by Wick Downing ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 21, 2008
The year is 1973. Thanks to a loophole in old territorial law and the savvy of her indomitable Grandfather, 14-year-old Kate Hope is the dubiously proud holder of a license to practice law in the state of Colorado, and on the first day of summer vacation, she rides her ten-speed to work at the offices of Hope and Hope, Esq. Her Grandfather has come out of retirement after the death of his son—Kate’s father—to champion Denver’s disenfranchised, much to the dismay of its Establishment. But Grandfather is old and not entirely well, so in fairly short order Kate finds herself in sole charge of a trial to defend a dotty old lady’s dog from an order of destruction for viciousness. Downing spins an adequate mystery around Kate’s quest to exonerate the dog and presents readers with a decent introduction to legal practice and maneuvering through Kate’s experiences. But between undistinguished prose and the sheer unbelievability of the premise, this courtroom drama will have readers’ credulity straining at the leash. (Fiction. 10-14)
Pub Date: April 21, 2008
ISBN: 978-0-618-89133-7
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2008
Share your opinion of this book
More by Wick Downing
BOOK REVIEW
by Wick Downing
by Jenny Han ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 5, 2009
The wish-fulfilling title and sun-washed, catalog-beautiful teens on the cover will be enticing for girls looking for a...
Han’s leisurely paced, somewhat somber narrative revisits several beach-house summers in flashback through the eyes of now 15-year-old Isabel, known to all as Belly.
Belly measures her growing self by these summers and by her lifelong relationship with the older boys, her brother and her mother’s best friend’s two sons. Belly’s dawning awareness of her sexuality and that of the boys is a strong theme, as is the sense of summer as a separate and reflective time and place: Readers get glimpses of kisses on the beach, her best friend’s flirtations during one summer’s visit, a first date. In the background the two mothers renew their friendship each year, and Lauren, Belly’s mother, provides support for her friend—if not, unfortunately, for the children—in Susannah’s losing battle with breast cancer. Besides the mostly off-stage issue of a parent’s severe illness there’s not much here to challenge most readers—driving, beer-drinking, divorce, a moment of surprise at the mothers smoking medicinal pot together.
The wish-fulfilling title and sun-washed, catalog-beautiful teens on the cover will be enticing for girls looking for a diversion. (Fiction. 12-14)Pub Date: May 5, 2009
ISBN: 978-1-4169-6823-8
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2009
Share your opinion of this book
More by Jenny Han
BOOK REVIEW
by Jenny Han
BOOK REVIEW
by Jenny Han
BOOK REVIEW
by Jenny Han ; Siobhan Vivian
More About This Book
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
by Walter Dean Myers ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 31, 1999
The format of this taut and moving drama forcefully regulates the pacing; breathless, edge-of-the-seat courtroom scenes...
In a riveting novel from Myers (At Her Majesty’s Request, 1999, etc.), a teenager who dreams of being a filmmaker writes the story of his trial for felony murder in the form of a movie script, with journal entries after each day’s action.
Steve is accused of being an accomplice in the robbery and murder of a drug store owner. As he goes through his trial, returning each night to a prison where most nights he can hear other inmates being beaten and raped, he reviews the events leading to this point in his life. Although Steve is eventually acquitted, Myers leaves it up to readers to decide for themselves on his protagonist’s guilt or innocence.
The format of this taut and moving drama forcefully regulates the pacing; breathless, edge-of-the-seat courtroom scenes written entirely in dialogue alternate with thoughtful, introspective journal entries that offer a sense of Steve’s terror and confusion, and that deftly demonstrate Myers’s point: the road from innocence to trouble is comprised of small, almost invisible steps, each involving an experience in which a “positive moral decision” was not made. (Fiction. 12-14)Pub Date: May 31, 1999
ISBN: 0-06-028077-8
Page Count: 280
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1999
Share your opinion of this book
More by Walter Dean Myers
BOOK REVIEW
by Walter Dean Myers ; illustrated by Floyd Cooper
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
by Walter Dean Myers ; adapted by Guy A. Sims ; illustrated by Dawud Anyabwile
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
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.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.