Light fantasy with wholesome messages for tweens.
Dineen (She Sins at Midnight, 2014) incorporates spirit advisers into a feel-good, small-town mystery for middle-grade readers.
A trio of otherworldly female conspirators set the stage, telling readers that the Willamette Wig Factory must reopen, and that they will nudge events to make it so. The story immediately shifts to 11-year-old Wilhelmina Rhonda Snodgrass, aka “Willy,” who has “red hair she hated, freckles she loathed,” and who’s been uprooted by a family move. Leaving behind her best friends and swim team, a lonely Willy now finds herself in Oregon, friendless and dreading the start of seventh grade. When she meets Thomasina Franchesca Andretti (aka “Tommy”), she finds that they share more than boyish nicknames. Tommy recently dyed her hair blue, and together, the wholesome, brightly coiffed duo set out to explore the town. Along the way, they teach a lesson to the bullying head cheerleader and aim to bring an important town industry back to life. They meet elderly Georgianna Carbunkle (who dispenses etiquette along with advice), and discover unknown family connections. They and a host of other oddly named characters inevitably get the factory open in time. A broken carousel with a ghostly teen attendant also pops up throughout the story, which could have used tighter editing. However, Dineen’s introduction sets a tone that’s maintained throughout: this is a story that’s set around a mission. Aimed at the misfits, the bullied, the peer-pressured—in other words, most preteens—the tale also has an undercurrent of advice: make a friend, listen to elders, find the right dress and the right hair, and things will work out. The author’s humorous tone, meanwhile, keeps things light, and several recipes provide a nice final touch.
Light fantasy with wholesome messages for tweens.Pub Date: Sept. 15, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4974-3194-2
Page Count: -
Publisher: Kissing Frogs
Review Posted Online: Aug. 22, 2015
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
A snappy mystery that’s full of heart.
A group of bright friends tackles the puzzle of their lives.
Elmwood, New Hampshire, 11-year-old Gina Sparks is small in stature but big on reporting ongoing dramas for the local newspaper with support from her journalist mom. When an unbelievable scoop comes her way, Gina must rely on her tightknit crew of sixth grade best friends whose initials happen to spell GEEK, a label they choose to proudly reclaim. She and science-minded prankster Elena Hernández, theater kid Edgar Feingarten, and driven math genius Kevin Robinson decide to get to the bottom of things when they learn that the Van Houten Toy & Game Company heir made elaborate plans to leave everything to the town of Elmwood before her death—but only if a member of the community could solve an intricate multistep puzzle. Gina hopes that deciphering the clues and finding the missing fortune will be just the thing to revitalize the down-on-its-luck town and bring the Elmwood Tribune back into the black, saving her mom’s job and Gina’s passion project. The GEEKs work together, using their individual talents and deductive reasoning skills to unravel the mystery. Infused with media literacy pointers, such as the difference between fact and opinion and reminders to avoid bias when reporting, the story encourages readers to think critically. Gina and Edgar read as White; Elena is cued as Latinx, and Kevin is implied Black.
A snappy mystery that’s full of heart. (Mystery. 9-13)Pub Date: Jan. 4, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-37793-2
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Oct. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
A candid and powerful reckoning of history.
Summer is off to a terrible start for 12-year old African-American Candice Miller.
Six months after her parents’ divorce, Candice and her mother leave Atlanta to spend the summer in Lambert, South Carolina, at her grandmother’s old house. When her grandmother Abigail passed two years ago, in 2015, Candice and her mother struggled to move on. Now, without any friends, a computer, cellphone, or her grandmother, Candice suffers immense loneliness and boredom. When she starts rummaging through the attic and stumbles upon a box of her grandmother’s belongings, she discovers an old letter that details a mysterious fortune buried in Lambert and that asks Abigail to find the treasure. After Candice befriends the shy, bookish African-American kid next door, 11-year-old Brandon Jones, the pair set off investigating the clues. Each new revelation uncovers a long history of racism and tension in the small town and how one family threatened the black/white status quo. Johnson’s latest novel holds racism firmly in the light. Candice and Brandon discover the joys and terrors of the reality of being African-American in the 1950s. Without sugarcoating facts or dousing it in post-racial varnish, the narrative lets the children absorb and reflect on their shared history. The town of Lambert brims with intrigue, keeping readers entranced until the very last page.
A candid and powerful reckoning of history. (Historical mystery. 8-12)Pub Date: March 27, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-545-94617-9
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Levine/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Dec. 2, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2018
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