Intrepid siblings Abby and Jonah continue their adventures through the realm of fairy tales in this comical story (Fairest of All, 2012).
Having recently returned—via magic mirror—from Snow White’s world, 10-year-old Abby is searching for answers. She longs to discover why she and her brother were sent into the fairy tale. However, her investigation quickly goes awry when, instead of receiving an explanation, the duo is suddenly transported through the mirror and into a different tale. Once there, an accident involving Abby, the iconic glass slipper and Cinderella’s foot alters the course of the traditional story. Soon, the siblings are racing against time to restore the fairy tale and return home. Once again Mlynowski cleverly revises a classic fairy tale, offering a fresh interpretation of Cinderella’s story and giving it a modern update. In this version, a feisty fairy godmother challenges Cinderella to rely upon her own ingenuity—not a handsome prince—to remedy her situation, and a formerly mean stepsister becomes quite sympathetic and remorseful. Despite many humorous mishaps and a surprising transformation, the ever-resourceful Abby’s savvy wit and Jonah’s enthusiastic assistance overcome all obstacles.
Readers bewitched by this lively series will enjoy this adventurous sequel. (Fantasy. 9-12)Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-545-41567-5
Page Count: 174
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Oct. 31, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2012
Categories: CHILDREN'S SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A young tennis champion becomes the target of revenge.
In this sequel to Legacy and the Queen (2019), Legacy Petrin and her friends Javi and Pippa have returned to Legacy’s home province and the orphanage run by her father. With her friends’ help, she is in training to defend her championship when they discover that another player, operating under the protection of High Consul Silla, is presenting herself as Legacy. She is so convincing that the real Legacy is accused of being an imitation. False Legacy has become a hero to the masses, further strengthening Silla’s hold, and it becomes imperative to uncover and defeat her. If Legacy is to win again, she must play her imposter while disguised as someone else. Winning at tennis is not just about money and fame, but resisting Silla’s plans to send more young people into brutal mines with little hope of better lives. Legacy will have to overcome her fears and find the magic that allowed her to claim victory in the past. This story, with its elements of sports, fantasy, and social consciousness that highlight tensions between the powerful and those they prey upon, successfully continues the series conceived by late basketball superstar Bryant. As before, the tennis matches are depicted with pace and spirit. Legacy and Javi have brown skin; most other characters default to White.
A worthy combination of athletic action, the virtues of inner strength, and the importance of friendship. (Fantasy. 9-12)Pub Date: Aug. 24, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-949520-19-4
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Granity Studios
Review Posted Online: July 28, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2021
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BOOK REVIEW
At a time when death has become an acceptable, even voguish subject in children's fiction, Natalie Babbitt comes through with a stylistic gem about living forever.
Protected Winnie, the ten-year-old heroine, is not immortal, but when she comes upon young Jesse Tuck drinking from a secret spring in her parents' woods, she finds herself involved with a family who, having innocently drunk the same water some 87 years earlier, haven't aged a moment since. Though the mood is delicate, there is no lack of action, with the Tucks (previously suspected of witchcraft) now pursued for kidnapping Winnie; Mae Tuck, the middle aged mother, striking and killing a stranger who is onto their secret and would sell the water; and Winnie taking Mae's place in prison so that the Tucks can get away before she is hanged from the neck until....? Though Babbitt makes the family a sad one, most of their reasons for discontent are circumstantial and there isn't a great deal of wisdom to be gleaned from their fate or Winnie's decision not to share it.
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1975
ISBN: 0312369816
Page Count: 164
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: April 13, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1975
Categories: CHILDREN'S SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES
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