Realistic Fiction review of Maybe Maybe Marisol Rainey by Erin Entrada Kelly

Maybe Maybe Marisol Rainey by Erin Entrada Kelly

Format:  E-ARC via Netgalley

Publisher:  Greenwillow Books

Number of pages:  160

Publishing:  May 4th, 2021

Source:  Sparkpress 

Opening Lines:  "There is a magnolia tree in Marisol Rainey's backyard."

Marisol has a big imagination and likes to name animate and inanimate objects around her, her refrigerator is named after Buster Keaton and the magnolia tree in her backyard is named Peppina.  Marisol doesn't think Peppina is all that great, it's defiantly not the best tree ever like her brother Oz has proclaimed, but everyone else seems to like the tree but her.  Maybe if everyone knew that Marisol gets all shaky and nervous inside whenever she thinks about climbing the tree, maybe then they'd understand how she feels.  Instead, they think she's being too sensitive, even her dad who's in the Gulf of Mexico working on an oil rig thinks she worries too much.  Only Marisol's best friend, Jada seems to get how she feels.  Yet, maybe, just maybe Marisol can be as brave as she wants to be and finally climb that tree.  

Maybe, Maybe Marisol Rainey is an adorable illustrated chapter book about a young girl who despite being riddled with fears and anxieties, also has a strong desire to overcome them.   Marisol is really a sweet little girl.  She loves her stuffed animals, cat and her best friend, Jada.  Her nickname is "Scraps" after a Charlie Chaplin movie and her favorite food is nachos.  She's kind, sensitive and despite being considered quiet, she also seems to feel things deeply.  She reminds me a lot of  Matilda and Harriet maybe a little bit of Ivy and Bean too.  Although the artwork in my ARC was only partially completed, it really complemented the gentle nature of the story.  This will resonate with children who've been told that they're overly sensitive, or quiet and inspire other kids to be as supportive as Jada is to Rainey.  As Jada so aptly put, "friends don't think of all the things you can't do."  With its positive messaging and themes, this is a sweet story not to be missed.   *Thank you to SparkPress and Netgalley for the E-ARC**   

MG review of Rescue at Lake Wild by Terry Lynn Johnson

Rescue at Lake Wild by Terry Lynn Johnson

Format:  E-ARC

Publisher:  HMH Books for Young Readers

Number of pages:  208 pages

Publishing:  April 27th, 2021

Source:  Netgalley via BlueSlip media and publisher

Opening Lines: "I hear it again.  Urgent chattering reaches us from the mound of sticks and mud just off the bow of our boat."

Madi, Jack and Aaron live in Willow Grove and are avid environmentalists.  Jack wants to become a game warden, Aaron has a wealth of facts about animals, and Madi wants to follow in her Nana's footsteps and be a wildlife rehabilitator.  One day while out exploring on the lake, they come across two dead beavers floating along the river.  Concerned that there may be starving orphaned kits nearby the trio attempt a daring rescue into the beavers underwater lodge.  Inside Madi finds two small kits, which she names Phrag and Cooler.  At first Madi tries to get the local vet to take in the kits, but once she realizes that she's the only one that they have left, she reluctantly takes them to her house.  Madi is used to caring for inured animals, her Nana taught her everything she knows, having also passed on her notes about rehabilitation before she died.  The only problem is that her parents have forbidden her from bringing home one more rescue animal, if they find out she has the kits she'll risk loosing out on her parents taking to meet her idol, Jane Goodall.  Yet, there doesn't seem to be anyone else to take them in.  So, Madi hides them away in her clubhouse, hoping her sister and parents won't notice.  After the kits are fed and given a safe place to sleep for the night, Madi and her friends set out to investigate the circumstances surrounding the adult beavers death.  Madi and her friends soon learn that the beavers dam created problems around town, flooding the roads and fields of a nearby farm.  Someone has even been killing the beavers in an attempt to mitigate their damage.  Hoping to get support from the townspeople, Madi tries to talk to the town hall, but no one seems to want to listen, the landowners seem to only want the animals eliminated.  Can Madi and her friends find the person responsible for killing the kits parents and get the town to help the beavers find a better place to put their dams?  

              

Terry Lynn Johnson's books are always a treat to read.  So informative, exciting and packed with lovely details about animals, in this case beavers.  Taking care of a kit sounds like a daunting task.  While they may be cute, they sure seem to be able to make a mess.  I appreciate that Johnson included a Do's and Don'ts with wild animals.  Montana has a wild wings recreational center and I really appreciate that places like this exist to rehabilitate and release animals back into the wild.  The story really makes you think about the fragility of the environment and indirectly about being a good environmental steward.  How it was important to have a balance between the beavers making their dam and minimizing their plugging up drain outlets and culverts.  Madi is quite an ingenious problem solver, when her first solution doesn't work she tries another.  Never one to give up.  She deeply cares for animals and wants nothing more than to follow in her Nana's footsteps, I respect her dedication to animal rescue.  I love how the story wove together facts about beavers, their familial traits, and how Johnson explains the risks of taking care of a wild animal, how it's important they be fed the right food, the right amount across the right space of time.   This is truly a valuable story that highlights the importance of appreciating one's environment while also keeping it safe and clean.  A must read for kids interested in animal rescuers, outdoor adventures or the environment.  

**Thank you to BlueSlip media for the E-ARC access via Netgalley and the hard cover copy**        

MG review of The Medusa Quest (Legends of Olympus: Book #2) by Alane Adams

The Medusa Quest (Legends of Olympus: Book #2) by Alane Adams

Format:  E-ARC 

Publisher:  SparkPress

Number of pages:  256

Publishing:  April 13th, 2021

Source:  Review copy provided by the publisher

Opening Lines: "If you think finding out my dad was Zeus made my life a bed of roses, think again."

I quite enjoyed reading Alane Adams Witches of Orkney series and was excited to learn that she is now delving into Norse mythology with her Legends of Olympus series.  SparkPress was kind enough to offer me the first and second book of her newest series for the upcoming release of The Medusa Quest.

In book one, The Eye of Zeus, we're introduced to twelve-year-old Phoebe Katz, a girl who has been in foster care since her parents left her at a bus stop in Manhattan.  Phoebe has been bouncing from foster home to foster home, because trouble always seems to find her.  Her only support is her social worker, Carl.  Then one day at school following an incident that almost gets her expelled, Phoebe is startled when the bronze statue of Atlas in Rockefeller Plaza begins to speak to her telling her a doorway between worlds has been opened.  Phoebe also learns that she's the daughter of Zeus, and was banished because of a prophecy that states she will destroy Olympus.  Phoebe also learns that she has a twin brother, Perseus who is need of her help.  Phoebe then travels back to ancient Greece with her friends Angie and Damian to try and protect Perseus.  Once in Greece, Phoebe learns that she and her friends must collect talismans from six legendary Greek monsters before time runs out and Olympus is destroyed.  The first book is a fun fantasy adventure similar to Percy Jackson in some ways, there's lots of action and the characters are interesting.  The illustrations by Robin Thompson really add to the story.  

Medusa Quest picks up about two months after the first book.  Phoebe has now moved in with Carl and his two cats in Brooklyn.  She still misses Olympus and learning more about her extended family.  Then Phoebe's friend Damian uncovers news that history has been altered, instead of Perseus slaying Medusa, he has instead been turned to stone.  In addition,  by completing one of Hercules labours, they have caused him to fail his first two trials.  In order to set things right, they must return to Olympus and this time collect the items they need to rewrite the history they've changed.

Greek mythology is one of my favorite type of stories to read, there's always lots of action, quests to acquire various elements, epic monsters and um a Pegasus,  who doesn't like that?  I certainly was feeling a lot of Clash of the Titans vibes, in a good way while reading this story, especially in the lead up to the battle with Medusa.  Writing your own Greek mythology story is always tricking, if it's a book for kids you'll get compared to Percy Jackson, which I don't see as a bad thing.  At least in the ones that I've read, I always find something new to enjoy.   I mean sure there are only a few ways to chop off Medusa's head that don't lead to you being turned to stone, but Alane Adams always seems to include enough differences in her stories to make them stand out, while also being very entertaining.  It still might be fun to read Medusa Quest and then watch The Clash of the Titans though.  I really liked Phoebe, despite her slight bossiness and harshness at times with her friends.  She had this propensity to call up her lightening ability as a first response in a situation, I would've liked to see a little less lightening blasts and maybe see her friends take a more active role.  Come up with an alternative strategy to handle the situation, outsmart them if you will instead of blasting things.   She also has a strong stubborn streak and really wanted her own way, sometimes forgetting to include her friends in decision making.  Yet at the same time, this felt pretty realistic given Phoebe's upbringing and having to rely on herself for making decisions.  Overall, I quite enjoyed Medusa Quest and am looking forward to reading the next book in the series. 

 **A huge thank you to SparkPress for the E-ARC.**       

MG Fantasy/Adventure review of The Threads of Magic by Alison Croggon

The Threads of Magic by Alison Croggon

Format:  E-ARC

Publisher:  Candlewick Press

Number of pages:  384

Publishing:  April 13th, 2021

Source: Publisher via Edelweiss +

Opening Lines:  "Pipistrell was deep in the Choke Alleys.  It was black night, blacker than the inside of a cash box, so black you couldn't see your hand in front of your eyes."

Twelve-year-old Pipistrel "Pip" and his older sister, El live in the city of Clarel, getting by with whatever Pip can pilfer from unsuspecting travelers in Choke Alley.  On one of Pip's most recent nighttime raids, he pickpockets a small silver box with a distinctive coat of arms on the cover, something so elaborate it must belong to one of the nobles, and hopefully will fetch him a good price.  Upon opening the box, Pip and El are surprised to discover a rough black stone that resembles a shriveled up heart.   Sure that the thing is cursed, El insists that Pip get rid of it at once, but Pip is unable to part with the black heart inside, so he instead sells the box to an antiquities dealer.  Some time later,  Pip and El learn that the owner of the shop was killed by an assassin, and the man is currently searching Choke Alley for them.  Unable to return to their apartment, El asks for help from her best friend, Oni who takes them to her mother, Amina's house.   

At the same time, Princess Georgette is set to meet her latest suitor, King Oswald, the man her father is intent on having her marry.  Their marriage is thought to bring peace to the city of Clarel, and it also bodes well that her suitor posses great power.  However, as soon as Princess Georgette looks into the eyes of her betrothed, she becomes terrified by what she sees, King Oswald's eyes are empty, devoid of all feeling.  Convinced that she must escape her impending marriage, she runs away to her former Nurse maid, Amina.  Meanwhile, the royal who's box Pip stole is canvassing the city to reclaim it's contents.  

The plot of The Threads of Magic involves a powerful magical artifact, an ancient war between Specter's and the witches of Clarel, and the royals who want to claim the artifact to further their power.  A long time ago, one of the witches created the artifact by taking the heart of a little boy, her intent was to use it to stop the Specter's.  However the artifact came with its own difficulties and was thought to be too unstable, it was meant to be imprisoned in the box as its casket.  Then Pip took possession of the heart and accidentally unleashed its powers.  The heart began to communicate with Pip, telling him his story, how he once was a young Prince named Clovis.  All the while, Clovis motives aren't clear to Pip, can Clovis be trusted or is he evil or dangerous?    Clovis had a very youthful quality, behaving just as a young child might, he gets angry easy and is very uncertain even untrusting of others.  What Clovis is eager for is a friend, which is understandable given how long he was confined in that box.  At times, Pip doesn't want to be bothered by Clovis, but eventually through the help of Georgette, Oni and El, he starts to realize that it's important to teach Clovis what being a true friend entails.  I quite enjoyed my read of The Threads of Magic.  The story shifts between the perspectives of  various characters building on their relationships to Clovis and what the Specter's hope to accomplish with him.  There's a good bit of magic, especially when it comes to the witches, which was fun and I was vested in wanting to find out how things would resolve for Clovis.  Plus it sort of had a Dicken's vibe going for it which I enjoyed.   

MG review of Oddity by Eli Brown, illustrated by Karin Rytter

Oddity by Eli Brown

Format:   E-ARC

Publisher:  Walker Books US

Number of Pages:  368

Publishing:  March 30th, 2021

Source: Edelweiss + 

Opening Lines:  " Are you keeping mice in your bag again?  Constantine asked, turning in his saddle to peer at his daughter."

From Goodreads:  "The daughter of a murdered physician vows to protect the magical Oddity he left behind—if only she knew what it was—in an alternate nineteenth century where the United States is at war with France."

Clover mostly enjoys assisting her father as he makes his medical rounds in the foothills of the Centurian Mountains, but what she is especially enamored by are oddities, rare everyday items that behave in peculiar and unique ways.  Like the Ice Hook that she's been carrying around in her haversack that can freeze everything it touches.  Or perhaps the wineglass that is rumored to be able to fill a lake with an endless supply of wine.  Items that if Clover's father knew she possessed, he'd surely force her to get rid of, despite her own mother having collected them as a member of the Society of Scholars.  Then one day while Clover and her father were making their way home from one of their medical visits, they encounter a group of men barring their passage across the bridge.  Sensing these men plan to do them harm, Clover's father hands her his medical bag, with the cryptic message that it contains a rare oddity that she alone must protect.  He also tells her to find Aaron Agate in New Manchester by looking for "the canary among doves," and then throws her off the bridge into the water below.  Clover witnesses the bandits murdering her father, before fleeing to safety into the nearby forest.  While in the forest, Clover happens upon a rooster fighting off a dog,  and is surprised when the rooster begins to speak, introducing himself as Colonel Hannibal Furlong of the Federal Army.  Clover has always known about the war between the US and France over the Louisiana Purchase, but to encounter a living oddity such as Colonel Furlong comes as quite a shock.  He is only the first of many uncanny allies that will help Clover on her adventure to New Manchester.            

Oddity takes place in the early 1800's and presents an alternate history to the Louisiana Purchase.  On one side is Napoleon Bonaparte who appears to have the advantage due to his endless supply of soldiers.   On the other side is Senator Auburn, who has been purchasing all of the oddities he can find to determine a solution to Bonaparte's advantage.  He is assisted by Smalt, a wraith like creature who wears a hat that can purge you of all your secrets and the men who murdered Clover's father.    Mixed in with these two sides is the Seamstress, who creates these vermin creatures that sound horrific, reanimated corpses made up of watch springs, steel fillings and held together with parts of the animals skeletal structure and a piece of blue thread.  Yep, kinda delightfully creepy.  Throughout Clovers adventure, she is beset on all sides by people who want to use her for their own purpose.  To gain the oddity her father entrusted in her , to use her as a force against the French, or even to pay off a debt.  However, Clover is a resourceful girl and ultimately puzzles out the explanation for how the war began isn't accurate, and that it is just a struggle for power between the two sides.  At the same time, she unravels the mystery of her mom's death and is able to bring an end to this unjust war.  My favorite oddity was Susanna, the doll with immense strength and an attitude to match.   

MG review of The Dreaded Cliff by Terry Nichols, illustrated by Odessa Sawyer

The Dreaded Cliff by Terry Nichols, illustrated by Odessa Sawyer

Format:  Paperback ARC 

Publisher:  Kinkajou Press

Number of pages:  260

Publishing:  March 2nd, 2021

Source:  Review copy provided by the publisher after request sent by author 

Opening Lines: "I'm a goddess.  Flora loved saying those words."

Flora is a packrat who enjoys venturing out each day for a quick sampling of her favorite prickly pear cactus pads.  Like most packrats, Flora mostly keeps to herself, only stopping when she receives "the warning" from her cousin Gertrude.  Every packrat receives the warning to "remember and beware of the dreaded cliff."  Yet, no one can recall what exactly they're to be careful of.  Just thinking about the dreaded cliff causes Flora's stomach to do backflips.  All that changes following a chance encounter with Grandma Mimi, who imparts that the dreaded cliff was once the packrats ancestral home, a special place,  until an invader took it over.  Confused by this new information, Flora returns to her home, tucked below the jangly crate and proceeds to fall asleep.  Shortly thereafter, she awakens to find that she is in a new place, separated from the rest of the packrats.  

Timid and slightly afraid of her new surroundings, she is encouraged when she meets Cyrus the kangaroo rat king, a stuttering porcupine named Paco and Dayana the ventriloquist rabbit.  Each of the animals changes Flora's outlook on her previous life near the cliffs and instills her with hope that she can brave it out in her new surroundings.   Flora also develops the confidence to deal with the harsh realities and dangers of living in the wild, even outsmarting a badger and owl.  The Dreaded Cliff exposes children to the wildlife of the southwest, including pinon pines, prickly pear cactuses and even the harsher elements, for example when Flora witnesses the death of a dear friend following a predator attack on their small community.  Flora however is not easily dissuaded and is instead even more resolved to follow her destiny to return to her ancestral home and rid it of the dangers lurking inside. 

Terry Nichols is a retired National Park Service ranger with thirty years of experience writing trail guides, brochures and articles about wildlife.  Currently she lives in Aztec, New Mexico and The Dreaded Cliff is her debut novel, inspired by her own experiences with a packrat who stowed away in her 1979 Volkswagen as she was travelling across country on a camping trip.  Her knowledge of the southwest is evident in her writing, making it easy to visualize the setting.   I quite enjoyed reading The Dreaded Cliff and was reminded of Colorado and the time that rats built their nest in the electronics of my parents hot tub.  Not only did they pose a problem to the electronics but you had to be really careful in protecting yourself when getting rid of their nests to avoid possible exposure to Hantavirus.   Despite the real life hassles with these rodents, Flora is certainly an endearing character and the reader is sympathetic with her yearning to return to her home.  I enjoyed how she changed throughout the story, overcoming ever obstacle and danger that came her way. Given Flora's propensity for using a large vocabulary of words,  like "lavish and sublime," the story would be best for a more advanced reader and one that can understand the connection between the death of an animal and its relationship to the food chain of nature.  

**A special thank you to Terry Nichols and Kinkajou Press for the review copy.**  

Kingston and the Magician's Lost and Found by Rucker Moses and Theo Gangi

Kingston and the Magician's Lost and Found by Rucker Moses and Theo Gangi

Format:  Paperback ARC 

Publisher:  G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers

Number of pages:  288

Publishing:  February 16th, 2021

Source: Publisher via MB Communications

Opening Lines:  "My father was famous.  He was the greatest magician in Echo City.  And he made himself disappear." 

Kingston and the Magician's Lost and Found was coauthored by Theo Gangi and Harold Hayes, Jr. and Craig S. Phillips, under the pen name Rucker Moses, a name they selected in tribute to Benjamin Rucker aka Black Herman, a famous Black magician from the early 20th century.  

Kingston and his mother have moved back to Echo City, Brooklyn, after having left when Kingston's fathers disappeared some four years ago.  Despite what everyone else thinks, Kingston firmly believes his father is still alive.  Kingston's mom had wanted to leave all the past and especially any mention of magic behind, but being in the old neighborhood has brought all those old memories flooding back.  Especially seeing the marquee for the Mercury Theater, a strong reminder of the last time that Kingston's father performed his magical act and vanished through a mirror that shattered after a mishap during one of his illusions.  But now they've returned to take over his father's magic shop before it's foreclosed, his mother wants to turn it into a café, her life long dream.  Kingston however hopes to gather information about his father from his uncles, and with the help of his cousin Veronica and his childhood friend, Too Tall, he's determined to find out what happened to his father and bring him home.  

Upon their arrival in town,  Kingston sees a dark figure while peeking through the windows of the boarded up Mercury Theater.  Later he takes Veronica and Too Tall to search the building and finds a few clues his father left behind, including a box and secret codes.  It's as if his father wanted to send him on a scavenger hunt to unravel how he disappeared.  Kingston learns of a rival magician, Maestro who participated with him in a few dueling magic shows and who was present with his assistant, Urma Tan, when his dad disappeared.  

I think the charm of Kingston and the Magician's Lost and Found is not only the fictionalized setting of Echo City, but how the magic within the story is based on a form of parallel worlds or realms.  People are able to move from the real world into an alternate realm but this shifting contributes to the threat of shattering all of reality.  The magic gets kind of tricky but it's fascinating as well.  I especially enjoyed the analogy of the magical realm being similar to the glass of an aquarium, protecting the release of gallons of water.  And especially all of the coded messages that Kingston deciphered.  Overall this was a very enjoyable read, I can see this appealing to kids who enjoy solving coded word puzzles, magical illusions, alternate realms and just the right amount of magic and mystery.  

**  Thank you to G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers and MB Communications for kindly sending me my review copy.**