In a narrative akin, in its liveliness and immediacy, to Williams's Stringbean's Trip to the Shining Sea (1988), Elana Rose Rosen describes her first "2 months + 1 week or 9 weeks + 6 days or...5,961,600 seconds" in Melon Hill, an urban complex where she and her mom share one-room apartment 8E. From the first day ("I don't know any of those kids...I'm not moping") to the Labor Day celebration when Elana and the kids she's gotten to know—plus her best friend/cousin, visiting from Toronto—shine in their individual ways, Williams builds a sense of a particular community with every casual-seeming detail. Many of these relate to little Petey, who has selfish, inept parents and has never spoken until he whispers an important message to Elana; to old Mrs. Greiner ("the Whiner"), who turns out to be lovable as well as capable; and to Elana's hard-working mom, who goes to school and holds down a job. The rough marginal illustrations, while credibly childlike, deftly capture both character and action; with creative dexterity, Williams also varies the format with lists, charts ("Diagram of the Zig Zag Day" of trials and triumphs), healthful recipes (a soup from leftovers could be adapted to any refrigerator's contents), and succinct themes built on initials from chapter titles ("Petey": "Petey doesn't/Ever/Talk/Even when he wants to—/Y?"). Disarming in its apparent simplicity, an upbeat, innovative, delightfully engaging, and beautifully crafted first novel about everyday life in the inner city. (Fiction. 7-11)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1993
ISBN: 0-688-09376-0
Page Count: 150
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1993
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Though it lacks nuance, still a must-read.
Tyler is the son of generations of Vermont dairy farmers.
Mari is the Mexican-born daughter of undocumented migrant laborers whose mother has vanished in a perilous border crossing. When Tyler’s father is disabled in an accident, the only way the family can afford to keep the farm is by hiring Mari’s family. As Tyler and Mari’s friendship grows, the normal tensions of middle-school boy-girl friendships are complicated by philosophical and political truths. Tyler wonders how he can be a patriot while his family breaks the law. Mari worries about her vanished mother and lives in fear that she will be separated from her American-born sisters if la migra comes. Unashamedly didactic, Alvarez’s novel effectively complicates simple equivalencies between what’s illegal and what’s wrong. Mari’s experience is harrowing, with implied atrocities and immigration raids, but equally full of good people doing the best they can. The two children find hope despite the unhappily realistic conclusions to their troubles, in a story which sees the best in humanity alongside grim realities.
Though it lacks nuance, still a must-read. (Fiction. 9-11)Pub Date: Jan. 13, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-375-85838-3
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2008
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists.
How to raise money for a coveted poster: put your friends to work!
John, founder of the FUBU fashion line and a Shark Tank venture capitalist, offers a self-referential blueprint for financial success. Having only half of the $10 he needs for a Minka J poster, Daymond forks over $1 to buy a plain T-shirt, paints a picture of the pop star on it, sells it for $5, and uses all of his cash to buy nine more shirts. Then he recruits three friends to decorate them with his design and help sell them for an unspecified amount (from a conveniently free and empty street-fair booth) until they’re gone. The enterprising entrepreneur reimburses himself for the shirts and splits the remaining proceeds, which leaves him with enough for that poster as well as a “brand-new business book,” while his friends express other fiscal strategies: saving their share, spending it all on new art supplies, or donating part and buying a (math) book with the rest. (In a closing summation, the author also suggests investing in stocks, bonds, or cryptocurrency.) Though Miles cranks up the visual energy in her sparsely detailed illustrations by incorporating bright colors and lots of greenbacks, the actual advice feels a bit vague. Daymond is Black; most of the cast are people of color. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists. (Picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: March 21, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-593-56727-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2023
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