Fans of Quinn’s previous work may enjoy the new character set, but there are too many fine furry detectives out there to...
Blackberry Hill Inn is not the restful retreat its human or animal denizens want it to be.
Fraternal human twins Harmony and Bro live with their mother in the Green Mountains in a (usually) peaceful if not terribly financially successful inn. Their pets, Queenie, a cat who knows her own mind and adores herself almost as much as being adored, and Arthur, a mutt who is loyal but not very bright, both love their human family. When Mr. LeMaire comes to stay at the inn and asks about the old Sokoki Trail, the twins take him to the trailhead, cheerfully accompanied by Arthur. Their guest sends them away…and turns up murdered a short time later. The bumbling sheriff immediately focuses his entire attention on Matty, the best guide in the area—and Mom’s cousin. The family is sure he’s innocent, and they set out to prove it with a little help (and some hindrance) from the furred members of the family. Queenie and Arthur share narration duties; like Bowser from Quinn’s earlier Bowser and Birdie series for children and Chet, star of his mysteries for adults, Arthur and Queenie act like real animals. However, it makes for a slow unfolding of the mystery and much obvious authorial manipulation to get the animals where they need to be to overhear vital facts; compounding this problem, although they both speak perfect English to readers, they can’t even communicate with each other. The cast is default white.
Fans of Quinn’s previous work may enjoy the new character set, but there are too many fine furry detectives out there to spend time with these two. (Mystery. 8-11)Pub Date: March 26, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-338-09139-7
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Nov. 25, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2018
If this is the future, count child fans in.
Crepuscular carnivores! Hypnotized egrets! Amputated bottoms! The pajama-clad child pirate Mabel Jones is back for her latest adventure.
Though just a child, Mabel has dealt with magic before (The Unlikely Adventures of Mabel Jones, 2015). She’s nevertheless surprised when vines make off with her baby sister, Maggie. Following their trail, Mabel plunges through time into a future Earth where humans have disappeared and animals reign supreme. To recover her sister, Mabel must pair once again with fellow “hooman snuglet” Jarvis and veteran goat pirate Pelf. The journey to the titular Forbidden City (read: NYC) where Maggie is held means pairing too with the adventurers Speke, a jolly otter with all the acumen of a Bertie Wooster, and Carruthers, a pull-yourself-up-by-your-bootstraps badger. Naturally, the waterways are thick with peril. Naturally, they must face a baddie of towering nastiness. And naturally, it will take a great deal of sacrifice on Mabel’s part to reach a happy ending. As with the first novel, the narrator who haunts this book’s pages isn’t just intrusive. It’s likely to sit on your lap and make snide comments about the nits in your hair. The result is wordplay that dances and teases, making every page an act of high entertainment. With this sequel, the humor is higher and the gross-out jokes less frequent than in the opener, and the adventure is pleasingly heart-pounding.
If this is the future, count child fans in. (Adventure. 8-11)Pub Date: Feb. 9, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-451-47197-0
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Nov. 2, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2015
Young dog lovers will enjoy Fenway’s point of view, even if his eagerness wears a bit thin.
Fenway, a young, exuberant Jack Russell terrier, is having lots of trouble getting his “short human,” Hattie, to behave.
The family’s move from the city to the suburbs just complicates matters. First, there is the issue of the very slippery kitchen floor. After losing his footing the first time, Fenway refuses to venture out there again, even if it is the Eating Place. The backyard, which he perceives as an unpopulated Dog Park, is another issue, since nasty squirrels scamper through and Hattie climbs into a treehouse—squirrel house?—that he can’t reach. The two neighbors next door, a couple of jaded dogs, don’t improve things. Hattie is reluctantly learning to throw and catch a white ball in a big, fat glove and for some reason doesn’t welcome his enthusiastic help. And finally, there is the issue of the big group of dogs Hattie keeps taking him to visit, with whom he must learn to sit in order to receive treats. Fenway’s first-person point of view is appropriately frisky, even slightly berserk at times. But the jokes are used and then reused and begin to turn from funny into tedious repetition. More books in the series are promised; here’s hoping some new doggy dilemmas will emerge.
Young dog lovers will enjoy Fenway’s point of view, even if his eagerness wears a bit thin. (Fiction. 8-10)Pub Date: Feb. 9, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-399-17274-8
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: Nov. 2, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2015
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