A sprightly tale of self-discovery that’s both affecting and endearing.
A school film gives a fifth-grade loner his chance to shine in this middle-grade novel.
Bernard Gawain doesn’t have many friends or much of a social life in Green Hill, New Hampshire. But he willingly takes the lead role for a project in Miss Sorenson’s class—a 10-minute film based on local legend Ramesses Ka. This gives him a shot at playing the hero (in this case, a mummy) for his crush, classmate Bridget Matsumoto, who’s a shoo-in for the other lead. It’s also the kind of B-movie material that Bernard loves and streams every Saturday on The Crummy Mummy Show. His overbearing mother, however, doesn’t approve of his watching said series or really anything that doesn’t help maintain his high GPA. In between trying to make sense of Bridget’s feelings for him (she calls him a string bean but then asks for double string beans at lunch), the goofy, charming Bernard wins a few friends. Now if he could just get his mom to let him be himself. Thomas Tosi’s upbeat story showcases the immensely likable Bernard, a smart, well-behaved kid who rolls with the punches. His mother’s relentless nature even sneaks educational bits into this novel: Bernard uses mom-assigned “vocabulary words” he’s consistently learning, like tome, scoundrel, and flibbertigibbet. The supporting cast is remarkable, from zany classmate Dewey, who occasionally bumps heads with Bernard, to Bridget’s little sister, Franny, who’s refreshingly honest, much to the chagrin of nearly everyone else. As he prepares for his upcoming role, Bernard often appears wrapped in mummy bandages, and it’s inspiring to watch the fifth grader uncover his inner fortitude while hiding inside a costume. Illustrator Meaghan Tosi’s artwork includes gleeful, comically expressive faces along with campy B-movie posters (a highlight being the Spanish-language version of The Aztec Mummy vs. the Cat People).
A sprightly tale of self-discovery that’s both affecting and endearing.Pub Date: Sept. 10, 2024
ISBN: 9781954782198
Page Count: 276
Publisher: Dooney Press
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
An absorbing fantasy centered on a resilient female protagonist facing growth, change, and self-empowerment.
In Florence’s middle-grade fantasy novel, a young girl’s heart is tested in the face of an evil, spreading Darkness.
Eleven-year-old Lydia, “freckle-cheeked and round-eyed, with hair the color of pine bark and fair skin,” is struggling with the knowledge that she has reached the age to apprentice as an herbalist. Lydia is reluctant to leave her beloved, magical Mulberry Glen and her cozy Housetree in the woods—she’ll miss Garder, the Glen’s respected philosopher; her fairy guardian Pit; her human friend Livy; and even the mischievous part-elf, part-imp, part-human twins Zale and Zamilla. But the twins go missing after hearing of a soul-sapping Darkness that has swallowed a forest and is creeping into minds and engulfing entire towns. They have secretly left to find a rare fruit that, it is said, will stop the Darkness if thrown into the heart of the mountain that rises out of the lethal forest. Lydia follows, determined to find the twins before they, too, fall victim to the Darkness. During her journey, accompanied by new friends, she gradually realizes that she herself has a dangerous role to play in the quest to stop the Darkness. In this well-crafted fantasy, Florence skillfully equates the physical manifestation of Darkness with the feelings of insecurity and powerlessness that Lydia first struggles with when thinking of leaving the Glen. Such negative thoughts grow more intrusive the closer she and her friends come to the Darkness—and to Lydia’s ultimate, powerfully rendered test of character, which leads to a satisfyingly realistic, not quite happily-ever-after ending. Highlights include a delightfully haunting, reality-shifting library and a deft sprinkling of Latin throughout the text; Pit’s pet name for Lydia is mea flosculus (“my little flower”). Fine-lined ink drawings introducing each chapter add a pleasing visual element to this well-grounded fairy tale.
An absorbing fantasy centered on a resilient female protagonist facing growth, change, and self-empowerment.Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2025
ISBN: 9781956393095
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Waxwing Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 14, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
After Castro’s takeover, nine-year-old Julian and his older brothers are sent away by their fearful parents via “Operation Pedro Pan” to a camp in Miami for Cuban-exile children. Here he discovers that a ruthless bully has essentially been put in charge. Julian is quicker-witted than his brothers or anyone else ever imagined, though, and with his inherent smarts, developing maturity and the help of child and adult friends, he learns to navigate the dynamics of the camp and surroundings and grows from the former baby of the family to independence and self-confidence. A daring rescue mission at the end of the novel will have readers rooting for Julian even as it opens his family’s eyes to his courage and resourcefulness. This autobiographical novel is a well-meaning, fast-paced and often exciting read, though at times the writing feels choppy. It will introduce readers to a not-so-distant period whose echoes are still felt today and inspire admiration for young people who had to be brave despite frightening and lonely odds. (Historical fiction. 9-12)
Pub Date: Aug. 3, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-59643-168-3
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: June 14, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2010
BOOK REVIEW
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