this week's round-up of middle grade fantasy and sci fi from around the blogs (4/30/23)

Here's what I found this week; as always, let me know if I missed your post!

The Reviews

Between Monsters and Marvels, by Alysa Wishingrad, at Mark My Words

The Guardian Test (Legends of Lotus Island, book 1), by Christina Soontornvat, illustrated by Kevin Hong, at A Kids Book A Day

Ghosts, Toasts, and Other Hazards, by Susan Tan, at Ms. Yingling Reads

Grimwood, by Nadia Shireen, at Log Cabin Library

Ivy Newt and the Storm Witch, by Derek Keilty & Magda Brol, at Scope for Imagination

Jodie, by Hilary McKay, at Book Craic

The Kingdom Over the Sea, by Zohra Nabi, at Islamic School Librarian

The Lake House, by Sarah Beth Durst, at  Charlotte's Library (technically published as YA, but great upper mg appeal!)

The McNeills at Rathcapple, by Meta Mayne Reid, at Charlotte's Library

Nightmare Island, by Shakirah Bourne, at Kiss the Book

Once There Was, by Kiyash Monsef, at  Always in the Middle…

The Paper Museum, by Kate S. Simpson, at Kiss the Book

Serpent of the Sands, by Vashti Hardy, at  Sifa Elizabeth Reads

Seven Wherewithal Way – Across the Ice and into the Jungle, by Samatha-Ellen Bound, at  The Book Muse 

Spellstone, by Ross Montgomery, at Scope for Imagination

The Thief of Farrowfell, by Raven Guron, at Valinora Troy

The Wingfeather Saga, by Andrew Peterson, at Faith Elizabeth Hough

Authors and Interviews

Angie Thomas (Nic Blake and the Remarkables: The Manifestor Prophecy) at CBC

 Eden Royce (Root Magic, Conjure Island) at Words, Images, & Worlds podcast

Anthony Pckham (Children of the Black Glass) at Geo Librarian (with a review as well)

 Neal Shusterman and Eric Elfman (The N.O.A.H. Files: I am the Walrus) at Smack Dab in the Middle

Other Good Stuff

35 Incredible Middle Grade Magical Realism Books, at  Imagination Soup

The Lake House, by Sarah Beth Durst

Happy slightly belated book birthday to The Lake House, by Sarah Beth Durst (April 25th, 2023, HarperTeen)!  I am a huge fan of her books in general and was not disappointed.

Three young teenaged girls arrive at a house camp on an island in the middle of the Maine woods; none of them wanted to go, but their parents, who had been there themselves long ago, promised them a wonderful, transformative experience.  

They have doubts, and these doubts are more than realized.  Dropped off by boat and left to make their own way through the woods to house, they are stunned to find the Lake House is a burned shell.  The discovery of a fairly fresh corpse who has been shot is not a comfort.  They have no way to communicate with the outside world, and no food or clean water, and presumably there's a killer on the loose, possibly still on the island. And then things get worse, when they must survive a horrible evil that makes the island its home....

I loved the growing friendship between the girls, and especially how Claire's anxiety and tendency to catastrophize proves incredibly valuable.  The other two girls also emerge as fully three-dimensional characters with much to offer the survival of the group, and the trio works through a lot together, growing in understanding and acceptance of themselves and each other.  Though the horror was not exactly to my own personal taste (I had to take it with lots of grains of salt), it offered nicely high stakes and plenty of twists.  The friendship and survival elements were totally my jam (I am always up for catching fish with a tennis net, starting a fire with a hair dryer battery, etc.) and so I ended up being both gripped and entertained.

 A great one for 12-14 year olds who like friendship stories mixed with supernatural horror.  This really falls into the sweet spot of upper middle grade/younger YA!

disclaimer: review copy received from the author

The McNeills at Rathcapple, by Meta Mayne Reid, for Timeslip Tuesday

The McNeills at Rathcapple, by Meta Mayne Reid (1959), is a lovely vintage time travel book set in Ireland, and I wish I'd had it to read as a kid (although I still enjoyed it as a grownup).

When we meet Sandy and Richard, they are living in rented rooms in a city in Northern Ireland without their beloved dog and their slightly less beloved cat while their father searches for a new job (he's a historian) and recovers from being ill.   They have an uncle, holed up in the family's ancestral home, Rathcapple, but there was family unpleasantness, and they've never met him.  But the uncle is getting old, and their mother decides that they shall foist themselves on him, and live in a few rooms of to the side, until their father is better and has a solid job.  The uncle is not welcoming, but doesn't forbid this, as long as his work on his book about local history and nature isn't disturbed.

Sandy and Richard are delighted to be in the country, with their pets.  The old, ruined fortification, the rath that the house is named for, is a thrilling place, and there they meet a young horseman, Angus, who seems almost magical.  They are determined to make their uncle want them to stay by helping him find the last bits of information he needs for the book--the story of the fiddler who played a role in a long-ago Irish rising against the English, and the story of a young nursemaid to the McNeills accused of stealing a family treasure.  

And this is where the time travel comes in (if you don't want spoilers, skip to the next paragraph) --Richard visits the fiddler, and inhabits the Mcneill boy his own age fleeing for his life, and Sandy in her turn lives the crucial day of the young nursemaid's life.  But though they know what really truly happened, they have to find proof, and their quest to find corroborating evidence through material remains and historical documents was as interesting to me as the time travel itself.  They are encouraged in their efforts by the horseman, Angus, who is himself unmoored in time and who I assume is the instigator of their time slipping...

There are more quotidian doings and happenings of the sort you'd expect from two kids moved to an old house in the country, and this was very enjoyable as well.  There is, for instance, a lovely pageant that is quite amusing, jam making, exploration of the countryside, and shenanigans with a local boy who becomes their friend (one such episode is shown on the cover, which I find an odd choice, when the illustrator had the big old house and the ruined rath and the heroic figure of Angus on his magnificent horse on hand; perhaps "boy riding cattle, seen from behind" seemed more Exciting and Likely to Appeal to Boys....).

It didn't quite reach the numinous heights I wished it would have, possibly because there wasn't quite enough emotional tension, but it came close, and I am pleased that there is a second book about the family for me to look forward to.

This week's round-up of middle grade sci fi and fantasy from around the blogs (4/23/2023)

My reading this week was grown up books for book clubs and work, so nothing from me.  But happily there's lots from others! Let me know if I missed your post.

The Reviews

Breath of Mischief, by MarcyKate Connolly, at Cracking the Cover

The Chestnut Roaster, by Eve McDonnell, at Valinora Troy

Come See the Fair, by Gavriel Savit Cracking the Cover

Dylan Dover: Into the Vortex by Lynne Howard - Chick Lit Cafe

Eden’s Everdark, by Karen Strong, at  Kiss the Book

 Evil Genius (The Smartest Kid in the Universe #3), by Chris Grabenstein, at Mark My Words

Felice and the Wailing Woman, by Diana Lopez, at Ms. Yingling Reads

Finch House, by Ciera Burch, at Mark My Words

Ghosts of Rancho Espanto, by Adrianna Cuevas, at Ms. Yingling Reads

The Guardian Test, by Christina Soontornvat, at Pages Unbound 

Loki: A Bad God’s Guide to Taking the Blame, by Louie Stowell, at Twirling Book Princess

Nic Blake and the Remarkables: The Manifestor Prophecy, by Angie Thomas, at Kiss the Book and Paw Prints in the Sink

Nura and The Immortal Palace, by M. T. Khan, at YA Books Central

The Rage of the Sea Witch, by Roland Chambers, at Scope for Imagination

The Rescue of Ravenwood, by Natasha Farrant, at Book Craic

Serpent of the Sands, by Vashti Hardy, at Scope for Imagination

The Silver Road, by Sinéad O’Hart, at Book Craic

A Storm of Wishes, by Jaqueline West, at Puss Reboots 

Tales of the Forgotten Founders (The Falinnheim Chronicles #3), by C.W. Allen, at  Mark My Words

Unicorn Island: Beyond the Portal, by Donna Galanti, at A Library Mama

The Wherewood, by Gabrielle Prendergast, at Young Adulting

Two at Ms. Yingling Reads-- A Spoonful of Time, by Flora Ahn, and Shinji Takahashi: Into the Heart of the Storm, by Julie Kagawa

Authors and Interviews

Andy Ruffell  (Lily Grim and The City of Undone) Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books 

P. Djèlí Clark (Abeni’s Song) at Fuse #8

Other Good Stuff

Myth and Middle Grade (publishersweekly.com)

This week's round-up of middle grade fantasy and sci fi from around the blogs (4/16/2023)

Good morning!  here's what I found this week; please let me know if I missed your post!

The Reviews

Come See the Fair, by Gavriel Savit, at the NY Times

Dead Alley, by S. A. Larsen, at Always in the Middle… 

Elf Dog and Owl Head, by M. T. Anderson, at Charlotte's Library, BookPage, YA Books Central

The Enchanted Life of Valentina Mejía, by Alexandra Alessandri, at Pages Unbound 

Greenwild: The World Behind The Door, by Pari Thomson, at Scope for Imagination

I Am the Walrus, by Neal Shusterman & Eric Elfman, at The Bookwyrm's Den 

The Labyrinth of Doom, by Stuart Gibbs, at Lucy Knows Things

Miracles for the Maharaja, by Aditi Krishnakumar, at Books Teacup and Reviews 

Miss Mary-Kate Martin's Guide to Monsters: The Trouble with the Two-Headed Hydra, by Karen Foxlee, at Kids' Book Review

Nura and the Immortal Palace, by M.T. Khan, at Little Bookish Teacher (YouTube)

Once There Was, by Kiyash Monsef, at Ms. Yingling Reads

The Piper’s Promise, by Leah Cypess, at Kiss the Book 

Stink, written and illustrated by Jenny McLachlan, at Book Craic

Summer in Orcus, by T. Kingfisher, at Tor.com

Tiger Warrior: Rise of the Lion Beast, by M. Chan illustrated by Alan Brown, at Log Cabin Library

The Unforgettable Logan Foster and the Shadow of Doubt, by Shawn Peters,  PamelaKramer.com

Unicorn Island – Beyond the Portal, at  Always in the Middle…  and The Secret Files of Fairday Morrow 

Wendington Jones and the Missing Tree, by Daniel Dockery, at Book Craic

Winnie Zeng Vanquishes a King (Winnie Zeng #2), by Katie Zhao, ar Courtney Reads Romance 

Authors and Interviews

P. Djèlí Clark (Abeni’s Song), at School Library Journal 

M.T. Anderson (Elf Dog and Owl Head) at Writer's Digest and  Kirkus Reviews

Taya and Nathan Okerlund (Never Lore) at The Story Sanctuary

Yarrow and Carrie Cheney (Superworld: Save Noah) at  Middle Grade Ninja

Other Good Stuff

New in the UK, at Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books - 

Elf Dog and Owl Head, by M. T. Anderson

Elf Dog and Owl Head, by M. T. Anderson, illustrated by Junyi Wu (April 11, 2023, Candlewick), is a truly delightful middle grade fantasy, especially for those who love dogs (but even cat lovers, like me, will still appreciate the titular dog lots!)

When we first meet this elf dog, she is part of the wyrm hunting pack of the Queen Under the Mountains.  A particularly cunning wyrm (a dragonish creature) leads the hunt out from under the mountains, into our world, and she doesn't make it back underground.  And then she meets a human boy, Clay.

Clay and his family are stuck at home during a global plague, and we know what that's like.  Clay and his sisters have to share one computer for school (not going well), and can't see their friends.  They are driving each other (and their parents) batty, and money is tight.  When Clay meets the elf hound in the woods, he is thrilled to find in her a friend and companion.  And after doing the responsible lost dog (with distinctive pointed red ears) efforts, his parents agree that Elphinore can stay (and isn't that a perfect elf dog name?).

Walks through the woods with Elphinore become magical, as she leads Clay through the boundaries of the other world.  A visit to the village of owl headed folk (who don't welcome human visitors) leads to a friendship with an owl head boy, and Clay's summer gets even better.  

But the fact remains that Elphinore is an elf dog, and Clay has taken possession of her, a dangerous thing.  The Queen wants her back.  The wyrm still prowls. And tensions and worries build at home.  The ending is a little bittersweet, but wraps up everything well, and, for those who are worrying, Elphinore and Clay get their happy ending of boy and dog together.

It is a really good story, with the real world and the fantasy balanced beautifully.  The characters and relationships are rock solidly constructed, and the places appeared in glorious technicolor, as it were, in my mind's eye.  I especially was pleased, in one memorable scene of a nighttime magical revelry, to be reminded of my favorite bit of Moominland Midwinter, which doesn't often happen; probably not the author's intention, but it made me happy.

I bet this would make a great read aloud; I'd have had a great time reading it to mine when they were nine or so.

disclaimer: review copy received from the publisher, and though the illustrations in my copy weren't final, they were still very effective, and I must remember to get ahold of a finished copy so I can appreciate them fully!

This week's round-up of middle grade sci fi and fantasy from around the blogs (4/9/23)

Happy Easter, Ramadan Mubarak, Happy Pesach, and Happy Spring! May your daffodils be free from girls' heads, becuase who wants that.

Here's what I found this week; please let me know if I missed your post.

The Reviews

Artemis Spark & the Sound Seekers Brigade, by Kimberly Behre Kenna, at Valinora Troy

The Deadlands: Hunted, by Skye Melki-Wegner, at  Mark My Words

Elidor, by Alan Garner, at Pages Unbound 

The Frights of Fiji (Alyssa McCarthy’s Magical Missions, #1), by Sunayna Prasad, at Boys' Mom Reads!

Ghosts, Toast, and Other Hazards, by Susan Tan, at Mark My Words

The Great Fox Heist, by Justyn Edwards, at Scope for Imagination

Hamra and the Jungle of Memories by Hanna Alkaf, at The Story Sanctuary and The StoryGraph

I Am the Walrus (N.O.A.H. Files #1), by Neal Shusterman and Eric Elfman, at Mark My Words

Nic Blake and the Remarkables: The Manifestor Prophecy, by Angie Thomast, at The New York Times,   Always in the Middle… , BookPage, glorious reads, and Ms. Yingling Reads

Once There Was, by Kiyash Monsef, at  YA Books Central

A Rover’s Story, by Jasmine Warga, at PBC's Book Reviews 

The School Between Winter and Fairyland, by Heather Fawcett, at Dead Houseplants 

Skyriders (Skyriders #1), by Polly Holyoke, at The Plain-Spoken Pen 

The Sister Switch, by Debbie Rigaud and Sarah Mlynowski, at Ms. Yingling Reads  

Speculation, by Nisi Shawl, at Charlotte's Library

Spellstone by Ross Montgomery, at Book Craic

Windy City Ruins (Talisman, Book 3) by Brett Salter, at Baroness' Book Trove 

Wendington Jones and the Missing Tree, by Daniel Dockery, at Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books 

Wildsmith: City of Secrets, by Liz Flanagan, illustrated by Joe Todd-Stanton, at Book Craic

Authors and Interviews

Kiyash Monsef (Once There Was), at Fuse #8

Shawn Peters (Logan Foster and the Shadow of Doubt) at MG Book Village

Other Good Stuff

A great LGBTQ+ Middle Grade Fantasy Book List, at alibrarymama

Speculation, by Nisi Shawl

My recent middle grade fantasy reading has been mostly mythology infused quests, and although it's great to have such a wealth of diversity, it was refreshing to read Speculation, by Nisi Shawl (Feb 2023, Tu Books), set firmly in our own world, albeit back in 1962.

I fell hard for Winna, the young heroine, who when we first meet her is reading Edward Eager, a favorite fantasy author of my own youth, and dreaming of magic.  I  thought how very nice but odd it was to see a contemporary character reading vintage books, and it wasn't until it was spelled out for the reader that this was 1962 that I realized I was reading a historical fantasy.  Indeed I also had been struck by Winna's grandfather using the term "colored" in relation to the family, who are Black, but being engrossed I didn't stop to think about it.  But in any event, I knew I'd enjoy spending time with her, and I did.  

Winna and her little sister are at their grandparent's house while their mother is in the hospital.  When her sister breaks her glasses (by accident), Winna is crushed; new glasses are both expensive and inaccessible.  So her grandfather gives her a pair that belonged to her great aunt Estelle. The glasses make her vision even sharper than her old ones, and there's a glimmer to what she sees...and so on the off chance that it's magic, she speculates-what if they show her ghosts?  And they do.  Generations of ghosts, including Estelle, haunt the family cemetery.  

Winna learns from Estelle's ghost about the curse on her family.  Winona, Estelle's mother, escaped slavery and while still moving toward freedom, gave birth to a baby boy, Key.  But Key vanished, or was taken from her, and Winona's grief stayed with her all her life.  So much so that when dying she unintentionally cursed her family, a curse that can only be broken if she and Key can be reunited.

Winna is sure her mother, getting worse in the hospital, is a victim of the curse.  So joining forces with a boy cousin she can't stand, she sets out to solve the mystery of what happened to Key.....and if he's still alive, to bring him back to the family. 

It's a great story, full of dualities that balance each other beautifully-- past and present, magic and reality, the loving family and the racist world.  I loved the historical and genealogical research that Winna and her cousin undertake, I loved how the magic wasn't just seeing ghosts with magical glasses but was aided and abetted by Winna's grandfather's affinity for African infused magic (for lack of a better word) of his own.  And of course I hated the racism that Winna and her family face, and hated too that this part of the book didn't read as much like historical fiction as it should.

Spoiler-- Key was raised as white, with a white family.  And so one of the horrors of chattel slavery, rape, is there in the story, not explicitly discussed by name but an unavoidable fact of what happened.  I'm all in favor of fiction that kids to think about the painful parts of the past and how they affect the present, and sure do hope this one gets to stay on the shelves....

,

This week's roundup of mg sci fi and fantasy from around the blogs (4/2/23)

Happy April to all!  Here's what I found this week; please let me know if I missed your post.

The Reviews

Amari and the Great Game, by B.B. Alston, at The Book Nut

Beyond the Portal (Unicorn Island book 3),  by Donna Galanti, at Bookworm for Kids and Charlotte's Library

A Breath of Mischief, by MarcyKate Connolly, at  Kiss the Book

The Enchanted Bridge, by Zetta Elliott and Cherise Harris, at  Puss Reboots

Happily Ever After, by James Riley, at Bookworm for Kids

The Raven Heir, by Stephanie Burgis, at Tor 

Magestone (Gemfall Book One), by David Burleyson, at  Mark My Words

The Magician's Elephant, by Kate DeCamillo, at Rosi Hollinbeck

Momo Arashima Steals the Sword of the Wind, by Misa Sugiura, at  Little Blog of Library Treasures 

The NoWhere Thief, by Alice M. Ross, at Valinora Troy and Scope for Imagination

Pilar Ramirez and the Escape From Zafa, by Julian Randall, at Readgab (YouTube)

The Road to Balinor, by Mary Stanton, at Dragon Bite Books 

Skyriders, by Polly Holyoke, at JennCaffeinated

The Storm Child, by Gabriela Houston, Little Blog of Library Treasures 

What Stays Buried, by Suzanne Young, at Ms. Yingling Reads

Winnie Zeng Vanquishes a King, by Katie Zhao, at  Mark My Words

Winter’s Keep & the Weather Weaver series by Tamsin Mori, at Scope for Imagination

Woodwitch, by Skye McKenna, at Library Girl and Book Boy and  A Cat, A Book, and A Cup of Tea 

Authors and Interviews

Joshua Levy (Last Summer In Outer Space) at MG Book Village

Heather Fawcett (The Grace of Wild Things) at OwlCrate

Other Good Stuff

A booklist of MG thrills and chills, at From The Mixed Up Files

I'm not sure if this is actually middle grade, but it is certainly of interest-- And Put Away Childish Things by Adrian Tchaikovsky, at Fantasy Book Critic

Pixar’s Elemental Feature Will Include New Up Short Called “Carl’s Date” | Tor.com