Once readers dig up this clever supernatural YA story, they likely won’t want to put it down.
Debut novelist Morton tells a gloriously macabre young-adult tale about the difficulties of being a teenage ghoul in the 1970s.
Howard and his family are ghouls. Scientifically, all that means is that their bodies don’t produce certain hormones and enzymes. But Howard’s father has been training him since age 11 in the practical side of their heritage: They need to dig up and eat freshly dead bodies to make up for their own bodily deficiencies. After Howard is orphaned by a murderous mob on his 17th birthday, he flees Georgia for New Jersey and searches out his grandmother—also a ghoul, because the condition is genetic. Granny disagreed with Howard’s parents on many things; for example, she considers “digging for food” low class. (She worked as a nurse who took her work home with her, so to speak.) If she and Howard are going to live under the same roof, Howard is going to have to adapt to a new way of life—including graduating from high school. As the fall semester begins, he starts his senior year at Pinebury High, home of some particularly sadistic bullies. Right away, the jocks forcibly seat Howard at what they call the “nerds and fags” table in the cafeteria. Here, Howard meets oddballs and outcasts who will become his friends, including a frustrated musician named Sebastian who turns Howard on to a new genre of music made for people on society’s fringe: punk rock. Morton successfully pairs the darker aspects of life in high school with the lighter aspects of cannibalism, including details that range from humorous, poignant reflections on monster movies to quirky details of grave robbing. Howard’s very human struggle to find acceptance explores whether being a monster is in fact a choice. The plot starts to decay three-quarters of the way through with a series of improbable events, but Morton satisfyingly finishes the story off before it goes bad. The ending will likely leave readers happy and delightfully disturbed.
Once readers dig up this clever supernatural YA story, they likely won’t want to put it down.Pub Date: Nov. 28, 2012
ISBN: B00AFCTMCU
Page Count: 322
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: Jan. 25, 2013
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
An enjoyable picture book that addresses important issues in a kid-friendly way without being preachy.
Willenbrock’s heartwarming debut picture book is the autobiographical story of how she came to share her home with a special shelter dog.
Told from the perspective of Marshall, Willenbrock’s dog, this tale tells of his unpleasant life in the home of a dog hoarder, where food for the dogs was so scarce that they fought each other at mealtime. In one of these fights, Marshall’s front leg was broken and his face was badly bitten. When animal rescuers finally found out about the animal hoarder and took the dogs away, Marshall was in such sorry shape that they didn’t know if he would make it. He ended up losing his damaged front leg and his face remained badly scarred, yet he describes the compassion of the humane society workers who helped him learn how to walk and run on three legs. He meets his new “mom” (owner) and adjusts to a life of freedom with her and her other dog, Mooshy. Though life is good, Marshall is insecure and nervous about how other dogs and people will react to the fact that he has only three legs and a big scar on his face, but he’s pleasantly surprised by the kindness of others. Heimbaugh’s realistic colored-pencil illustrations help bring Marshall’s story to life. Due to wordiness and the use of some bigger words—celebrity, socialize, limitations—this book will most likely work better as a read-aloud with school-age children. It also lends itself to discussions about the humane treatment of animals and discussions about bullying.
An enjoyable picture book that addresses important issues in a kid-friendly way without being preachy.Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2012
ISBN: 978-0615666259
Page Count: 40
Publisher: The Marshall Movement
Review Posted Online: Oct. 9, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2012
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Unanswered questions and heavy-handed writing drain intrigue from this not-so-spooky story.
Three friends unravel old secrets lurking beneath the surface of a picture-perfect town in this young adult mystery.
Fallon and her best friend, Blair, live in the town of Whitford, a “sort of old fashioned” place where “everyone knows everyone else.” Nothing ever goes wrong there, except for local 16-year-old girls’ penchant for drowning in Whitford Pond on their 16th birthdays. That is, nothing ever goes wrong until Blair, Fallon and their new friend Lila start investigating the drownings as part of a history project. Soon after the girls paddle out to the spooky island at the middle of the pond where its victims are buried, Fallon discovers that she’s related to the pond’s first victim: Elizabeth Mason, who was engaged to the prosperous son of the town jeweler before her supposed suicide in 1750. By poking around the town historical society and badgering Fallon’s lively grandmother, Nana, the girls realize that something sinister lurks beneath Whitford’s bucolic surface. It’s only when the trio heads to the fourth floor of Whitford’s public library in search of A Genealogy of the Noble Families of Whitford: A History that they realize their quest is putting them in danger. Blair and Fallon’s friendship feels comfortable and credible, although the addition of “exotic” Lila seems like a strained plot device rather than a real-life event. Indeed, much of the plotting is convenient rather than clever; the girls’ discoveries primarily result from pushing Nana to give them information or snooping around Nana’s house—and the developments that aren’t related to Nana are foreshadowed so heavily that they come as no surprise. Another distraction: Every time that the inhabitants of Whitford scream or emphasize a turn of phrase, Fredo uses capital letters. They’re are unnecessary, for example, when Fallon says, “I JUST HAD THE BEST IDEA EVER!”
Unanswered questions and heavy-handed writing drain intrigue from this not-so-spooky story.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 172
Publisher: iUniverse
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2012
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
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.
bookshelf
