Between the creativity-encouraging coding lessons and the character-driven plotlines, this sequel charms from PenDown to...
Following Secret Coders (2015), Hopper, Josh, and Eni unlock more of Stately Academy’s secrets—but they learn they aren’t the only ones doing so.
Starting off right at the cliffhanger from the previous book, the multicultural protagonists—Asian-American Hopper, African-American Eni, and racially indeterminate Josh—must code their way out of custodian Mr. Bee’s challenge. Through teamwork and trial and error, they succeed, and Mr. Bee gives them a secret history of the secret, abandoned Bee School beneath Stately. After an efficient rundown on the programming language Logo, he shows the kids the artistic possibilities of code, a lesson promptly used by Hopper to cheat on her Chinese homework. She’s found out, but trash duty with Mr. Bee is an ineffectual punishment now that it has become programming with Professor Bee, and even Josh misbehaves his way into joining. With this second volume, character development comes to the fore, and a central interpersonal storyline finds the three unifying into a trio. Helping to resolve the simmering conflict between Hopper and Josh are encounters with rugby team bullies, who walk a line between comical and intimidating in a way that serves tone while maintaining tension. Holmes’ green, gray, and white panels convey characterization, action, and coding principles with equal ease.
Between the creativity-encouraging coding lessons and the character-driven plotlines, this sequel charms from PenDown to PenUp. (Graphic fiction. 8-14)Pub Date: Aug. 30, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-62672-340-5
Page Count: 96
Publisher: First Second
Review Posted Online: April 15, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
This delightful debut welcomes readers in like a house filled with love.
A 13-year-old biracial girl longs to build the house of her dreams.
For Lou Bulosan-Nelson, normal is her “gigantic extended family squished into Lola’s for every holiday imaginable.” She shares a bedroom with her Filipina mother, Minda—a former interior-design major and current nurse-to-be—in Lola Celina’s San Francisco home. From her deceased white father, Michael, Lou inherited “not-so-Filipino features,” his love for architecture, and some land. Lou’s quietude implies her keen eye for details, but her passion for creating with her hands resonates loudly. Pining for something to claim as her own, she plans to construct a house from the ground up. When her mom considers moving out of state for a potential job and Lou’s land is at risk of being auctioned off, Lou stays resilient, gathering support from both friends and family to make her dream a reality. Respicio authentically depicts the richness of Philippine culture, incorporating Filipino language, insights into Lou’s family history, and well-crafted descriptions of customs, such as the birdlike Tinikling dance and eating kamayan style (with one’s hands), throughout. Lou’s story gives voice to Filipino youth, addressing cultural differences, the importance of bayanihan (community), and the true meaning of home.
This delightful debut welcomes readers in like a house filled with love. (Fiction. 8-13)Pub Date: June 12, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-5247-1794-0
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Wendy Lamb/Random
Review Posted Online: March 3, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2018
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