Georgie Hall, the spindly nine-year-old stalwart of The Fledgling, confronts the US president over the "peace Missile"—after visionary promptings (the Minute Men, "Uncle Freddy's beloved Henry Thoreau," the world in flames) from the tattered flag in the Hall's Concord attic. Better than the fantasy is the satire: smarmy President Toby announcing a letter contest for the nation's children to herald his new sequined flag—most of which letters (who needs so many?) go unread into the White House furnace, while Georgie is vainly trying to mail hers on time. Best is the ensuing children's-march-to-Washington: Georgie carrying the flag; siblings Eleanor and Eddie, 14 and 12, along for support; president's grandson Robert Toby, Eleanor's crush, a surprisingly ready recruit; Georgie's bossy friend Frieda soon taking command. Five children, with knapsacks and permission slips, heading for U.S. One . . . and soon to be joined by sixth-grader Cissie, pushing baby brother Carrington in his stroller. (No, he doesn't need diapers; yes, he has a permission slip.) Walking isn't like riding, Eleanor quickly decides; and Route 1 is an all-American Strip—noisy, smelly, littered, and not meant for walking at all. Policemen stop them; bikers harass them. Nights, they search for a soft, off-the-road spot. But newspapers begin to pick up their trail; churches and schools offer food and shelter; "The March Becomes a Crusade." Meanwhile, back at the White House, the state contest-winners, chosen for their innocuously patriotic letters, add on hopes-for-peace. New marchers join the Concord band. White House concern mounts. Tot TV-personality Veronica Glassmore marches briefly—hogging the limelight, spying for the president. And all along president's grandson Robert has been mysteriously disappearing: could he be a traitor? No: he'll usher Georgie into his grandfather, and their joint appeal, on top of "all those thousands of little kids tramping through his head," will win the president over just before the scheduled missile-firing. Kids may add this in with the fantasy; what'll win them over are the scrappy kid-characters, the perils of the open Strip, the story-telling ginger and snap.
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1984
ISBN: 0064403114
Page Count: 276
Publisher: Harper & Row
Review Posted Online: May 1, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1984
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away.
A Mexican American boy takes on heavy responsibilities when his family is torn apart.
Mateo’s life is turned upside down the day U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents show up unsuccessfully seeking his Pa at his New York City bodega. The Garcias live in fear until the day both parents are picked up; his Pa is taken to jail and his Ma to a detention center. The adults around Mateo offer support to him and his 7-year-old sister, Sophie, however, he knows he is now responsible for caring for her and the bodega as well as trying to survive junior year—that is, if he wants to fulfill his dream to enter the drama program at the Tisch School of the Arts and become an actor. Mateo’s relationships with his friends Kimmie and Adam (a potential love interest) also suffer repercussions as he keeps his situation a secret. Kimmie is half Korean (her other half is unspecified) and Adam is Italian American; Mateo feels disconnected from them, less American, and with worries they can’t understand. He talks himself out of choosing a safer course of action, a decision that deepens the story. Mateo’s self-awareness and inner monologue at times make him seem older than 16, and, with significant turmoil in the main plot, some side elements feel underdeveloped. Aleman’s narrative joins the ranks of heart-wrenching stories of migrant families who have been separated.
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-7595-5605-8
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A prototypical survival story: after an airplane crash, a 13-year-old city boy spends two months alone in the Canadian wilderness. In transit between his divorcing parents, Brian is the plane's only passenger. After casually showing him how to steer, the pilot has a heart attack and dies. In a breathtaking sequence, Brian maneuvers the plane for hours while he tries to think what to do, at last crashing as gently and levelly as he can manage into a lake. The plane sinks; all he has left is a hatchet, attached to his belt. His injuries prove painful but not fundamental. In time, he builds a shelter, experiments with berries, finds turtle eggs, starts a fire, makes a bow and arrow to catch fish and birds, and makes peace with the larger wildlife. He also battles despair and emerges more patient, prepared to learn from his mistakes—when a rogue moose attacks him and a fierce storm reminds him of his mortality, he's prepared to make repairs with philosophical persistence. His mixed feelings surprise him when the plane finally surfaces so that he can retrieve the survival pack; and then he's rescued. Plausible, taut, this is a spellbinding account. Paulsen's staccato, repetitive style conveys Brian's stress; his combination of third-person narrative with Brian's interior monologue pulls the reader into the story. Brian's angst over a terrible secret—he's seen his mother with another man—is undeveloped and doesn't contribute much, except as one item from his previous life that he sees in better perspective, as a result of his experience. High interest, not hard to read. A winner.
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1987
ISBN: 1416925082
Page Count: -
Publisher: Bradbury
Review Posted Online: Oct. 18, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1987
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