Intriguingly good.
As the oppressive might of the Night Coats befalls the town of Alden, young Alidade must uncover her inner mapmaker to liberate her home and herself.
Trouble comes easily to Alidade, a brown-skinned, black-haired girl who routinely flouts the Night Coats’ rules forbidding anyone from traveling beyond Alden’s boundaries. During one of her prohibited excursions, she spots a tree with a doorknob. Sneaking through the door in the tree’s trunk, Alidade enters the mysterious Mapmakers’ Lodge, where she finds a degraded magical map of the whole Valley as well as Blue, a haughty, birdlike creature, or Memri, who is loyal to the mapmakers’ peace-seeking cause. With help from her best friend, Lewis, who has brown skin and sandy hair, and guided by Blue’s tutelage, Alidade acquires knowledge once celebrated by the now-gone mapmakers, working to restore the map and fight back against the Night Coats. In their debut, Chittock and Castillo weave a quaint tale of courage and friendship brimming with a fruitful sense of whimsy. The artwork—inked in a lovely ramshackle style—boasts a rich and earthy palette, scaled to match the journey that Alidade undertakes as she crosses the magical barrier. Alidade’s arc from eager troublemaker to determined mapmaker chugs along at a nice pace, dependent on a couple of wordless time lapses that prove crucial. Above all, it’s Alidade’s sweetly sketched friendship with Lewis that pulls the most weight in this trilogy starter.
Intriguingly good. (sketches, recipe, drawing lesson) (Graphic fantasy. 8-12)Pub Date: April 26, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-17287-2
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Random House Graphic
Review Posted Online: Jan. 10, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A pleasing premise for book lovers.
A fantasy-loving bookworm makes a wonderful, terrible bargain.
When sixth grader Poppy Woodlock’s historic preservationist parents move the family to the Oregon coast to work on the titular stately home, Poppy’s sure she’ll find magic. Indeed, the exiled water nymph in the manor’s ruined swimming pool grants a wish, but: “Magic isn’t free. It cosssts.” The price? Poppy’s favorite book, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. In return she receives Sampson, a winged lion cub who is everything Poppy could have hoped for. But she soon learns that the nymph didn’t take just her own physical book—she erased Narnia from Poppy’s world. And it’s just the first loss: Soon, Poppy’s grandmother’s journal’s gone, then The Odyssey, and more. The loss is heartbreaking, but Sampson’s a wonderful companion, particularly as Poppy’s finding middle school a tough adjustment. Hartman’s premise is beguiling—plenty of readers will identify with Poppy, both as a fellow bibliophile and as a kid struggling to adapt. Poppy’s repeatedly expressed faith that unveiling Sampson will bring some sort of vindication wears thin, but that does not detract from the central drama. It’s a pity that the named real-world books Poppy reads are notably lacking in diversity; a story about the power of literature so limited in imagination lets both itself and readers down. Main characters are cued White; there is racial diversity in the supporting cast. Chapters open with atmospheric spot art. (This review has been updated to reflect the final illustrations.)
A pleasing premise for book lovers. (Fantasy. 9-12)Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9780316448222
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2023
File under “laugh riot.”
A rogue spell-check program’s bid to transform all life-forms into that eminently useful office item, the paper clip, touches off a fresh round of lunar lunacy.
Predicated on the entirely reasonable premise that eliminating all spelling and grammar errors everywhere would logically lead to the necessity of exterminating carbon-based life in the universe, this third series entry combines high stakes with daffy banter and daring exploits. CheckMate—a chipper, jumped-up editing program—has invented the Transmogratron, a giant laser that will fulfill its ultimate goals in both the cyber world and “meatspace.” Facing challenges as random as prankster lunar unicorns and a disarmingly motherly Motherboard, scowling First Cat joins a motley crew of diversely carbon- and silicon-based allies, led by the pearlescent Queen of the Moon. They’re in a race to the finish—diverted occasionally by, for instance, a relentlessly punny comic-book interlude featuring a pair of literal and figurative Pool Sharks. They ultimately triumph thanks to teamwork and moxie. Following a celebratory party and toasts to “new friends…and steadfast comrades” (and, of course, “MEOW”), the story’s energetic, brightly colored panels close with a reveal of the next volume. (“I always hate it when comics end by announcing a sequel. SO CRINGE!” declares an authorial stand-in.) It can’t come too soon.
File under “laugh riot.” (Graphic science fiction. 8-11)Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2024
ISBN: 9780063315280
Page Count: 272
Publisher: HarperAlley
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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