The friendship fixes may be simplistic, but this book has an endearing lead.
Isabelle grapples with guilt and friendship as she works through Fairy Godmother Training, Level Two.
Isabelle’s in a funk because Nora has forgotten her, even though Isabelle broke the rules and left a stolen jar of magic-making sparkles for Nora to remember and contact her with. Level Two brings about massive changes, though: there’s a crackdown on saving excess sparkles (and sudden rationing), and Grandmomma is leaving the training center to investigate sparkle discrepancies and magical irregularities (Isabelle fears she’s responsible). Missing Nora, Isabelle attempts to befriend her classmates but is bullied and ostracized. Then, she gets her practice princess—Samantha, a former friend of Nora’s—and worries that Samantha’s happiness will come at the cost of Nora’s. Sure enough, Samantha isn’t a particularly pleasant girl, and both she and Nora dream of being in a big school play. Isabelle bends rules to help Nora out, until Samantha finally wishes for Nora to bungle her performance. Aronson neatly explores girl-on-girl nastiness in both faery-godmother school and human school, and the many quandaries Isabelle finds herself in make her easy to relate to. Details such as Grandmomma’s “fairy godmother bling” and the girlgoyles Isabelle likes to hide among make for fizzy magical worldbuilding. Racial descriptors are mostly avoided, and Isabelle, Nora, and Samantha all seem to be white; diversity is mostly cued with naming conventions.
The friendship fixes may be simplistic, but this book has an endearing lead. (Fantasy. 6-9)Pub Date: Dec. 26, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-545-94159-4
Page Count: 192
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Sept. 17, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2017
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists.
How to raise money for a coveted poster: put your friends to work!
John, founder of the FUBU fashion line and a Shark Tank venture capitalist, offers a self-referential blueprint for financial success. Having only half of the $10 he needs for a Minka J poster, Daymond forks over $1 to buy a plain T-shirt, paints a picture of the pop star on it, sells it for $5, and uses all of his cash to buy nine more shirts. Then he recruits three friends to decorate them with his design and help sell them for an unspecified amount (from a conveniently free and empty street-fair booth) until they’re gone. The enterprising entrepreneur reimburses himself for the shirts and splits the remaining proceeds, which leaves him with enough for that poster as well as a “brand-new business book,” while his friends express other fiscal strategies: saving their share, spending it all on new art supplies, or donating part and buying a (math) book with the rest. (In a closing summation, the author also suggests investing in stocks, bonds, or cryptocurrency.) Though Miles cranks up the visual energy in her sparsely detailed illustrations by incorporating bright colors and lots of greenbacks, the actual advice feels a bit vague. Daymond is Black; most of the cast are people of color. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists. (Picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: March 21, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-593-56727-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2023
Charming.
An assortment of unusual characters form friendships and help each other become their best selves.
Mr. and Mrs. Tupper, who live at Number 3 Ramshorn Drive, are antiquarians. Their daughter, Jillian, loves and cares for a plant named Ivy, who has “three speckles on each leaf and three letters in her name.” Toasty, the grumpy goldfish, lives in an octagonal tank and wishes he were Jillian’s favorite; when Arthur the spider arrives inside an antique desk, he brings wisdom and insight. Ollie the violet plant, Louise the bee, and Sunny the canary each arrive with their own quirks and problems to solve. Each character has a distinct personality and perspective; sometimes they clash, but more often they learn to empathize, see each other’s points of view, and work to help one another. They also help the Tupper family with bills and a burglar. The Fan brothers’ soft-edged, old-fashioned, black-and-white illustrations depict Toasty and Arthur with tiny hats; Ivy and Ollie have facial expressions on their plant pots. The Tuppers have paper-white skin and dark hair. The story comes together like a recipe: Simple ingredients combine, transform, and rise into something wonderful. In its matter-of-fact wisdom, rich vocabulary (often defined within the text), hint of magic, and empathetic nonhuman characters who solve problems in creative ways, this delightful work is reminiscent of Ferris by Kate DiCamillo, Our Friend Hedgehog by Lauren Castillo, and Ivy Lost and Found by Cynthia Lord and Stephanie Graegin.
Charming. (Fiction. 6-9)Pub Date: May 27, 2025
ISBN: 9781665942485
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2025
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