An imaginative adventure in a fully realized alternate world that young readers will surely want to visit.
A young hero exposes an evil plot in this sci-fi adventure set in an alternate version of New York City.
Ethan Weiss is an ordinary boy, although he lives in an America that not many people would recognize. Black (Zombie Scout, 2013) mixes the familiar with enough believably different details to create a convincing alternate world in which peacocks have overrun New York and two moons rise in the night sky. The characters are still relatable, however: Ethan is a lonely boy with few friends other than his neighbors; his mother, Rose; and his grandfather Simon. Ethan terribly misses his father, who died of an illness a few years ago, and dreams of seeing him again on his grandfather’s invention, the Psychokinetic Space Time Teletransporter—a television that shows scenes from the past. Before he can try to do so, though, Simon brings home a parrot named Churchill, the property of the city’s most powerful citizen. Churchill’s gift for gab has accidentally revealed a plot to “Enslave the city,” and Simon has bird-napped him so he can reveal the conspiracy to the authorities. But before he can, a gigantic wave rises up in the two rivers surrounding the city, cutting off any escape. Although the conspiracy may seem far-fetched, it launches an exciting escape plot. Despite a slight tendency toward wordiness, Black always keeps the action moving. Ethan, his grandfather, and a band of rebels evade soldiers in an underground cavern and try to fly over the frozen wave in an old-fashioned airship. As they try to get out of the city, the group witnesses atrocities reminiscent of the treatment of Jews during the Holocaust. This creates a sense of real danger, but some incidents—a mother and baby pursued by soldiers, the execution of an innocent man—may be disturbing to more sensitive readers. However, Black emphasizes the bravery of ordinary people when faced with the horrors of war. In the end, Ethan learns how critical family and friends are in overcoming adversity.
An imaginative adventure in a fully realized alternate world that young readers will surely want to visit.Pub Date: April 15, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-9909367-4-9
Page Count: 266
Publisher: Luft Books
Review Posted Online: July 14, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2015
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
In more ways than one, a tale about young creatures testing their wings; a moving, entertaining winner.
A fifth-grade New Orleans girl discovers a mysterious chrysalis containing an unexpected creature in this middle-grade novel.
Jacquelyn Marie Johnson, called Jackie, is a 10-year-old African-American girl, the second oldest and the only girl of six siblings. She’s responsible, smart, and enjoys being in charge; she likes “paper dolls and long division and imagining things she had never seen.” Normally, Jackie has no trouble obeying her strict but loving parents. But when her potted snapdragon acquires a peculiar egg or maybe a chrysalis (she dubs it a chrysalegg), Jackie’s strong desire to protect it runs up against her mother’s rule against plants in the house. Jackie doesn’t exactly mean to lie, but she tells her mother she needs to keep the snapdragon in her room for a science project and gets permission. Jackie draws the chrysalegg daily, waiting for something to happen as it gets larger. When the amazing creature inside breaks free, Jackie is more determined than ever to protect it, but this leads her further into secrets and lies. The results when her parents find out are painful, and resolving the problem will take courage, honesty, and trust. Dumas (Jaden Toussaint, the Greatest: Episode 5, 2017, etc.) presents a very likable character in Jackie. At 10, she’s young enough to enjoy playing with paper dolls but has a maturity that even older kids can lack. She’s resourceful, as when she wants to measure a red spot on the chrysalegg; lacking calipers, she fashions one from her hairpin. Jackie’s inward struggle about what to obey—her dearest wishes or the parents she loves—is one many readers will understand. The book complicates this question by making Jackie’s parents, especially her mother, strict (as one might expect to keep order in a large family) but undeniably loving and protective as well—it’s not just a question of outwitting clueless adults. Jackie’s feelings about the creature (tender and responsible but also more than a little obsessive) are similarly shaded rather than black-and-white. The ending suggests that an intriguing sequel is to come.
In more ways than one, a tale about young creatures testing their wings; a moving, entertaining winner.Pub Date: Nov. 11, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943169-32-0
Page Count: 212
Publisher: Plum Street Press
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2018
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A YA novel that treats its subject and its readers with respect while delivering an engaging story.
In the ninth book in the Bluford young-adult series, a young Latino man walks away from violence—but at great personal cost.
In a large Southern California city, 16-year-old Martin Luna hangs out on the fringes of gang life. He’s disaffected, fatherless and increasingly drawn into the orbit of the older, rougher Frankie. When a stray bullet kills Martin’s adored 8-year-old brother, Huero, Martin seems to be heading into a life of crime. But Martin’s mother, determined not to lose another son, moves him to another neighborhood—the fictional town of Bluford, where he attends the racially diverse Bluford High. At his new school, the still-grieving Martin quickly makes enemies and gets into trouble. But he also makes friends with a kind English teacher and catches the eye of Vicky, a smart, pretty and outgoing Bluford student. Martin’s first-person narration supplies much of the book’s power. His dialogue is plain, but realistic and believable, and the authors wisely avoid the temptation to lard his speech with dated and potentially embarrassing slang. The author draws a vivid and affecting picture of Martin’s pain and confusion, bringing a tight-lipped teenager to life. In fact, Martin’s character is so well drawn that when he realizes the truth about his friend Frankie, readers won’t feel as if they are watching an after-school special, but as though they are observing the natural progression of Martin’s personal growth. This short novel appears to be aimed at urban teens who don’t often see their neighborhoods portrayed in young-adult fiction, but its sophisticated characters and affecting story will likely have much wider appeal.
A YA novel that treats its subject and its readers with respect while delivering an engaging story.Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2004
ISBN: 978-1591940173
Page Count: 152
Publisher: Townsend Press
Review Posted Online: Jan. 26, 2013
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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