San Souci follows up Dare to Be Scared (2003) with 13 more eerie tales, original but laced with tried and true locales, motifs, and dreadful fates. He leaves his monsters a bit vague around the edges, so that readers can fill in details: after a scary “Campfire Tale,” young Michael hears a twig snap right behind him; a spidery cloud of “Grey” turns out to be a mind-bending alien; a sinister pair of “Mountain Childers” always talk with their mouths closed; an old carpet in an abandoned house suddenly turns into a tongue. Victims are mostly third- to fifth-graders, and the author tones down explicit gore to the occasional rolling head or shoe with a foot still inside. Still, enhanced by Ouimet’s macabre tableaux (finished art not seen), these tales rate high in chill factor for any age. Warmly recommended for solitary, late-night, under-the-covers reading. Bwaa-ha-ha. (Short stories. 10-12)
Pub Date: June 1, 2004
ISBN: 0-8126-2716-4
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Cricket
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2004
Categories: CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S
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“Hear, and listen well, my friends, and I will tell you a tale that has been told for a thousand years and more.” It’s not exactly a rarely told tale, either, though this complete rendition is distinguished by both handsome packaging and a prose narrative that artfully mixes alliterative language reminiscent of the original, with currently topical references to, for instance, Grendel’s “endless terror raids,” and the “holocaust at Heorot.” Along with being printed on heavy stock and surrounded by braided borders, the text is paired to colorful scenes featuring a small human warrior squaring off with a succession of grimacing but not very frightening monsters in battles marked by but a few discreet splashes of blood. Morpurgo puts his finger on the story’s enduring appeal—“we still fear the evil that stalks out there in the darkness . . . ”—but offers a version unlikely to trouble the sleep of more sensitive readers or listeners. (Fiction. 10-12)
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2006
ISBN: 0-7636-3206-6
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2006
Categories: CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S
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Summertime finds a strange combination of five middle-schoolers high up in a leafy tree house in their newly formed support group, the “R.U. Club,” where the secret is what “R.U.” means and what they do in the club. They could not be more unlike one another and yet each deeply understands what it is like to live in a new family because of death or divorce: They feel like leftovers, “even though we are right under their noses.” Each one takes a turn to describe her concern or worry. Anonymously, in written suggestions and then in group brainstorming sessions, they discuss solutions. Then as the girls put their trust in collective wisdom and thoughtfully apply effort and action through careful heartfelt adherence to club rules, camaraderie develops. Mounting interest in the characters and their adjustments to family life builds to a too-sweet conclusion, which could be redressed in a sequel, yet five genuine multifaceted characters together with their families make a large cast of characters. which Deriso handles adeptly. An interesting group that begs for a sequel. (Fiction. 10-12)
Pub Date: July 10, 2007
ISBN: 978-0-385-73334-2
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2007
Categories: CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S
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