A touching story that explores grief and the bravery necessary to come out of it.
A family crisis challenges 13-year-old Andie to the utmost.
The white girl’s family has been falling apart since her mother died. Her 17-year-old sister, Paige, now works long hours to support the family, while their father spends most of his time away from the house, gambling or drinking. To make things worse, Andie’s friends at school are losing patience with her changed behavior as she tries to deal with the grief and the stress. Things change when she is assigned to do a science project with her nerdy lab partner, Isaiah. Tapping into her fascination with the paranormal, Andie convinces Isaiah to do a haunted-house experiment in which Andie pretends to be her mother’s ghost at home. Andie hopes that the ghostly reminders she leaves out for her father and sister will jolt them out of their sadness and remind them of a happier time. Though she knows this experiment isn’t exactly honest, she will do anything to bring her family back to life. Clasen sensitively depicts narrator Andie’s navigation of her new reality as she attends group-therapy sessions at school, allows herself to get to know her mother through her mother’s journals, and embraces new friends. Nerdy, black Isaiah is a particularly appealing supporting character.
A touching story that explores grief and the bravery necessary to come out of it. (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-5107-0712-2
Page Count: 226
Publisher: Sky Pony Press
Review Posted Online: Aug. 1, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2016
A page-turner with striking characters and a satisfying puzzle at its heart.
A boy who visits a little free library gets more than he bargained for when he becomes a sleuth caught up in the middle of his town’s most enduring mystery.
Ever since a tragic fire destroyed the Martinville Library, the town has been left without a place to borrow books. That is, until a little free library suddenly pops up, guarded by a fluffy orange cat named Mortimer. Fifth grader Evan McClelland selects two books from its shelves. Inside them he finds puzzling clues that lead him to chase down the real story behind the library fire. The book is told from multiple perspectives, including those of Evan, Mortimer, and ghost librarian Al, who perished in the blaze and is responsible for the upkeep of the little free library. Evan’s tenacious and curious character is relatable. His relationship with likable best friend Rafe, a brave, kind boy with overprotective parents, is easily one of the most endearing parts of the story. The puzzle over the library fire, a secret involving Evan’s family, a popular writer’s connection to Martinville, and the supernatural elements are presented in ways that are just right for middle-grade readers. The pacing is strong, and the twists and turns are satisfying even if perceptive readers may catch hints of the ultimate truth along the way. Physical descriptions of the human characters are largely absent.
A page-turner with striking characters and a satisfying puzzle at its heart. (Mystery. 8-12)Pub Date: Aug. 29, 2023
ISBN: 9781250838810
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: June 8, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Readers will be rooting for Bryan to make the right choices even as they understand the wrong ones.
A loner navigates a dangerous relationship.
Bryan is a quiet, Afro–Puerto Rican sixth-grader living in Brooklyn. He enjoys comic books, video games, and keeping to himself. Pa, recently released from prison, and Bryan’s sister, Ava, encourage him to be tough. Ava mocks him for being a “momma’s boy,” and Pa tells him it’s better to be feared than liked. Ma, however, encourages Bryan to use his brains instead of his fists. Ma introduces Bryan to Mike, a slightly older black boy who uses the services at the community center where Ma works; she says he “seems nice” and “gets good grades,” and Bryan needs a friend. Soon Mike and Bryan become so close that they say they’re brothers—but Mike isn’t as good as Ma and others think. Bryan gets swept up in Mike’s influence and begins to behave badly in small ways, throwing rocks at cars from rooftops and practicing his mother’s handwriting so he can forge excuses from school. After Pa violates his parole and is arrested again, Bryan’s behavior escalates, including cutting class and hopping onto moving trains. Through Bryan’s believable, emotionally honest first-person narration, Maldonado skillfully shows a boy trying to navigate parental desires and the societal expectations of his Brooklyn neighborhood while trying to figure himself out.
Readers will be rooting for Bryan to make the right choices even as they understand the wrong ones. (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 4, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-5247-4055-9
Page Count: 192
Publisher: Nancy Paulsen Books
Review Posted Online: July 15, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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