A simple story that will charm little ones and diminish some of the terror surrounding monsters.
In Williams’ children’s book, a little girl and a monster begin an unlikely friendship in a story about keeping an open mind.
One night, a little girl is awoken by a monster, “neither careful nor quiet,” as he flattens her garden. She commands the monster to stop, but instead of allowing him to retreat into the neighboring woods, she invites him to join her for tea. This is clearly a little girl unafraid of monsters! The beast, surprised by this brave reaction and unfamiliar with tea, obliges. As Williams (The Bicycle Garden, 2013) writes, “He only knew about eating people and animals and tearing apart buildings and breathing fire.” With the girl’s assistance, and some patience as he overcomes chairs that don’t support his frame and teacups too diminutive for his hands, the monster shares cookies and tea with the young heroine, who then tucks him into bed beneath the night sky. The monster thought, as he looked up at the girl with his large bulbous eyes, “no one has ever been so kind.” The tale ends as the little girl ponders whether her kindness has changed her new friend’s monstrous habits. More than a story of teatime, Williams crafts a fable about overcoming stereotypes and the benefits that result. The girl’s friendship with the brute is illustrated through simple, appealing line drawings with highlights of color. Williams doesn’t say if the monster changes his ways but lets the reader wonder along with the little girl, allowing for connection and interactions between young readers and the story. Little ones can decide for themselves if the little girl’s kindness had a lasting effect, and teachers or caregivers can speak about the benefits of expecting the best from people (or monsters).
A simple story that will charm little ones and diminish some of the terror surrounding monsters.Pub Date: Dec. 3, 2013
ISBN: 978-0989069830
Page Count: -
Publisher: Fernwood & Hedges Books
Review Posted Online: Nov. 19, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2014
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Rich and strange (and kitted out with an eye-catching cover), but stronger in the set pieces than the internal logic.
Chainani works an elaborate sea change akin to Gregory Maguire’s Wicked (1995), though he leaves the waters muddied.
Every four years, two children, one regarded as particularly nice and the other particularly nasty, are snatched from the village of Gavaldon by the shadowy School Master to attend the divided titular school. Those who survive to graduate become major or minor characters in fairy tales. When it happens to sweet, Disney princess–like Sophie and her friend Agatha, plain of features, sour of disposition and low of self-esteem, they are both horrified to discover that they’ve been dropped not where they expect but at Evil and at Good respectively. Gradually—too gradually, as the author strings out hundreds of pages of Hogwarts-style pranks, classroom mishaps and competitions both academic and romantic—it becomes clear that the placement wasn’t a mistake at all. Growing into their true natures amid revelations and marked physical changes, the two spark escalating rivalry between the wings of the school. This leads up to a vicious climactic fight that sees Good and Evil repeatedly switching sides. At this point, readers are likely to feel suddenly left behind, as, thanks to summary deus ex machina resolutions, everything turns out swell(ish).
Rich and strange (and kitted out with an eye-catching cover), but stronger in the set pieces than the internal logic. (Fantasy. 11-13)Pub Date: May 14, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-06-210489-2
Page Count: 496
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK TO SCREEN
A jam-packed opener sure to satisfy lovers of the princess genre.
Ice princess Lina must navigate family and school in this early chapter read.
The family picnic is today. This is not a typical gathering, since Lina’s maternal relatives are a royal family of Windtamers who have power over the weather and live in castles floating on clouds. Lina herself is mixed race, with black hair and a tan complexion like her Asian-presenting mother’s; her Groundling father appears to be a white human. While making a grand entrance at the castle of her grandfather, the North Wind, she fails to successfully ride a gust of wind and crashes in front of her entire family. This prompts her stern grandfather to ask that Lina move in with him so he can teach her to control her powers. Desperate to avoid this, Lina and her friend Claudia, who is black, get Lina accepted at the Hilltop Science and Arts Academy. Lina’s parents allow her to go as long as she does lessons with grandpa on Saturdays. However, fitting in at a Groundling school is rough, especially when your powers start freak winter storms! With the story unfurling in diary format, bright-pink–highlighted grayscale illustrations help move the plot along. There are slight gaps in the storytelling and the pacing is occasionally uneven, but Lina is full of spunk and promotes self-acceptance.
A jam-packed opener sure to satisfy lovers of the princess genre. (Fantasy. 5-8)Pub Date: June 25, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-338-35393-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: March 26, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2019
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