A thoughtful exploration of rebuilding life after death, told in grave and tactile verse.
A German Australian girl discovers a path toward resurrection in the wake of several family deaths.
Lottie feels lonely at school, where peers accuse her of loving Hitler because of her German heritage, and in her family, where the three caring adults in her life—her emotionally absent father, rigorously traditional Aunt Hilda, and ageing, mournful Oma—all struggle under the weight of the family’s multilayered grief. Lottie’s parents and grandparents faced internment camps and isolation during the Second World War and were still working toward recovery when Lottie’s older sister accidentally drowned; afterward, her mother died following a stillbirth. Lottie begins collecting the bodies of dead birds and other creatures, a hobby that horrifies and unsettles those around her. The only understanding soul she finds is an Indigenous boy named Jeffrey; they bond over their shared ostracization, and he helps her find animals for her collection. Lottie and other major characters are white, and the discrimination German Australians faced during the war is thoughtfully addressed. Lottie’s family worries that her new interest betrays morbidity or violence, but as Lottie’s steady, naturalistic verse narration shows, it truly centers on a longing for resurrection, manifested in her dream of becoming a museum taxidermist. The ample backstory is sometimes muddy and slows the pace, but vivid descriptions and Lottie’s confident, complex voice atone for this.
A thoughtful exploration of rebuilding life after death, told in grave and tactile verse. (Verse novel. 12-18)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-925603-74-3
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Text
Review Posted Online: June 4, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2019
Disappointing.
Unlikely friends fight their growing feelings for each other while placing bets on other people’s love lives.
Bailey met Charlie while flying from Alaska, where she grew up, to Nebraska, where she and her mom would be living after her parents’ divorce. Although they briefly bonded over their parents’ divorces, Charlie’s cynicism grated on the rule-following Bailey, and she was thankful to part ways with him. Three years later, to Bailey’s dismay, she runs into Charlie when they both land jobs at Planet Funnn, a mega-hotel that’s “like a giant landlocked cruise ship.” This time around, Bailey and Charlie begin to get along better. To entertain themselves during their long shifts, they observe and make bets about the hotel guests. But they risk taking it too far when they bet on whether their co-worker Theo will end up with Nekesa, Bailey’s best friend, who’s in “a perfect relationship with the perfect guy.” The book explores Bailey’s conflicted feelings toward her mom’s new relationship with Scott (who doesn’t “do anything wrong” but whose presence changes “the vibe” at home), but it does so in a way that diminishes a primary source of conflict. Bailey's and Charlie’s feelings become even more complicated when Charlie helps Bailey with a fake-dating scheme intended to scare Scott off. Some of the banter between the leads, who are coded white, feels more aggressive than playful, detracting from their intimacy, and the circuitous plot may fail to sustain readers’ interest.
Disappointing. (Romance. 14-18)Pub Date: Nov. 28, 2023
ISBN: 9781665921237
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Aug. 31, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023
Immersive and engaging, despite some flaws, and destined to capture imaginations.
Magic, mystery, and love intertwine and invite in this newest take on the “enchanted circus” trope.
Sisters raised by their abusive father, a governor of a colonial backwater in a world vaguely reminiscent of the late 18th century, Scarlett and Donatella each long for something more. Scarlett, olive-skinned, dark of hair and attitude, longs for Caraval, the fabled, magical circus helmed by the possibly evil Master Legend Santos, while blonde, sunny Tella finds comfort in drink and the embraces of various men. A slightly awkward start, with inconsistencies of attitude and setting, rapidly smooths out when they, along with handsome “golden-brown” sailor Julian, flee to Caraval on the eve of Scarlett’s arranged marriage. Tella disappears, and Scarlett must navigate a nighttime world of magic to find her. Caraval delights the senses: beautiful and scary, described in luscious prose, this is a show readers will wish they could enter. Dresses can be purchased for secrets or days of life; clocks can become doors; bridges move: this is an inventive and original circus, laced with an edge of horror. A double love story, one sensual romance and the other sisterly loyalty, anchors the plot, but the real star here is Caraval and its secrets.
Immersive and engaging, despite some flaws, and destined to capture imaginations. (Fantasy. 14 & up)Pub Date: Jan. 31, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-250-09525-1
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 18, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2016
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