Although it deals with an important topic, this effort fails to fully live up to its potential. (Fiction. 10-14)
Good intentions go horribly wrong when American soldiers dropping off donations at an Afghanistan orphanage are viciously attacked.
She was the one who organized the donation project, Operation Oleander, collecting money and school supplies on the Florida Army base where her family lives while her father is deployed to Afghanistan. With the somewhat reluctant help of the base commander’s son, Sam, and her best friend, Meriwether, she ran the volunteer operation. Jess’ father was seriously injured in the attack, but even worse, Meriwether’s mother was killed, along with several orphans. Now Jess has to deal with her own grief and concern over her father’s condition, as well as rejection by Meriwether, who blames her for what has happened. In her debut, Patterson uses attractively descriptive language to spin her tale; unfortunately, it often feels more like the author’s perspective than the authentic thoughts of this rising high school freshman: “My voice is tight, taut as Sam’s sailboat rope when the wind pushed the mainsail.” While other characters are largely predictable and lightly sketched, their shortcomings are less critical to the believability of the story than Jess’ imperfect inner voice, as she ultimately finds a way to cope with the tragedy.
Although it deals with an important topic, this effort fails to fully live up to its potential. (Fiction. 10-14)Pub Date: March 5, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-547-24437-2
Page Count: 192
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 15, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
Evocations of Narnia are not enough to salvage this fantasy, which struggles with thin character development.
A portal fantasy survivor story from an established devotional writer.
Fourteen-year-old Eva’s maternal grandmother lives on a grand estate in England; Eva and her academic parents live in New Haven, Connecticut. When she and Mum finally visit Carrick Hall, Eva is alternately resentful at what she’s missed and overjoyed to connect with sometimes aloof Grandmother. Alongside questions of Eva’s family history, the summer is permeated by a greater mystery surrounding the work of fictional children’s fantasy writer A.H.W. Clifton, who wrote a Narnialike series that Eva adores. As it happens, Grandmother was one of several children who entered and ruled Ternival, the world of Clifton’s books; the others perished in 1952, and Grandmother hasn’t recovered. The Narnia influences are strong—Eva’s grandmother is the Susan figure who’s repudiated both magic and God—and the ensuing trauma has created rifts that echo through her relationships with her daughter and granddaughter. An early narrative implication that Eva will visit Ternival to set things right barely materializes in this series opener; meanwhile, the religious parable overwhelms the magic elements as the story winds on. The serviceable plot is weakened by shallow characterization. Little backstory appears other than that which immediately concerns the plot, and Eva tends to respond emotionally as the story requires—resentful when her seething silence is required, immediately trusting toward characters readers need to trust. Major characters are cued white.
Evocations of Narnia are not enough to salvage this fantasy, which struggles with thin character development. (author’s note, map, author Q&A) (Religious fantasy. 12-14)Pub Date: Jan. 30, 2024
ISBN: 9780593194454
Page Count: 384
Publisher: WaterBrook
Review Posted Online: Oct. 21, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2023
Well-educated American boys from privileged families have abundant options for college and career. For Chiko, their Burmese counterpart, there are no good choices. There is never enough to eat, and his family lives in constant fear of the military regime that has imprisoned Chiko’s physician father. Soon Chiko is commandeered by the army, trained to hunt down members of the Karenni ethnic minority. Tai, another “recruit,” uses his streetwise survival skills to help them both survive. Meanwhile, Tu Reh, a Karenni youth whose village was torched by the Burmese Army, has been chosen for his first military mission in his people’s resistance movement. How the boys meet and what comes of it is the crux of this multi-voiced novel. While Perkins doesn’t sugarcoat her subject—coming of age in a brutal, fascistic society—this is a gentle story with a lot of heart, suitable for younger readers than the subject matter might suggest. It answers the question, “What is it like to be a child soldier?” clearly, but with hope. (author’s note, historical note) (Fiction. 11-14)
Pub Date: July 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-58089-328-2
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Charlesbridge
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2010
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