Enticing young people to leave the brightly lit Glitter and join him in the decrepit part of town known as The Gloom, a parent-hating, teenage bully sets himself up as King Streetwise in this plodding British farce from Ridley (Krindlekrax, 1992, etc.). Kasper Whiskey, having spent all of his ten years with his indolent mother, Pumpkin, in her beauty parlor surrounded by leveled buildings, has never met anyone his age until the day he catches Heartthrob Mink, one of King Streetwise's troops, stealing roses. When Pumpkin's prized brooch disappears, Kasper sets out in pursuit. Streetwise is looking for Heartthrob, too, for helping his intended queen, Hushabye Brightwing, escape; Kasper joins the hunt but is so offended by the king's tactics that he switches sides and brings the two fugitives to the beauty parlor. Ultimately, Pumpkin turns over a new leaf, Heartthrob deals the king a black eye, the brooch turns up, and Hushabye declares her love for Kasper. Cautionary messages about bad friends and the dangers of running away are woven into a story that, for all its quirky elements and exaggerated characters, never hits the funny bone; few readers will notice that the king sounds like Elvis, nor will they attach much hilarity to repeated glimpses of Kasper's skill at whipping up a kind of banana cream pie. Riddell's black-and-white drawings have an expressive, graphic-novel-style sophistication, but can't leaven this leaden effort. (Fiction. 11-13)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 1997
ISBN: 0-525-45799-2
Page Count: 204
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1997
BOOK REVIEW
Known for witty, entertaining fantasies, Ibbotson (Dial-a-Ghost, p. 744, etc.) dispenses with magic wands and mythical creatures here and dishes up her best work yet—a topnotch 1910 adventure featuring exotic, vividly evoked locales, a caricature-rich cast filled with likeable (as well as thoroughly despicable) characters, and enough plot to fill an entire trilogy. Two years after the death of her parents, young Maia departs London’s Mayfair Academy For Young Ladies for Manaus, a remote town on the Amazon where the Carters, distant relatives, have at last been located. With her travels a new governess, Miss Arabella Minton, outwardly a cross between Mary Poppins and Atilla the Hun, inwardly a canny, resourceful, big-hearted sort with sadness in her past. Together, Maia and Miss Minton confront the Carters, as dysfunctional a crew as ever was, and also become involved in rescuing two more young orphans—one a penniless actor, the other a scion of a wealthy British aristocrat’s black-sheep son—from unpleasant fates. While skillfully weaving together numerous plot lines and suspense-intensifying complications—Maia and Miss Minton, for instance, love but do not come to understand or trust each other until nearly the end—the author gives her four central characters the inner stuff to cope with an array of challenging situations, and rewards them all with bright, diverse futures. And, of course, their prejudiced, mean-spirited adversaries get what they deserve in full measure. With a rain forest steeped in beauty and mystery for backdrop, this romp will transport not just Ibbotson’s fans, but legions of Potterites and their ilk as well. Illustrations not seen. (Fiction. 11-13)
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-525-46739-4
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2001
Loose ends are tied up with almost painful tidiness in Lee’s (Wolf Star, 2001, etc.) third entry in the series. After commandeering the Star to return her to the nomadic Hulta and their leader, her beloved Argul, Claidi is crushed by the tribe’s rejection, blaming her for the brokenhearted Argul’s abdication. Determined to set things right, Claidi tracks Argul to the frozen north, pursued in turn by the sinister Jelly, an apparent agent of Wolf Tower. But Argul, when found, spurns Claidi coldly, and beats Jelly senseless; Claidi and Jelly are carried off by the Lady Winter Raven to the icy fastness of Raven Tower, Wolf Tower’s rival. There, Claidi receives a royal welcome—and finally faces the mother who abandoned her. Yet nobody in this convoluted plot turns out to be who they seem, and it takes all of Claidi’s irrepressible independence to sort through the layers of subterfuge and claim her own destiny. Although most of the wonder here comes from Lee’s mysteriously evocative settings, Claidi remains a feisty, irreverent heroine, and her diary charms with its cheeky tone. But while racing through the episodic plot, Lee barely sketches in the remaining characters, and her efforts to wrap up the dangling threads of Claidi’s melodramatic adventures render this volume incomprehensible to new readers. Even with the clumsy chunks of exposition plopped at the end, the nature of Claidi’s world is still muddled, and her future unclear. Still, this lightweight confection provides some essential closure. (Fiction. 11-13)
Pub Date: May 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-525-46895-1
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2002
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