A disabled youngster overcomes obstacles in this diverting fantasy with series potential.
A seemingly meek boy may be the one prophesied to save a secret magical world in Baca’s middle-grade fantasy novel.
Josea “Joe” Sabir has never known his birth parents—a woodcarver named Shohar found the infant boy in the hollow of an old tree. Shohar raises Joe as his own son, and the two share a happy but isolated life near an abandoned town in the world of Azeuar. One day, Shohar dies, leaving the young boy alone. Joe struggles to sell items (like wooden toys and clocks) in the kingdom of Cordicia as he and Shohar had done in past years. Many people, sadly, aren’t accepting of Joe, cruelly dismissing him as a cripple (he was born with one leg slightly shorter than the other). Yet some believe that Joe is the one who, according to prophecy, will save Azeuar, a “magnificent” world in danger of becoming completely unbalanced. Joe mesmerizes listeners with his music, playing a violin his father crafted for him and displaying his “deep connection” to the world and its energies. As he travels the land of Kasha within Azeuar, Joe encounters adversaries, including someone who desperately craves his magical violin and such malevolent creatures as “ruzes,” large hummingbirds with humanlike faces, sharp claws, and poisonous stingers. He also encounters friendly sorts, such as his female best friend, Jesine Amar of Cordicia, and young Dremblures, who travel through time and space as they dream. Joe may very well be a Jemdar, someone with the ability to help the Dremblures “grasp” Kasha’s magic and spread it through all of Azeuar.
Baca’s novel is fairly dense with characters. Many chapters introduce new friends and foes who exit before the chapter’s end (though most of them eventually return). Kasha, the realm in which this story is set, features simply defined places like Shohar and Joe’s small cottage, an enormous and reputedly cursed castle, and a large treehouse “teeming with countless gadgets and contraptions.” Descriptions throughout are straightforward and effective; the wonderfully named “tumigrumbler” is a magical machine that rolls into the story with “spouts, whistles, and bells” as it belches steam and serves hot drinks. It’s clear that there’s much more going on in the greater world of Azeuar than we see here, namely the oft-named beings who are an apparently rising threat but whom readers never see in this book. While Baca delivers an entertaining final act and gratifying ending, there’s a lot left over for potential sequels to explore. The cast is superbly developed—Joe is a resilient kid who doesn’t let anything hold him back and inspires other children with disabilities. Likewise, the backstories enthrall; Shohar loses friends and family in a volcanic eruption (Joe learns other intriguing things about him later), and Jesine’s dubious stepfather, a Cordicia knight, may or may not have had something to do with her mother’s disappearance. The author’s black-and-white illustrations, which resemble pencil sketches and preface each chapter, showcase such memorable imagery as a creature forming from campfire smoke and Joe caught inside a wind funnel.
A disabled youngster overcomes obstacles in this diverting fantasy with series potential.Pub Date: April 19, 2021
ISBN: 9798990795914
Page Count: -
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: April 26, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant.
Robot Roz undertakes an unusual ocean journey to save her adopted island home in this third series entry.
When a poison tide flowing across the ocean threatens their island, Roz works with the resident creatures to ensure that they will have clean water, but the destruction of vegetation and crowding of habitats jeopardize everyone’s survival. Brown’s tale of environmental depredation and turmoil is by turns poignant, graceful, endearing, and inspiring, with his (mostly) gentle robot protagonist at its heart. Though Roz is different from the creatures she lives with or encounters—including her son, Brightbill the goose, and his new mate, Glimmerwing—she makes connections through her versatile communication abilities and her desire to understand and help others. When Roz accidentally discovers that the replacement body given to her by Dr. Molovo is waterproof, she sets out to seek help and discovers the human-engineered source of the toxic tide. Brown’s rich descriptions of undersea landscapes, entertaining conversations between Roz and wild creatures, and concise yet powerful explanations of the effect of the poison tide on the ecology of the island are superb. Simple, spare illustrations offer just enough glimpses of Roz and her surroundings to spark the imagination. The climactic confrontation pits oceangoing mammals, seabirds, fish, and even zooplankton against hardware and technology in a nicely choreographed battle. But it is Roz’s heroism and peacemaking that save the day.
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant. (author’s note) (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9780316669412
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023
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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