An engaging, positivity-preaching fantasy with Seussian and Lewis Carroll–esque aspects.
A boy gets transported to an absurdist world, where the mishap-prone hero must solve the abduction of a prominent healer.
Suberla’s middle-grade fantasy introduces schoolboy Joey Rheelat, whose life seems defined by good intentions gone awry (as when he used oven cleaner on the kitchen floor and melted it). Joey’s father died tragically, and the kid has a problematic relationship with mom’s new husband, George. The stepdad is not cruel, but his overbearing manner and attempts at humorous bonding typically make Joey feel small. One of Joey’s eccentricities (that George disdains) is sleeping on a waterbed. Out of that waterbed erupts a leprechaun-ish magical fellow who announces himself as “Wheedles of Waiderfled, the Eighteenth King of the Zing Fling” and for whom Joey is somehow key to a successful reign. Wheedles teleports Joey to the realm of Waiderfled, full of strange creatures, fun-loving shape-shifters, crystal trees, and surreal landscapes. Omnipresent throughout the place are the ho-drees, floating and colorful geometrical shape thingies that surround any intelligent being young in body and/or spirit—they symbolize hopes and dreams, not to mention imagination and creativity. But Joey innocently utters the most taboo of all words—can’t(as in “I just can’t believe it”)—and scores of ho-drees drop down, inert, and the boy is expelled back to his old reality. Guardedly taken back into Waiderfled, Joey finds he must embark on a pilgrimage to see the most prominent “Ho-dree Doctor,” who can fix the crisis. But she has vanished—apparently abducted by the cronelike Haidderdred, who has no ho-drees of her own and covets those of others. In Suberla’s tight, straight-ahead, minimal-complications narrative, Joey’s heirloom Polaroid camera, which develops unusual powers in Waiderfled, figures significantly. Readers may find this whimsical and enjoyable material reminiscent of the works of Dr. Seuss, Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, and Norton Juster’s The Phantom Tollbooth. Suberla hails from a background in self-help and life-advice material, and the lessons here in self-confidence and can-do spirit are obvious. Despite the villain’s orc-ish aspects, the conflict with Haidderdred resolves in a literal shower of sweetness and light. Some parents of young readers may be taken aback that Joey utters an expletive.
An engaging, positivity-preaching fantasy with Seussian and Lewis Carroll–esque aspects.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: Oak Line Press
Review Posted Online: June 30, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Readers can still rely on this series to bring laughs.
The Heffley family’s house undergoes a disastrous attempt at home improvement.
When Great Aunt Reba dies, she leaves some money to the family. Greg’s mom calls a family meeting to determine what to do with their share, proposing home improvements and then overruling the family’s cartoonish wish lists and instead pushing for an addition to the kitchen. Before bringing in the construction crew, the Heffleys attempt to do minor maintenance and repairs themselves—during which Greg fails at the work in various slapstick scenes. Once the professionals are brought in, the problems keep getting worse: angry neighbors, terrifying problems in walls, and—most serious—civil permitting issues that put the kibosh on what work’s been done. Left with only enough inheritance to patch and repair the exterior of the house—and with the school’s dismal standardized test scores as a final straw—Greg’s mom steers the family toward moving, opening up house-hunting and house-selling storylines (and devastating loyal Rowley, who doesn’t want to lose his best friend). While Greg’s positive about the move, he’s not completely uncaring about Rowley’s action. (And of course, Greg himself is not as unaffected as he wishes.) The gags include effectively placed callbacks to seemingly incidental events (the “stress lizard” brought in on testing day is particularly funny) and a lampoon of after-school-special–style problem books. Just when it seems that the Heffleys really will move, a new sequence of chaotic trouble and property destruction heralds a return to the status quo. Whew.
Readers can still rely on this series to bring laughs. (Graphic/fiction hybrid. 8-12)Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4197-3903-3
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Amulet/Abrams
Review Posted Online: Nov. 18, 2019
SEEN & HEARD
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
BOOK REVIEW
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