Readers will respond to this improbable, deeply sympathetic hero.
Fifteen-year-old Bunny is no stranger to trouble. In fact, most of his recent trouble can be traced back to his mysterious grandfather David McLean.
Following McLean’s death, each of his seven grandsons received a challenge. Bunny’s was to get a tattoo (Ink Me, 2012). His ink linked him to a gang, and he quickly found himself on the wrong side of the law. Now on leave from his incarceration, Bunny wants nothing more than to spend time with his cousins and ice skate. However, Bunny’s plans are once again sidelined by his grandfather’s past. This time, he is taken hostage by a group of political radicals determined to bring their government to its knees. Bunny’s learning disabilities can make academics challenging, but his unique way of viewing the world might just be the key to his freedom. Written in Bunny’s own language, the narrative is filled with misspellings and misunderstandings, which can make comprehension challenging at times. However, Bunny’s indomitable spirit makes him a likable, one-of-a-kind narrator. Unlike the other books in this linked series, Bunny’s story is more adventure and less mystery. And while the chain of events at times seems unlikely, Bunny is enough to keep the pages turning.
Readers will respond to this improbable, deeply sympathetic hero. (Mystery. 10-14)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4598-0531-6
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Orca
Review Posted Online: July 28, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2014
Despite the stale fat-to-curvy pattern, compelling world building with a Southern European, pseudo-Christian feel,...
Adventure drags our heroine all over the map of fantasyland while giving her the opportunity to use her smarts.
Elisa—Princess Lucero-Elisa de Riqueza of Orovalle—has been chosen for Service since the day she was born, when a beam of holy light put a Godstone in her navel. She's a devout reader of holy books and is well-versed in the military strategy text Belleza Guerra, but she has been kept in ignorance of world affairs. With no warning, this fat, self-loathing princess is married off to a distant king and is embroiled in political and spiritual intrigue. War is coming, and perhaps only Elisa's Godstone—and knowledge from the Belleza Guerra—can save them. Elisa uses her untried strategic knowledge to always-good effect. With a character so smart that she doesn't have much to learn, body size is stereotypically substituted for character development. Elisa’s "mountainous" body shrivels away when she spends a month on forced march eating rat, and thus she is a better person. Still, it's wonderfully refreshing to see a heroine using her brain to win a war rather than strapping on a sword and charging into battle.
Despite the stale fat-to-curvy pattern, compelling world building with a Southern European, pseudo-Christian feel, reminiscent of Naomi Kritzer's Fires of the Faithful (2002), keeps this entry fresh. (Fantasy. 12-14)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-06-202648-4
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2011
Well-educated American boys from privileged families have abundant options for college and career. For Chiko, their Burmese counterpart, there are no good choices. There is never enough to eat, and his family lives in constant fear of the military regime that has imprisoned Chiko’s physician father. Soon Chiko is commandeered by the army, trained to hunt down members of the Karenni ethnic minority. Tai, another “recruit,” uses his streetwise survival skills to help them both survive. Meanwhile, Tu Reh, a Karenni youth whose village was torched by the Burmese Army, has been chosen for his first military mission in his people’s resistance movement. How the boys meet and what comes of it is the crux of this multi-voiced novel. While Perkins doesn’t sugarcoat her subject—coming of age in a brutal, fascistic society—this is a gentle story with a lot of heart, suitable for younger readers than the subject matter might suggest. It answers the question, “What is it like to be a child soldier?” clearly, but with hope. (author’s note, historical note) (Fiction. 11-14)
Pub Date: July 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-58089-328-2
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Charlesbridge
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2010
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