Combines sensitive character exploration with horses: a blue-ribbon winner.
The arrival of a new girl creates drama at a riding stable.
Drama is the last thing Victoria needs: She arrives at Edgewood Stables from rival Waverly Stables following a blowup with former best friend Taylor that leaves her shaken. Taylor has her own horse and takes riding and showing very seriously. Victoria is a good rider, but she understands that her accountant mom will never be able to buy her a horse, and she wants to have time for other things, like watching her favorite science-fiction show, Beyond the Galaxy. Despite a rocky start at Edgewood, she develops friendships with the other middle schoolers in the barn: uber-extrovert Norrie, quiet Hazel, and Sam, who is the only boy. Her new friends are not only Beyond the Galaxy fans, they also help her regain her own confidence in herself and around horses. The story is told from both Victoria’s and Norrie’s points of view, with flashbacks to Victoria’s friendship with Taylor. The emotional arc is realistic and finely developed, with the underlying message, emphasized by illustrations depicting riders with a broad range of skin tones and body types, that there are many ways to be a rider. Norrie is cued as South Asian; Sam reads as Black, and the other main characters appear White. The horses are well done, too. The clean, jewel-toned artwork is especially strong at portraying emotions through facial expressions and body language.
Combines sensitive character exploration with horses: a blue-ribbon winner. (Graphic fiction. 9-14)Pub Date: Aug. 16, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-250-77282-4
Page Count: 224
Publisher: First Second
Review Posted Online: May 24, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2022
Riveting, inspiring, and sometimes hilarious.
If you made a recording to be heard by the aliens who found the iPod, what would you record?
For 11-year-old Alex Petroski, it's easy. He records everything. He records the story of how he travels to New Mexico to a rocket festival with his dog, Carl Sagan, and his rocket. He records finding out that a man with the same name and birthday as his dead father has an address in Las Vegas. He records eating at Johnny Rockets for the first time with his new friends, who are giving him a ride to find his dead father (who might not be dead!), and losing Carl Sagan in the wilds of Las Vegas, and discovering he has a half sister. He even records his own awful accident. Cheng delivers a sweet, soulful debut novel with a brilliant, refreshing structure. His characters manage to come alive through the “transcript” of Alex’s iPod recording, an odd medium that sounds like it would be confusing but really works. Taking inspiration from the Voyager Golden Record released to space in 1977, Alex, who explains he has “light brown skin,” records all the important moments of a journey that takes him from a family of two to a family of plenty.
Riveting, inspiring, and sometimes hilarious. (Fiction. 10-14)Pub Date: Feb. 28, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-399-18637-0
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 18, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2016
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
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