by Tom McGowen ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 1992
Mages Mulng and his son Lithim continue their attempt to band the mages of all races together to defeat the Earthdoom foreseen in The Magical Fellowship (1991). Hounded by secular and religious forces because they contradict sacred teaching, the two are first imprisoned but then aided by a wise village leader, and the convocation of mages begins. Their goal is opposed by a renegade master mage of the Halvarah (the ``Old Ones''); because he has foreseen the ultimate dominance of the Halvarah, he aids an army sent to kill the mages with the strength of his hideous magic, but is forestalled by Lithim and the young dragon mage Gra-kwo, who kill the renegade and rout the army. Now the mage- moot can begin—with just six months to Earthdoom. Somewhat stolid writing, but good pacing and imminent doomsday make this a satisfactory if uninspired sequel; fantasy buffs who've followed the story this far will surely want to know whether a band of strange-bedfellow mages can defeat the half- machine planet-plundering aliens even now hurtling through space. Bet they can. (Fiction. 10+)
Pub Date: April 1, 1992
ISBN: 0-525-67376-8
Page Count: 148
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1992
Share your opinion of this book
More by Tom McGowen
BOOK REVIEW
by Tom McGowen
BOOK REVIEW
by Tom McGowen
by Andrew Clements ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2002
Playing on his customary theme that children have more on the ball than adults give them credit for, Clements (Big Al and Shrimpy, p. 951, etc.) pairs a smart, unhappy, rich kid and a small-town teacher too quick to judge on appearances. Knowing that he’ll only be finishing up the term at the local public school near his new country home before hieing off to an exclusive academy, Mark makes no special effort to fit in, just sitting in class and staring moodily out the window. This rubs veteran science teacher Bill Maxwell the wrong way, big time, so that even after Mark realizes that he’s being a snot and tries to make amends, all he gets from Mr. Maxwell is the cold shoulder. Matters come to a head during a long-anticipated class camping trip; after Maxwell catches Mark with a forbidden knife (a camp mate’s, as it turns out) and lowers the boom, Mark storms off into the woods. Unaware that Mark is a well-prepared, enthusiastic (if inexperienced) hiker, Maxwell follows carelessly, sure that the “slacker” will be waiting for rescue around the next bend—and breaks his ankle running down a slope. Reconciliation ensues once he hobbles painfully into Mark’s neatly organized camp, and the two make their way back together. This might have some appeal to fans of Gary Paulsen’s or Will Hobbs’s more catastrophic survival tales, but because Clements pauses to explain—at length—everyone’s history, motives, feelings, and mindset, it reads more like a scenario (albeit an empowering one, at least for children) than a story. Worthy—but just as Maxwell underestimates his new student, so too does Clement underestimate his readers’ ability to figure out for themselves what’s going on in each character’s life and head. (Fiction. 10-12)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-689-82596-X
Page Count: 208
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2002
Share your opinion of this book
More by Andrew Clements
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
by Andrew Clements & illustrated by Mark Elliott
by Minfong Ho ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 1991
Drawing on her experience with a relief organization on the Thai border, Ho tells the story of a Cambodian family, fleeing the rival factions of the 80's while hoping to gather resources to return to farming in their homeland. Narrator Dara, 12, and the remnants of her family have arrived at a refugee camp soon after her father's summary execution. At first, the camp is a haven: food is plentiful, seed rice is available, and they form a bond with another family- -brother Sarun falls in love with Nea, and Dara makes friends with Nea's cousin, Jantu, who contrives marvelous toys from mud and bits of scrap; made wise by adversity, Jantu understands that the process of creation outweighs the value of things, and that dead loved ones may live on in memory. The respite is brief: Vietnamese bombing disrupts the camp, and the family is temporarily but terrifyingly separated. Later, Jantu is wounded by friendly fire and doesn't survive; but her tragic death empowers Dara to confront Sarun, who's caught up in mindless militarism instigated by a charismatic leader, and persuade him to travel home with the others—to plant rice and build a family instead of waging war. Again, Ho (Rice Without Rain, 1990) skillfully shapes her story to dramatize political and humanitarian issues. The easily swayed Sarun lacks dimension, but the girls are more subtly drawn—Dara's growing courage and assertiveness are especially convincing and admirable. Touching, authentic, carefully wrought- -and with an unusually appealing jacket. (Fiction. 11-15)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1991
ISBN: 0-374-31340-7
Page Count: 163
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1991
Share your opinion of this book
More by Minfong Ho
BOOK REVIEW
by Minfong Ho ; illustrated by Frances Alvarez
BOOK REVIEW
by Minfong Ho & illustrated by Holly Meade
BOOK REVIEW
by Minfong Ho
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.