A timeless, well-executed middle-grade fantasy.
In Wright’s middle-grade fantasy adventure, a tween boy must find the missing piece of a sword to save a fantasy realm.
In this (2024) third installment of the Adventures of Toby Baxter series, Toby is feeling moody, crabby, and downright miserable. Though he’s about to embark upon a surprise family trip to Hawaii with his best friend Sid, he’d rather avoid packing in favor of reading his Marvel comic books. En route to Hawaii, Toby learns his beloved fantasy land of RiverHome, which he is able to enter via a portal, is in trouble. In east Maui, Clygon (a formerly villainous troll from RiverHome) transports Toby to the Tikvah Mountain’s depths and guides him to some giants. With encouragement from their Lord Harold (“It appears that you and Clygon are here to save us”), Toby sets out with Clygon, giants Oliver and Evy, and Saaba—a wolf who carries necessities and protects them—on a mission to find a piece of a missing sword and repair it to save the giants and RiverHome. The journey is not easy; the adventurers are menaced by stalactites, moving boulders, and trolls. Toby is expected to lead the quest, and he makes myriad mistakes along the way. Wright, an ordained pastor, knows middle-school kids and their challenges well. Toby’s moody behavior and interpersonal conflicts are relatable and clear from the beginning (Toby is not always correct, strong, or able to make the best choices). Lessons learned along the way are not always perfectly internalized, which is realistic for a middle-grade readership. The narrative is engaging with its well-constructed world, intriguing yet subtle conflicts, and humor (much of it timely—the narrative includes digs at social media, the current gig economy, and the overall selfishness of American culture). All of the characters have unique needs and make important contributions. While the text feels didactic at times, the story successfully incorporates realistic middle-school desires, a sound fantasy structure, and age-appropriate lessons.
A timeless, well-executed middle-grade fantasy.Pub Date: July 5, 2023
ISBN: 9781961075658
Page Count: 192
Publisher: Amazon Book Marketing Pros
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A pleasing premise for book lovers.
A fantasy-loving bookworm makes a wonderful, terrible bargain.
When sixth grader Poppy Woodlock’s historic preservationist parents move the family to the Oregon coast to work on the titular stately home, Poppy’s sure she’ll find magic. Indeed, the exiled water nymph in the manor’s ruined swimming pool grants a wish, but: “Magic isn’t free. It cosssts.” The price? Poppy’s favorite book, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. In return she receives Sampson, a winged lion cub who is everything Poppy could have hoped for. But she soon learns that the nymph didn’t take just her own physical book—she erased Narnia from Poppy’s world. And it’s just the first loss: Soon, Poppy’s grandmother’s journal’s gone, then The Odyssey, and more. The loss is heartbreaking, but Sampson’s a wonderful companion, particularly as Poppy’s finding middle school a tough adjustment. Hartman’s premise is beguiling—plenty of readers will identify with Poppy, both as a fellow bibliophile and as a kid struggling to adapt. Poppy’s repeatedly expressed faith that unveiling Sampson will bring some sort of vindication wears thin, but that does not detract from the central drama. It’s a pity that the named real-world books Poppy reads are notably lacking in diversity; a story about the power of literature so limited in imagination lets both itself and readers down. Main characters are cued White; there is racial diversity in the supporting cast. Chapters open with atmospheric spot art. (This review has been updated to reflect the final illustrations.)
A pleasing premise for book lovers. (Fantasy. 9-12)Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9780316448222
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2023
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
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