Endearing characters turn this unconventional robbery into a fun romp for younger readers.
Campbell’s middle-grade YA adventure follows a 16-year-old boy caught up in an unusual New York City heist.
All Nate wanted was a fun winter week in New York with his kooky aunt Celeste, but when he overhears two other teens discussing a robbery at Rockefeller Center, he gets a lot more than he bargained for. After threatening him, the two strangers tell Nate that their plan is to steal the star at the top of New York’s biggest Christmas tree—they’ve decided that he will play a role in the caper. Intrigued and a little frightened, Nate meets with them as planned and learns more about the intriguing wannabe thieves: Rodney Donoghue is a wealthy Australian boy; Cluenette “Clue” Perez is the loud, street-smart brains of the operation. Clue’s gruff demeanor and her detailed diagrams plotting out the Christmas heist immediately capture Nate’s attention and stir his imagination. (As an aspiring writer, Nate keeps a notebook with him in which he jots down ideas.) Nate is soon spending his nights running around Central Park, scaling massive Christmas trees, and setting off smoke bombs to make daring escapes with his two new friends. He also learns more about the mysterious Clue—the troubles she lives with at home with her mother, the strained relationship she has with her father, and her very personal reason for wanting to get all of New York’s attention this Christmas. Campbell’s fast-paced story calls to mind classic middle-grade adventures filled with intrigue and quirky characters, like E.L. Konigsburg’s From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler (1967). Clue is a complex and well-developed antihero who alternates between aggression and vulnerability, and Nate’s Broadway-aspiring aunt (complete with a pet goat) provides plenty of comedy (“Should I smile with or without teeth?”). While the kids plot to steal something unusual, the actual heist antics follow predictable beats that might leave younger readers wishing the story had taken even more unexpected turns, but there are plenty of well-executed action sequences set throughout the city to keep them invested.
Endearing characters turn this unconventional robbery into a fun romp for younger readers.Pub Date: Oct. 29, 2024
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: Oct. 8, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away.
A Mexican American boy takes on heavy responsibilities when his family is torn apart.
Mateo’s life is turned upside down the day U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents show up unsuccessfully seeking his Pa at his New York City bodega. The Garcias live in fear until the day both parents are picked up; his Pa is taken to jail and his Ma to a detention center. The adults around Mateo offer support to him and his 7-year-old sister, Sophie, however, he knows he is now responsible for caring for her and the bodega as well as trying to survive junior year—that is, if he wants to fulfill his dream to enter the drama program at the Tisch School of the Arts and become an actor. Mateo’s relationships with his friends Kimmie and Adam (a potential love interest) also suffer repercussions as he keeps his situation a secret. Kimmie is half Korean (her other half is unspecified) and Adam is Italian American; Mateo feels disconnected from them, less American, and with worries they can’t understand. He talks himself out of choosing a safer course of action, a decision that deepens the story. Mateo’s self-awareness and inner monologue at times make him seem older than 16, and, with significant turmoil in the main plot, some side elements feel underdeveloped. Aleman’s narrative joins the ranks of heart-wrenching stories of migrant families who have been separated.
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-7595-5605-8
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind.
In this companion novel to 2013’s If He Had Been With Me, three characters tell their sides of the story.
Finn’s narrative starts three days before his death. He explores the progress of his unrequited love for best friend Autumn up until the day he finally expresses his feelings. Finn’s story ends with his tragic death, which leaves his close friends devastated, unmoored, and uncertain how to go on. Jack’s section follows, offering a heartbreaking look at what it’s like to live with grief. Jack works to overcome the anger he feels toward Sylvie, the girlfriend Finn was breaking up with when he died, and Autumn, the girl he was preparing to build his life around (but whom Jack believed wasn’t good enough for Finn). But when Jack sees how Autumn’s grief matches his own, it changes their understanding of one another. Autumn’s chapters trace her life without Finn as readers follow her struggles with mental health and balancing love and loss. Those who have read the earlier book will better connect with and feel for these characters, particularly since they’ll have a more well-rounded impression of Finn. The pain and anger is well written, and the novel highlights the most troublesome aspects of young adulthood: overconfidence sprinkled with heavy insecurities, fear-fueled decisions, bad communication, and brash judgments. Characters are cued white.
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind. (author’s note, content warning) (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9781728276229
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
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