Joan Aiken or Terry Pratchett this ain't, but the lightweight, gleefully anachronistic comedy will entertain with its cast...
Lady Jane Grey's nine days as queen are reimagined as a tongue-in-cheek shape-shifter romance.
Between the reigns of adolescent King Edward VI and his bloodthirsty half sister, Mary I, England was ruled for nine days by doomed Lady Jane, a 16-year-old political pawn—or that's how it went in our world. In the world of this novel, both Edward and Jane have happier endings. Instead of Catholics and Protestants, England is torn between the Eðians, who shape-shift into animals, and the Verities, who loathe them. As in reality, Jane is wed to Gifford (Guildford in history) Dudley, installed as queen, and imprisoned by Mary. However, thisJane and Gifford escape their executions through animal magic. It's inconvenient for the newlyweds' sex life that Gifford spends every dawn to dusk as a horse, but it’s also terribly convenient for frantic escapes from Mary's soldiers. Fourth-wall–breaking and pop-culture references that span from Shakespeare to Game of Thronesshow signs of strain, especially the many references to The Princess Bride(1973). The latter, sometimes layered one atop the other without a break, merely highlight this book’s contrast with the classic's stellar comic timing; perhaps it's for the best that few teen readers will be familiar with either the decades-old film or even older book.
Joan Aiken or Terry Pratchett this ain't, but the lightweight, gleefully anachronistic comedy will entertain with its cast of likable heroes and buffoonish villains (. (Fantasy. 13-17)Pub Date: June 7, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-239174-2
Page Count: 512
Publisher: HarperTeen
Review Posted Online: March 15, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2016
BOOK TO SCREEN
Despite some missteps, this will appeal to readers who enjoy a fresh and realistic teen voice.
A teenage, not-so-lonely loner endures the wilds of high school in Austin, Texas.
Norris Kaplan, the protagonist of Philippe’s debut novel, is a hypersweaty, uber-snarky black, Haitian, French-Canadian pushing to survive life in his new school. His professor mom’s new tenure-track job transplants Norris mid–school year, and his biting wit and sarcasm are exposed through his cataloging of his new world in a field guide–style burn book. He’s greeted in his new life by an assortment of acquaintances, Liam, who is white and struggling with depression; Maddie, a self-sacrificing white cheerleader with a heart of gold; and Aarti, his Indian-American love interest who offers connection. Norris’ ego, fueled by his insecurities, often gets in the way of meaningful character development. The scenes showcasing his emotional growth are too brief and, despite foreshadowing, the climax falls flat because he still gets incredible personal access to people he’s hurt. A scene where Norris is confronted by his mother for getting drunk and belligerent with a white cop is diluted by his refusal or inability to grasp the severity of the situation and the resultant minor consequences. The humor is spot-on, as is the representation of the black diaspora; the opportunity for broader conversations about other topics is there, however, the uneven buildup of detailed, meaningful exchanges and the glibness of Norris’ voice detract.
Despite some missteps, this will appeal to readers who enjoy a fresh and realistic teen voice. (Fiction. 13-16)Pub Date: Jan. 8, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-06-282411-0
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 14, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
Mouths have never run so dry at the idea of thirst.
When a calamitous drought overtakes southern California, a group of teens must struggle to keep their lives and their humanity in this father-son collaboration.
When the Tap-Out hits and the state’s entire water supply runs dry, 16-year-old Alyssa Morrow and her little brother, Garrett, ration their Gatorade and try to be optimistic. That is, until their parents disappear, leaving them completely alone. Their neighbor Kelton McCracken was born into a survivalist family, but what use is that when it’s his family he has to survive? Kelton is determined to help Alyssa and Garrett, but with desperation comes danger, and he must lead them and two volatile new acquaintances on a perilous trek to safety and water. Occasionally interrupted by “snapshots” of perspectives outside the main plot, the narrative’s intensity steadily rises as self-interest turns deadly and friends turn on each other. No one does doom like Neal Shusterman (Thunderhead, 2018, etc.)—the breathtakingly jagged brink of apocalypse is only overshadowed by the sense that his dystopias lie just below the surface of readers’ fragile reality, a few thoughtless actions away. He and his debut novelist son have crafted a world of dark thirst and fiery desperation, which, despite the tendrils of hope that thread through the conclusion, feels alarmingly near to our future. There is an absence of racial markers, leaving characters’ identities open.
Mouths have never run so dry at the idea of thirst. (Thriller. 13-17)Pub Date: Oct. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4814-8196-0
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 16, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2018
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