Middle School

Review: The False Prince by Jennifer A. Nielsen

| Tasha

false prince

The False Prince by Jennifer A. Nielsen

It is a strange, unique day when only an orphan boy of no particular breeding can save a kingdom from war.   But that is the plan hatched by Conner, a nobleman, when the entire royal family is poisoned.  The only possible way to save the kingdom from immediate war is to find a young man who resembles the prince, who was thought to be dead years before.  So it is that Sage and three other young orphans are gathered up.  It is made clear from the beginning that this is no joke, and that Conner will do anything to keep this secret safe.  The boys begin learning to be princes, competing for the one spot as the prince.  They must learn to read, write, ride a horse, fight with swords, and use genteel manners.  Among them, Sage is the one with the arrogance, fearlessness and pride to be a prince, but if he doesn’t try at his lessons, he may not be the one chosen.  All of the boys realize what it means not to be chosen – certain death.

Nielsen has created a book that dashes forward, blazing with a strong concept from the beginning.  The idea of the false prince and a life-or-death competition for a single role makes for exhilarating reading.  Her pacing is brilliant, as is the ease of her writing, making the book almost impossible to put down.  In Sage, she has created a boy who could have been dislikable but instead reads as brave, valiant, and true. 

Nielsen does not shy away from violence or death.  This is a world of lies, cunning and manipulation.  Within that world, people will do what they have to in order to get ahead.  That is a large part of the appeal of Sage.  He is somehow immersed in that world of desperation, but remains unwilling to ever be desperate or eager.  He is a complex character filled with charisma.

Written in the first person, a rather daring choice for this sort of book, Nielsen manages to not allow the reader to guess the truth of the story until she reveals it.  While readers may guess at how the book will end, they will not be certain until that moment of revelation.  It’s another feature that makes the book so very readable.

The first in a trilogy, I was thrilled to find a book that stands on its own.  While there are plot points that I look forward to finding out more about, this book has a very satisfying ending.  Get this into the hands of readers who want action, intrigue and enjoy a little sinister darkness in their books.  Appropriate for ages 12-14.

Reviewed from ARC received from Scholastic.

Review: Caddy’s World by Hilary McKay

| Tasha

caddys world

Caddy’s World by Hilary McKay

If you have not yet discovered the artistic, free-spirited, dynamic world of the Casson family, you are in for a treat!  This is the sixth book in the series that started with Saffy’s Angel.  In this book, we return to a time when Caddy, the oldest of the Casson children, was twelve.  She had three best friends and all of them had a role to play in their little group.  But this year, all of them are facing challenges in their lives.  Alison is completely bored with school and longing for something new, so she starts rebelling against school rules.  Ruby has been asked to try for a prestigious scholarship to a private school but she doesn’t want to leave her friends.  Beth is outgrowing her pony and decides to limit her diet. Caddy too has a challenge, a new baby is coming to the family, and her father who usually lives away from the family in London returns to help take charge.  But things are never that easy in the chaos of the Casson family!

McKay has the ability to speak about serious issues like premature babies, growing older, potential bulimia, and chaotic family life without heading into deep drama.  While the subjects are deep and the emotions are real, she keeps a lighter touch on them than most authors.  My favorite example of this is the chaos of this family.  It’s a family filled with love, art projects, failed cooking, and laughter.  But it’s also a family that is often adrift, rudderless, and late for school.  McKay walks the line, demonstrating that there are many sorts of families and that some of them that may look fragmented are actually strong and true.

McKay is also adept at drawing characters.  Here we get to see younger versions of several beloved characters:  Saffy, Indigo and Caddy.  They are all wonderfully true to their older selves, showing interest that later come to full light.  The addition of the three new characters and glimpses of other previous ones make for a book that is fresh but also warmly familiar to fans of the series. 

This sixth book in the series would work as a stand-alone read.  Taking place earlier than the other novels, it will delight fans and should encourage new ones to enter the world of the Cassons.  Appropriate for ages 9-12.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate

| Tasha

one and only ivan

The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate

Ivan is the gorilla that is part of the Exit 8 Big Top Mall and Video Arcade.  The big billboard outside the mall shows Ivan as a ferocious beast, but he’s really a very easygoing guy.  He doesn’t remember anything about his life before he came to live with humans.  He was raised in Mack’s house as long as he was little and cute, but when he got bigger he was put into his domain: a glassed-in room.  He watches TV, lots of Westerns, and hangs out with his friends: an old elephant named Stella and a stray dog named Bob.  He also does art, scribbles that Mack sells in the mall gift shop.  Things change at the circus as money gets tighter until Mack purchases a baby elephant for the Big Top.  Ruby has been taken from her family and is full of lots of questions.  She makes Ivan look at his small, enclosed world more closely and inspires him to make promises that he will probably never be able to keep. 

I read this book in one long gulp, unable to get Ivan and his tiny, limited world out of my head.  The book is written from Ivan’s point of view, one that is distinctly gorilla and wonderfully familiar and foreign at the same time.  Applegate manages to give us a taste of being animal while never imbuing Ivan with human sensibilities, yet he is entirely relatable for readers.

The use of art to bridge the language gap between humans and gorillas is equally effective.  Ivan’s ruminations about art and how to capture taste and feel on paper is lovely.  Ivan’s world may be small and enclosed, but through art and his relationships with others, it grows larger and larger. 

This is a book that captivates.  It is compelling readers, bubbling with humor, yet addresses issues that are deep and complex.  It is a book that is memorable, rich and simply marvelous.  Appropriate for ages 9-12.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: Wonder by R.J. Palacio

| Tasha

wonder

Wonder by R.J. Palacio

Auggie has never been to school, instead he’s been homeschooled his entire life.  It made it easier to work his schedule around his many surgeries for his facial anomaly.  Auggie was born looking differently than the rest of the world due to several genetic abnormalities coming together in one moment, something that only has a one in 4 million chance to happen.  But it happened to Auggie, and now he is getting ready to start 5th grade in a private school.  Auggie knows that he is just a regular kid hidden behind an uncommon face, but the question is whether his classmates will ever figure that out.

It’s amazing to think that this is Palacio’s first novel.  She writes with a natural flow and skill that makes the book read effortlessly.  It’s one of those books that gets into your head and won’t let go, that not only tells a story but asks things about you the reader.  It has you exploring your own relationship with beauty, the extent of your own kindness, and the truth behind being human. 

Auggie is such a rich character and such a winning one that I was surprised when the book first changed perspectives.  I had assumed that we would see through Auggie’s eyes for the entire novel.  But the different perspectives also show depth to all of the other characters in the book.  We get to see Auggie through his older sister’s eyes, ones that are loving but also despair at being paid enough attention by her parents.  The perspective shifts again and again to classmates, his sister’s ex-friend, and even his sister’s boyfriend.  Then we return to Auggie for the end of the book. 

This use of multiple perspectives works particularly well given the arc of the story, it all comes to a satisfying close that is built from those many perspectives and those many characters.  Things are not sugar-coated here.  People respond naturally to Auggie’s face, even those who had been informed about it beforehand.  There are bullies, friends who are true and those who come in and out, there is middle school drama.  There is also a real family portrayed here, struggling to give their exceptional son an honest life, trying to pay attention to both of their children, and consistently showing love and caring for one another laced with real humor.

I adored this book, wept at times, ached in the heart a lot, and laughed too.  It’s a book worth sharing, worth passing along, and one that will crossover effortlessly to adult readers.  This is a powerful, uplifting, luminous book.  Appropriate for ages 10-13.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: The Humming Room by Ellen Potter

| Tasha

humming room

The Humming Room by Ellen Potter

When Roo’s parents are murdered, it’s her ability to hide that saves her, as she retreated to her favorite spot under their trailer.  There she can look at the items she has “collected” or stolen, and she can press her ear to the ground to hear the tiny movements of animals, worms and roots.  After spending some time in foster care, Roo is taken to live on an island with her wealthy uncle who looks very similar to Roo’s father but with none of the carefree spirit her father had.  The island is on the St. Lawrence and the house used to be a tuberculosis sanatorium.  Now Roo is left there with little attention from her often-away uncle, and two servants.  The island is filled with life, including tantalizing glimpses of a wild boy who seems to live on the river.  Roo has to discover the truth of the strange house and the many secrets it holds.

Potter has stated that this is a novel inspired by The Secret Garden, and readers familiar with that work will definitely see it woven into this story.  At the same time, this book stands on its own beautifully.  It is a delightful blend of character and setting.  Roo is a prickly child, one who would be difficult to relate to except for her connection to nature.  That small piece of her character alone makes her human and accessible for the reader.  She is also prickly for very good reasons, including her parents’ death but also her misery of a life before their death.  The reader understands Roo deeply.   The secondary characters are all quirky and fascinating as well, especially the wild boy.

Then there is the setting.  Potter brings the St. Lawrence, the island, and this house to life.  This story could not be set anywhere else, as the setting is so closely married to the story.  The river is a large part of the book, including Roo’s growing understanding of its moods and the isolation of the island.  The house is central to the story as well, brooding and huge, its very walls hiding secret doors to wonders.  Then there is the garden itself, because of course there is a secret garden, and its rebirth that echoes Roo’s. 

Haunting and lovely, this book unfolds like the petals of a flower as each new discovery is made.  Environmentalism permeates the book in a gentle, green way that leaves readers wanting to connect with nature and preserve it without ever being preached to about the issue.  This is a delicate, wondrous read that is sure to be a hit with fans of The Secret Garden or those of us who are already fans of Ellen Potter.  Appropriate for ages 9-12.

Reviewed from copy received from Feiwel & Friends.

Review: Explorer: The Mystery Boxes by Kazu Kibuishi

| Tasha

mystery boxes

Explorer: The Mystery Boxes by Kazu Kibuishi

Released March 1, 2012.

Kibuishi is the author of the Amulet series of graphic novels as well as the anthologist for Flight.  Here he has created an anthology for children that has seven short stories in graphic format that focus on a single subject: opening a mystery box.  The seven stories all take very different approaches to the focal subject, some of them approaching with humor, others with drama.  The differences deepen when the drawing style is factored in, some creating almost real images and others looking more like mainstream cartoons.  They all add up together to a whole that works well, the entire book rather like a mystery box since you never know what story is coming after the next turn of the page.

Kibuishi’s skill in anthologies is apparent here, weaving the seven individual stories together into a flow that works well.  Many of the stories focus on the boxes showing the characters more depth to their world than they ever knew existed.  There are dolls that come to life, spiritual worlds in modern suburbia, magicians searching for magical objects, war, aliens and treasure too.  Just like textual short stories, these are focused stories that get to the point and end up surprising and delighting thanks in part to their brevity.

This is a great addition to library collections and will offer glimpses of rich worlds to graphic novel fans.  Appropriate for ages 9-12.

Reviewed from ARC received from Amulet Books.

Review: May B. by Caroline Starr Rose

| Tasha

may b

May B. by Caroline Starr Rose

May has grown up living out on her family’s homestead on the Kansas prairie.   When money gets tight, she is sent to become live-in help for other homesteaders, but just until Christmas.  May finds herself in a small sod house fifteen miles away from her own.  The young wife, who is almost May’s age, is unhappy on the prairie and runs away.  The husband heads after her and neither return.  May is left alone on the prairie where at first the days are lovely, sunny and warm and she enjoys the freedom.  Then winter comes, and May is alone on the prairie with a dwindling food supply, just a little wood for heat, and only the prairie itself for company.  This book written in verse is a look at the dangers, hardship and courage of homesteading.

Rose has written a book that pays homage to the Little House on the Prairie books and reads a lot like The Long Winter.  At the same time, it also has a stark reality about it that makes it gripping.  The format of a verse novel works particularly well here as most of the story is May’s reaction to her situation.  What could have been lengthy treatises on loneliness instead are verses that speak to the harrowing nature of abandonment. 

The book also deals with May’s dyslexia which makes her almost unable to read.  She had one teacher, shown in flashbacks, who treated her with respect and worked with her.  But after that, another teacher arrived who used shame to try to get May to learn to read.  It is the story of an obviously bright and very resourceful girl with dyslexia.  Her struggles to read strike a delicate balance in the book, showing an inner battle that plays against the external forces at work.

A taut, frightening novel of solitary confinement set in wide-open spaces, this book would work well with reluctant readers or as a classroom read.  Appropriate for ages 9-12.

Reviewed from copy received from Schwartz & Wade Books.

Review: Dragonswood by Janet Lee Carey

| Tasha

dragonswood

Dragonswood by Janet Lee Carey

After the death of the king, the royal treasure was stolen and has not been recovered.  Tess lives in a small village and has troubles of her own, including an abusive stepfather and the recent death of her infant brother.  When the witch hunter comes to town, Tess is accused of being a witch.  Tess is able to see the future in fire sometimes and loves going into the wilds of Dragonswood even though it is forbidden.  When she is tortured, she breaks and gives up the names of her best friends as also going into Dragonswood with her.  Sent to trial, Tess escapes with the aid of a dragon and flees her home along with her two friends.  The three of them must survive in the wilds, disguised as lepers and never revealing their identities.  But when one of their husbands is tortured too , the situation changes and they must risk their own safety to save him.  As the story continues, more of the magic of Dragonswood is revealed along with who took the royal treasure.  This is one amazing read, filled with fey and dragons.

Carey writes with the confidence of a long-time storyteller.  Here, she weaves 12th century England and its witch-hunting into a story filled with ancient magic.  The setting of Wilde Island and Dragonswood is particularly effective, itself filled with creatures of magic and the dangers as well.  The story’s pacing is well done too, gripping and fast-paced in the beginning, it slows a bit in the middle to allow the story to develop, and then picks up the speed again in the end as all of the pieces fit together at last. 

The characterization is also particularly well done.  Tess lacks self-confidence from her years of abuse and seems unlikely to become the heroine of the story.  When she breaks under torture, it is written particularly well, and shows the violence of torture and the coldness and calculating nature of it as a tool.  The other characters are also well-rendered, with secondary characters returning later in the story and becoming more fully developed. 

This book sparkles with magic, dragons and fey, but also is striking because of its human characters living in fear and darkness.  Beautiful writing and a remarkable setting lift this fantasy on dragon wings.  Appropriate for ages 14-17.

Reviewed from copy received from Dial Books.

Review: The Boy on Cinnamon Street by Phoebe Stone

| Tasha

boy on cinnamon street

The Boy on Cinnamon Street by Phoebe Stone

When Louise orders yet another pizza for dinner, a new boy delivers it.  When Louise sees the delivery boy, she feels something shift and change, but ignores it.  Louise has built a safe world for herself, living with her grandparents.  She has given up gymnastics and tumbling.  She doesn’t see her old friends from her old neighborhood.  Her best friend tries to convince Louise that she has a crush on the delivery boy, but it doesn’t feel like that at all.  Louise continues to get signs that someone likes her though, and it might be that delivery boy after all.  But before Louise can be ready for any sort of relationship, she has to come to terms with the family secret that she is doing her best to hide from.

Stone’s writing shows readers that something is wrong before Louise ever comes close to realizing it consciously herself.  There are clues sprinkled throughout the book, cleverly leading readers to sleuth out what happened before the book reveals it.  Nicely, that is not the heart of the book.  Rather the heart is Louise herself, a girl who has blocked her memories, created a new life, and finds the construct crumbling around her.

This book centers on Louise, but it also has some other amazing characters in it.  Louise’s best friends are brother and sister, Henderson and Reni.  They both support her, embrace her in their normal family life, and stand by her as she realizes the truth.  My favorite characters are Louise’s grandparents, who stay jovial and supportive, never pushing Louise too far and always being there when she needs them.  They are engaging, lively and charming, just what Louise and the reader needs.

My only quibble is that the sweet cover does not speak to the depth of the book itself, which wrestles with dark subjects, memory and survival.

A character-centered book, this tween read is compelling, romantic and rich.  Appropriate for ages 10-13.

Reviewed from ARC received from Scholastic.