (2000) serves up yet another mountain of mush, topped off with syrupy platitudes about life and love.Pub Date: March 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-609-60737-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2001
© 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.
