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
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for...
A gentle voice and familiar pitfalls characterize this tale of a boy navigating the risky road to responsibility.
Gavin is new to his neighborhood and Carver Elementary. He likes his new friend, Richard, and has a typically contentious relationship with his older sister, Danielle. When Gavin’s desire to impress Richard sets off a disastrous chain of events, the boy struggles to evade responsibility for his actions. “After all, it isn’t his fault that Danielle’s snow globe got broken. Sure, he shouldn’t have been in her room—but then, she shouldn’t be keeping candy in her room to tempt him. Anybody would be tempted. Anybody!” opines Gavin once he learns the punishment for his crime. While Gavin has a charming Everyboy quality, and his aversion to Aunt Myrtle’s yapping little dog rings true, little about Gavin distinguishes him from other trouble-prone protagonists. He is, regrettably, forgettable. Coretta Scott King Honor winner English (Francie, 1999) is a teacher whose storytelling usually benefits from her day job. Unfortunately, the pizzazz of classroom chaos is largely absent from this series opener.
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for subsequent volumes. (Fiction. 6-9)Pub Date: Dec. 17, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-547-97044-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 1, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
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