A poignant, pointed portrayal of the heavy burden parental instability places on a family.
A 10-year-old navigates the uncertainty of life with an unreliable parent while holding on to hope.
Sofie has lived in difficult circumstances for a long time. Her mom has struggled with drug use and abusive relationships for much of Sofie’s life. They live in poverty in Des Moines, Iowa, making frequent visits to the community center for free lunches and to borrow books, which Sofie takes comfort in. Although Sofie aches for her mother’s elusive support, it becomes clear that she has love and support from Con, her 13-year-old brother; her recently sober great-grandfather; and family friend Tommy, her mom’s boss at the restaurant. But her mother’s erratic nature causes Sofie to harbor a persistent sense of unease and fear of abandonment. When her mother disappears for weeks and is subsequently sent to prison for crimes committed with her boyfriend, the question arises of determining an appropriate guardian. Life from Sofie’s perspective is painfully but realistically conveyed, and the portrayal will resonate especially with readers with experience of poverty, addiction, or family trauma. Amid fears and crises, there are still small comforts to be found, capturing feelings of inherent value in her family. As the search for a caregiver finds a happy, albeit unlikely, resolution, the complex mood evoked by Moranville for much of the book is set aside for a softer landing. Most characters appear to be White.
A poignant, pointed portrayal of the heavy burden parental instability places on a family. (Fiction. 9-13)Pub Date: Aug. 8, 2023
ISBN: 9780823453597
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2023
Rich and strange (and kitted out with an eye-catching cover), but stronger in the set pieces than the internal logic.
Chainani works an elaborate sea change akin to Gregory Maguire’s Wicked (1995), though he leaves the waters muddied.
Every four years, two children, one regarded as particularly nice and the other particularly nasty, are snatched from the village of Gavaldon by the shadowy School Master to attend the divided titular school. Those who survive to graduate become major or minor characters in fairy tales. When it happens to sweet, Disney princess–like Sophie and her friend Agatha, plain of features, sour of disposition and low of self-esteem, they are both horrified to discover that they’ve been dropped not where they expect but at Evil and at Good respectively. Gradually—too gradually, as the author strings out hundreds of pages of Hogwarts-style pranks, classroom mishaps and competitions both academic and romantic—it becomes clear that the placement wasn’t a mistake at all. Growing into their true natures amid revelations and marked physical changes, the two spark escalating rivalry between the wings of the school. This leads up to a vicious climactic fight that sees Good and Evil repeatedly switching sides. At this point, readers are likely to feel suddenly left behind, as, thanks to summary deus ex machina resolutions, everything turns out swell(ish).
Rich and strange (and kitted out with an eye-catching cover), but stronger in the set pieces than the internal logic. (Fantasy. 11-13)Pub Date: May 14, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-06-210489-2
Page Count: 496
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2013
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Charming, poignant, and thoughtfully woven.
An aspiring scientist and a budding artist become friends and help each other with dream projects.
Unfolding in mid-1980s Sacramento, California, this story stars 12-year-olds Rosalind and Benjamin as first-person narrators in alternating chapters. Ro’s father, a fellow space buff, was killed by a drunk driver; the rocket they were working on together lies unfinished in her closet. As for Benji, not only has his best friend, Amir, moved away, but the comic book holding the clue for locating his dad is also missing. Along with their profound personal losses, the protagonists share a fixation with the universe’s intriguing potential: Ro decides to complete the rocket and hopes to launch mementos of her father into outer space while Benji’s conviction that aliens and UFOs are real compels his imagination and creativity as an artist. An accident in science class triggers a chain of events forcing Benji and Ro, who is new to the school, to interact and unintentionally learn each other’s secrets. They resolve to find Benji’s dad—a famous comic-book artist—and partner to finish Ro’s rocket for the science fair. Together, they overcome technical, scheduling, and geographical challenges. Readers will be drawn in by amusing and fantastical elements in the comic book theme, high emotional stakes that arouse sympathy, and well-drawn character development as the protagonists navigate life lessons around grief, patience, self-advocacy, and standing up for others. Ro is biracial (Chinese/White); Benji is White.
Charming, poignant, and thoughtfully woven. (Fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: Jan. 12, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-06-300888-5
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2020
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