A weak plot, underdeveloped characters, and the hint of a next book sum up this not-so-deep series opener.
Four pop-culture–steeped middle schoolers discover a portal to…something off the Washington coast.
When Nico falls over a cliff into Still Cove, he surfaces in a cave that leads to an ancient houseboat. After his friends Tyler, Emma, and Opal come to rescue him, they investigate the elaborately furnished, abandoned boat and discover a spiral staircase down to a shadowy, whirling water portal the kids call the Darkdeep. When Emma experimentally touches the water, she is swallowed up, only to be regurgitated minutes later. This strange process releases familiar apparitions, or figments, seemingly plucked from their childhood memories, that all four kids can see. The foursome can’t seem to stop jumping through the Darkdeep to see what apparitions they can conjure up, including Smurfs, Godzilla, Minions, an extraterrestrial Visitor, and various other imaginary creatures. Inevitably, these beings take on more solid form, become violent, and, for an unknown reason, leave Still Cove and head for town. These shenanigans play out against a backdrop of the town’s economic distress after timber-industry layoffs; subplots include Opal’s needy desire for male attention, the enduring enmity of the school bully, and the upcoming radish festival. Too many storylines dilute any sense of intrigue. Characters are identified by salient features—Tyler’s dark skin, Opal’s long, black hair, Emma’s blue eyes—a device that does not disrupt the white default.
A weak plot, underdeveloped characters, and the hint of a next book sum up this not-so-deep series opener. (Paranormal suspense. 8-12)Pub Date: Oct. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-5476-0046-5
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: June 10, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2018
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant.
Robot Roz undertakes an unusual ocean journey to save her adopted island home in this third series entry.
When a poison tide flowing across the ocean threatens their island, Roz works with the resident creatures to ensure that they will have clean water, but the destruction of vegetation and crowding of habitats jeopardize everyone’s survival. Brown’s tale of environmental depredation and turmoil is by turns poignant, graceful, endearing, and inspiring, with his (mostly) gentle robot protagonist at its heart. Though Roz is different from the creatures she lives with or encounters—including her son, Brightbill the goose, and his new mate, Glimmerwing—she makes connections through her versatile communication abilities and her desire to understand and help others. When Roz accidentally discovers that the replacement body given to her by Dr. Molovo is waterproof, she sets out to seek help and discovers the human-engineered source of the toxic tide. Brown’s rich descriptions of undersea landscapes, entertaining conversations between Roz and wild creatures, and concise yet powerful explanations of the effect of the poison tide on the ecology of the island are superb. Simple, spare illustrations offer just enough glimpses of Roz and her surroundings to spark the imagination. The climactic confrontation pits oceangoing mammals, seabirds, fish, and even zooplankton against hardware and technology in a nicely choreographed battle. But it is Roz’s heroism and peacemaking that save the day.
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant. (author’s note) (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9780316669412
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023
Is this the end? Well, no…the series will stagger on through at least one more scheduled sequel.
Sure signs that the creative wells are running dry at last, the Captain’s ninth, overstuffed outing both recycles a villain (see Book 4) and offers trendy anti-bullying wish fulfillment.
Not that there aren’t pranks and envelope-pushing quips aplenty. To start, in an alternate ending to the previous episode, Principal Krupp ends up in prison (“…a lot like being a student at Jerome Horwitz Elementary School, except that the prison had better funding”). There, he witnesses fellow inmate Tippy Tinkletrousers (aka Professor Poopypants) escape in a giant Robo-Suit (later reduced to time-traveling trousers). The villain sets off after George and Harold, who are in juvie (“not much different from our old school…except that they have library books here.”). Cut to five years previous, in a prequel to the whole series. George and Harold link up in kindergarten to reduce a quartet of vicious bullies to giggling insanity with a relentless series of pranks involving shaving cream, spiders, effeminate spoof text messages and friendship bracelets. Pilkey tucks both topical jokes and bathroom humor into the cartoon art, and ups the narrative’s lexical ante with terms like “pharmaceuticals” and “theatrical flair.” Unfortunately, the bullies’ sad fates force Krupp to resign, so he’s not around to save the Earth from being destroyed later on by Talking Toilets and other invaders…
Is this the end? Well, no…the series will stagger on through at least one more scheduled sequel. (Fantasy. 10-12)Pub Date: Aug. 28, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-545-17534-0
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: June 19, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2012
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