Set in south Louisiana and inspired by the ghost stories surrounding the Myrtles Plantation in St. Francisville, this tale alternates between the voices of Lila, a modern teenager from Albuquerque, and Daphne, the ghost of a slave girl. Lila, with help from her brother Gabe and new friend Sal, debunks the long-held belief that Daphne poisoned and killed the mistress of the plantation and her two daughters. Daphne finally learns what exactly happened that fateful day as Lila pieces it together through both logical and supernatural means, and Daphne secures Lila’s help fulfilling a promise she’d made to the mistress of the house when she was alive. The story contains some dark truths about slavery—including repeated sexual assaults on Daphne and the slicing off of her ear as punishment for eavesdropping—without describing them too graphically. The characters are, for the most part, well-rendered and likable, although the behavior and dialogue of the contemporary cast at times feels a bit contrived. Fans of Mary Downing Hahn will love this one. (Horror. 10-14)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2008
ISBN: 978-0-7653-1366-9
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Starscape/Tom Doherty
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2008
An outstanding new edition of this popular modern classic (Newbery Award, 1961), with an introduction by Zena Sutherland and...
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1990
ISBN: 0-395-53680-4
Page Count: -
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2000
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A rich, enthralling historical mystery that engages and educates.
Siblings decode familial and wartime secrets in 1940 England.
Headstrong 14-year-old Lizzie Novis refuses to believe that her mother, a U.S. embassy clerk who was working in Poland, is dead. After fleeing from her grandmother—who’s attempting to bring her back to America—Lizzie locates her 19-year-old brother, Jakob, a Cambridge mathematician who’s stationed at the clandestine British intelligence site called Bletchley Park. Hiding from her grandmother’s estate steward, Lizzie becomes a messenger at Bletchley Park, ferrying letters across the grounds while Jakob attempts to both break the ciphers generated by the German Enigma machines and help his sister face the reality of their mother’s likely fate. With a suspicious MI5 agent inquiring about Mum and clues and codes piling up, the siblings, whose late father was “Polish Jewish British,” eventually decipher the truth. Shared narrative duties between the siblings effectively juxtapose the measured Jakob with the spirited Lizzie. Lizzie’s directness is repeatedly attributed to her being “half American,” which proves tiresome, but Jakob’s development from reserved to risk-tolerant provides welcome nuance. The authors introduce and carefully explain a variety of decoding methodologies, inspiring readers to attempt their own. A thoughtful and entertaining historical note identifies the key figures who appear in the book, such as Alan Turing, as well as the real-life bases for the fictional characters. Interspersed photos and images of ephemera help situate the narrative’s time period.
A rich, enthralling historical mystery that engages and educates. (Historical mystery. 10-14)Pub Date: Oct. 8, 2024
ISBN: 9780593527542
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2024
PERSPECTIVES
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