Led by Holly Black and Nina Kiriki Hoffman, 15 writers throw magical challenges at teenaged (mostly) characters in settings that range from exotic alternate realities to un-exotic high-school restrooms. The all-new stories range from reworkings of folk tales in Gregory Frost’s “The Fortunate Dream” and Eugie Foster’s “Princess Bufo marinus, Also Known As Amy,” to Cassandra Clare’s Lovecraftian “Have You Ever Seen A Shuggoth?” and Tiffany Trent’s eerie “Blackwater Baby.” Generally likable protagonists take on curses, sorcerers, magical talismans and other supernatural MacGuffins—along with the customary bullies, prejudice, abuse and domestic issues. Not only do the entries exhibit a lively variety of tones and lengths, but because the sex and even most of the violence has been left implicit, the tales can be offered or read to an unusually wide audience. Jejune author/editor comments on each entry don’t measure up to the rest, but they’ve all been gathered into an easily skippable closing section. First-rate fare for fantasy fans. (Short stories. 11-15)
Pub Date: Feb. 12, 2008
ISBN: 978-0-7869-4732-4
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Mirrorstone/Wizards of the Coast
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2008
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Rich and strange (and kitted out with an eye-catching cover), but stronger in the set pieces than the internal logic.
Chainani works an elaborate sea change akin to Gregory Maguire’s Wicked (1995), though he leaves the waters muddied.
Every four years, two children, one regarded as particularly nice and the other particularly nasty, are snatched from the village of Gavaldon by the shadowy School Master to attend the divided titular school. Those who survive to graduate become major or minor characters in fairy tales. When it happens to sweet, Disney princess–like Sophie and her friend Agatha, plain of features, sour of disposition and low of self-esteem, they are both horrified to discover that they’ve been dropped not where they expect but at Evil and at Good respectively. Gradually—too gradually, as the author strings out hundreds of pages of Hogwarts-style pranks, classroom mishaps and competitions both academic and romantic—it becomes clear that the placement wasn’t a mistake at all. Growing into their true natures amid revelations and marked physical changes, the two spark escalating rivalry between the wings of the school. This leads up to a vicious climactic fight that sees Good and Evil repeatedly switching sides. At this point, readers are likely to feel suddenly left behind, as, thanks to summary deus ex machina resolutions, everything turns out swell(ish).
Rich and strange (and kitted out with an eye-catching cover), but stronger in the set pieces than the internal logic. (Fantasy. 11-13)Pub Date: May 14, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-06-210489-2
Page Count: 496
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK TO SCREEN
Gratuity Tucci (“Tip” for short) has a problem. Aliens have invaded Earth, stolen her mother, and now she and the rest of humanity are being shunted onto small reservations while the invaders (the Boov) take over the rest of the planet. In avoiding this plan, via her family car, Tip runs across J.Lo, a renegade Boov with problems of his own. Together, girl and alien attempt to locate Tip’s mother only to discover that an even greater alien threat is imminent. It’s up to the two heroes to defeat the invaders, Boov and otherwise, and save the day. The humor in this story is undeniably unique, containing a skewed worldview that children will certainly enjoy. Yet while the first half of the book is an entirely funny road trip of the Kerouac-meets-E.T. variety, the second half slows down considerably. Rex has such a nice grasp of small tender moments amidst a world gone haywire, it’s a pity the book wasn’t pared down significantly. Inspired but problematic. (Fiction. 11-15)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2007
ISBN: 978-0-7868-4900-0
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2007
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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