A perfect beach read for lovers of suspense.
In acclaimed YA author Jackson’s middle-grade debut, 12-year-old Kaylani McKinnon expects bikes, beaches, and books during her first summer on Martha’s Vineyard—not murder.
When she leaves Brooklyn to stay with family friends the Watsons, a well-known Black family, her dad, who’s incarcerated, reminds Kaylani not to worry about him—her “only job is to be a kid.” Still, Kaylani is set on #operationFREEDAD—she even took a mock trial workshop to learn more about how to gain justice for her father. When popular teen Chadwick Cooper is found dead soon after Kaylani arrives on the island, she uses her investigative skills to find the culprit. Snobby London, the younger Watson daughter, reluctantly helps, and Chadwick’s little brother Miles joins in too. But the closer they get to the murderer, the more it seems that Kaylani’s first time on the island may be her last. The story, which centers on Black characters, shines a spotlight on the long history of wealthy Black people summering on Martha’s Vineyard. Employing tight, steady writing, Jackson builds tension around the complexities of class and respectability politics. The worldbuilding and Kaylani’s interior dialogue initially convey more of a YA novel tone, but once the story moves on to the island, the voice successfully settles into a solid middle-grade space. Endearing Kaylani is a little unsure of herself as she has a variety of new social interactions on the island, but overall she’s confident and well adjusted.
A perfect beach read for lovers of suspense. (Mystery. 9-12)Pub Date: July 1, 2025
ISBN: 9781338849912
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2025
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Heartwarming fare for young pet owners who feel the love and loyalty going both ways.
Devotion permeates this tale of a small dog who’s swept up in a peasants’ revolt against a greedy king.
Inflamed with righteousness in the wake of yet another tax hike, 12-year-old Tom has defied his parents to slip away and join the revolutionary Reds. Stoutly declaring that he’s a good dog, 5-year-old Rebel chases after him to bring his beloved boy back—and discovers a wide new world beyond the farm, fraught with dangers but also rich in animal friends offering help and advice. Just as beguiling as the furry narrator’s dog’s-eye view of events are his ongoing arguments with Jaxon, a gruff feral hound he meets along the way, who urges him to find his wild inner True Dog. Jaxon’s refusal to be bound by emotional attachments ultimately clashes with Rebel’s big, uncomplicated heart. Following a brush with death, Rebel encounters a mystical Companion, who offers him glimpses of dog heaven; when the climactic battle arrives, Rebel declares, “I get to decide what I do with my one and only life. And if I use it for anything, I’m going to use it for love.” The author brings the odyssey to a satisfactory conclusion with one last, pure affirmation of love. In this story set in an alternate Britain reminiscent of its 17th-century Civil War, Rebel distinguishes humans in the cast by their voices, smell, and dress.
Heartwarming fare for young pet owners who feel the love and loyalty going both ways. (Fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: May 27, 2025
ISBN: 9781536246797
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: March 8, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2025
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