by Zac Gorman ; illustrated by Sam Bosma ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 17, 2018
Another saying goes, “Artists have to know the rules before they can break them.” This author knows the rules of fantasy...
The saying goes, “Write what you know.” Gorman seems to know a whole lot about monsters.
This fantasy novel is filled with monsters, and they’re not always familiar ones. There are wereplants and a slughemoth and a tarasque. Readers may assume the author made them up, but most of them come from actual folklore. Thisby Thestoop is in charge of feeding—and sometimes grooming—the monsters. Castle Grimstone, where she’s grown up, has to look nice for tourists. It’s designed to be an attraction for bored and foolish adventurers—fertile ground for a writer. One charm of the book is that everything that happens feels slightly counterintuitive and, better yet, slightly cynical. This extends to the pacing. When readers expect an epic battle, they may get the history of a city. Sometimes basic plot exposition is delayed until many chapters into the book. But there is a proper adventure story, complete with a search for a missing prince. The characters are so odd and engaging, though, that the plot hardly matters. The cast is only moderately diverse, however: a white protagonist; a pair of black-haired, olive-skinned twins; and a black adventurer/tourist who pops in now and again.
Another saying goes, “Artists have to know the rules before they can break them.” This author knows the rules of fantasy really well, and if the pacing sometimes defies convention, he makes up for it with spectacular monsters. (Fantasy. 8-12)Pub Date: April 17, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-249567-9
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 21, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2018
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by Aubrey Hartman ; illustrated by Christopher Cyr ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 2, 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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by Suzanne Selfors ; illustrated by Dan Santat ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 2, 2013
More hijinks-filled adventure than mystery, this is sure to win an audience.
Ben Silverstein’s summer with Grandpa is about to go wild.
When his parents need to “work out some troubles,” 10-year-old Ben gets shipped off to tiny Buttonville, where everything seems to be closed or out of business since the button factory was shuttered years ago. Ben’s used to spending summers in the pool in his Los Angeles backyard with his friends, and Buttonville looks positively coma-inducing. When Grandpa’s mouser Barnaby deposits what has to be a baby dragon on Ben’s bed, Ben and his new friend Pearl (whom the whole town calls “troublemaker” on account of a few innocent incidents) decide to visit the new “worm doctor” who has moved into the abandoned button factory. (Ben had heard her strange assistant Mr. Tabby buying ingredients for “dragon’s milk” at the grocery....) When their visit unleashes a hairy, pudding-loving imaginary beast on the town of Buttonville, Ben and Pearl volunteer to catch him. Selfors kicks off her Imaginary Veterinary series with a solid, entertaining opener. Ben and Pearl are Everykids that readers will relate to, and the adults of Buttonville are often delightfully weird and clueless. Twenty-five pages of backmatter include information on wyverns and sasquatch as well as the science of reptiles and a pudding recipe.
More hijinks-filled adventure than mystery, this is sure to win an audience. (Adventure. 8-12)Pub Date: April 2, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-316-20934-2
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
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