Oodles of entertainment.
Will the stars align for romance?
Fourteen-year-old English girl Cathleen Phillips lives and breathes by her astrology book. As an Aquarius, she has checked for her compatible soul mate, and the charts matched her with Alison Bridgewater, one of her friends, who is Ghanaian and White. Since then, she’s been all swoony over Alison—but never out loud, since only best friend Zanna Szczechowska knows she fancies girls. But something Cat knows for sure—you can never trust a Gemini! She also doesn’t trust people with Irish accents since her Irish homeroom teacher seems to have it out for her. But then, a new girl appears at her school: Morgan Delaney is both Irish and a Gemini, not to mention very cute. Cat keeps getting all tongue-tied around her. As the astrological year turns (from Libra’s relationship focus to Capricorn’s emphasis on cleansing), events unfold that leave Cat trying desperately to secure any romantic relationship! Accident-prone and an extremely awkward conversationalist, bubbly, curly blond-haired Cat exudes actively chaotic energy and is obsessed with her idealistic future—which is very much in line with her star sign—so readers should enter this book ready for some classic rom-com shenanigans. Woolf presents her characters sincerely, and the story earns its emotional ups and downs.
Oodles of entertainment. (Fiction. 12-15)Pub Date: May 9, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-5362-3054-3
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Walker US/Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Feb. 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
Despite the stale fat-to-curvy pattern, compelling world building with a Southern European, pseudo-Christian feel,...
Adventure drags our heroine all over the map of fantasyland while giving her the opportunity to use her smarts.
Elisa—Princess Lucero-Elisa de Riqueza of Orovalle—has been chosen for Service since the day she was born, when a beam of holy light put a Godstone in her navel. She's a devout reader of holy books and is well-versed in the military strategy text Belleza Guerra, but she has been kept in ignorance of world affairs. With no warning, this fat, self-loathing princess is married off to a distant king and is embroiled in political and spiritual intrigue. War is coming, and perhaps only Elisa's Godstone—and knowledge from the Belleza Guerra—can save them. Elisa uses her untried strategic knowledge to always-good effect. With a character so smart that she doesn't have much to learn, body size is stereotypically substituted for character development. Elisa’s "mountainous" body shrivels away when she spends a month on forced march eating rat, and thus she is a better person. Still, it's wonderfully refreshing to see a heroine using her brain to win a war rather than strapping on a sword and charging into battle.
Despite the stale fat-to-curvy pattern, compelling world building with a Southern European, pseudo-Christian feel, reminiscent of Naomi Kritzer's Fires of the Faithful (2002), keeps this entry fresh. (Fantasy. 12-14)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-06-202648-4
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2011
This is no didactic near-future warning of present evils, but a cinematic adventure featuring endearing, compelling heroes
A gripping thriller in dystopic future Los Angeles.
Fifteen-year-olds June and Day live completely different lives in the glorious Republic. June is rich and brilliant, the only candidate ever to get a perfect score in the Trials, and is destined for a glowing career in the military. She looks forward to the day when she can join up and fight the Republic’s treacherous enemies east of the Dakotas. Day, on the other hand, is an anonymous street rat, a slum child who failed his own Trial. He's also the Republic's most wanted criminal, prone to stealing from the rich and giving to the poor. When tragedies strike both their families, the two brilliant teens are thrown into direct opposition. In alternating first-person narratives, Day and June experience coming-of-age adventures in the midst of spying, theft and daredevil combat. Their voices are distinct and richly drawn, from Day’s self-deprecating affection for others to June's Holmesian attention to detail. All the flavor of a post-apocalyptic setting—plagues, class warfare, maniacal soldiers—escalates to greater complexity while leaving space for further worldbuilding in the sequel.
This is no didactic near-future warning of present evils, but a cinematic adventure featuring endearing, compelling heroes . (Science fiction. 12-14)Pub Date: Nov. 29, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-399-25675-2
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: April 8, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2011
BOOK TO SCREEN
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