Maintaining a keen balance between silly and sly, this sequel will have readers snickering.
Princess Harriet’s second outing takes on the “Twelve Dancing Princesses.”
Although hamster Harriet is, sadly, no longer invincible, having broken her curse in Harriet the Invincible (2015), she’s got a hero’s skills after her previous adventures. Seeking new excitement, she encounters a lonely old lady by the side of the road asking for food; genre-savvy Harriet quickly deduces that it’s a disguised fairy and complies. She’s rewarded with a quest to save 12 mouse princesses, cursed to slip away every night to a mysterious location where they dance right through their slippers. When Harriet suggests that they might like dancing (as she liked her curse) and that it would be rude to just go breaking it without asking them, the fairy tells her that Harriet’s kingdom too will face doom—at some unspecified point in the future—unless the curse is broken. Harriet arrives to find the mouse king a despot who inflicts his peculiar organizational whims on his subjects, such as militant matching and forced color coordination of clothing to each room. The princesses—who range in their enjoyment of femininity to stand as foils to tomboyish Harriet—don’t like dancing (anymore) or being trapped, clearing Harriet to save the day. While Harriet prizes her physical prowess, Vernon here allows her to show off her smarts as equally impressive.
Maintaining a keen balance between silly and sly, this sequel will have readers snickering. (Graphic/fantasy hybrid. 7-12)Pub Date: March 15, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-8037-3984-0
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 21, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2016
A deceptively simple, tender tale in which respect, resilience, and hope triumph.
Generations of human and animal families grow and change, seen from the point of view of the red oak Wishing Tree that shelters them all.
Most trees are introverts at heart. So says Red, who is over 200 years old and should know. Not to mention that they have complicated relationships with humans. But this tree also has perspective on its animal friends and people who live within its purview—not just witnessing, but ultimately telling the tales of young people coming to this country alone or with family. An Irish woman named Maeve is the first, and a young 10-year-old Muslim girl named Samar is the most recent. Red becomes the repository for generations of wishes; this includes both observing Samar’s longing wish and sporting the hurtful word that another young person carves into their bark as a protest to Samar’s family’s presence. (Red is monoecious, they explain, with both male and female flowers.) Newbery medalist Applegate succeeds at interweaving an immigrant story with an animated natural world and having it all make sense. As Red observes, animals compete for resources just as humans do, and nature is not always pretty or fair or kind. This swiftly moving yet contemplative read is great for early middle grade, reluctant or tentative readers, or precocious younger students.
A deceptively simple, tender tale in which respect, resilience, and hope triumph. (Fantasy. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-250-04322-1
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: Aug. 1, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2017
Captain Amazing, the muscled hero of Metro City, is aging, and after a botched takedown of four nefarious villains, he...
A veritable bonanza of capes, heroes and pets with superpowers abounds in illustrator Santat’s first solo graphic novel.
None Captain Amazing, the muscled hero of Metro City, is aging, and after a botched takedown of four nefarious villains, he decides he is in need of a trusty sidekick. Unbeknownst to Captain, his own pets are clamoring for the job (and for more quality time with their beloved owner). Fluffy, his hamster, has yet to discover his superpower, but this rodent has a lot of heart. Manny the cat (who has the ability to electrocute bad guys) had run away after his beloved toy Nummers went missing, but the prodigal cat returns just in time to help the Captain. Roscoe (a.k.a. Metal Mutt) has a gruff exterior but is fiercely loyal. Shifty, the newest addition to the family, is a color-changing chameleon who adds a dose of comic relief. The lovable menagerie of crime-fighting pets offers lots of laughs and a boisterous and exuberant storyline; Santat’s illustrations are clear, engaging and neatly stacked into easy-to-read panels. While there is no mention of a sequel, subsequent volumes would certainly fly off the shelf faster than a speeding bullet, so here's hoping.Pub Date: July 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-439-29811-7
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Levine/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2011
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