Fodder for future arborists but probably not casual tree lovers.
Trees are beneficial for city dwellers’ health and survival.
Curtis inundates readers with seemingly every possible fact about trees in urban areas. Many Indigenous peoples made their homes in forests; later, settlers cleared trees to make homes and roads and buildings. Trees were relegated to the outskirts of towns and cities or to the private gardens of the rich. Industrialization caused urban populations to explode, and trees were further crowded out. Parks were established in some cities so their inhabitants could enjoy a bit of fresh air and space. More details are introduced: the ravages of Dutch elm disease, the structure of a tree and the urban forest, the impacts of insects and other pests, and current methods of planting and maintaining city trees. The many health and economic benefits trees provide for urban populations are heavily stressed. Also in the mix are exhortations advocating for urban forests in the face of climate change and pollution. The information is fascinating, but the lengthy, densely set, and comprehensive text is overwhelming. The language and vocabulary are of a very high level and read as a lecture or convention speech. Pratt’s bright green trees stand out in the cityscapes, but the people are cartoony, and there is a madcap, hasty quality to many of the scenes, belying the seriousness of the subject.
Fodder for future arborists but probably not casual tree lovers. (glossary, sources) (Informational picture book. 9-14)Pub Date: April 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-77306-142-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Groundwood
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2020
Charming, poignant, and thoughtfully woven.
An aspiring scientist and a budding artist become friends and help each other with dream projects.
Unfolding in mid-1980s Sacramento, California, this story stars 12-year-olds Rosalind and Benjamin as first-person narrators in alternating chapters. Ro’s father, a fellow space buff, was killed by a drunk driver; the rocket they were working on together lies unfinished in her closet. As for Benji, not only has his best friend, Amir, moved away, but the comic book holding the clue for locating his dad is also missing. Along with their profound personal losses, the protagonists share a fixation with the universe’s intriguing potential: Ro decides to complete the rocket and hopes to launch mementos of her father into outer space while Benji’s conviction that aliens and UFOs are real compels his imagination and creativity as an artist. An accident in science class triggers a chain of events forcing Benji and Ro, who is new to the school, to interact and unintentionally learn each other’s secrets. They resolve to find Benji’s dad—a famous comic-book artist—and partner to finish Ro’s rocket for the science fair. Together, they overcome technical, scheduling, and geographical challenges. Readers will be drawn in by amusing and fantastical elements in the comic book theme, high emotional stakes that arouse sympathy, and well-drawn character development as the protagonists navigate life lessons around grief, patience, self-advocacy, and standing up for others. Ro is biracial (Chinese/White); Benji is White.
Charming, poignant, and thoughtfully woven. (Fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: Jan. 12, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-06-300888-5
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Moving and poetic.
A motherless boy is forced to abandon his domesticated fox when his father decides to join soldiers in an approaching war.
Twelve-year-old Peter found his loyal companion, Pax, as an orphaned kit while still grieving his own mother’s death. Peter’s difficult and often harsh father said he could keep the fox “for now” but five years later insists the boy leave Pax by the road when he takes Peter to his grandfather’s house, hundreds of miles away. Peter’s journey back to Pax and Pax’s steadfastness in waiting for Peter’s return result in a tale of survival, intrinsic connection, and redemption. The battles between warring humans in the unnamed conflict remain remote, but the oncoming wave of deaths is seen through Pax’s eyes as woodland creatures are blown up by mines. While Pax learns to negotiate the complications of surviving in the wild and relating to other foxes, Peter breaks his foot and must learn to trust a seemingly eccentric woman named Vola who battles her own ghosts of war. Alternating chapters from the perspectives of boy and fox are perfectly paced and complementary. Only Peter, Pax, Vola, and three of Pax’s fox companions are named, conferring a spare, fablelike quality. Every moment in the graceful, fluid narrative is believable. Klassen’s cover art has a sense of contained, powerful stillness. (Interior illustrations not seen.)
Moving and poetic. (Animal fantasy. 9-13)Pub Date: Feb. 2, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-237701-2
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 18, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2015
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