Today, I’m reviewing two MG fantasies, a YA contemp (or recent historical, I guess?) set in Syria, and a picture book. I hope these bite-sized reviews will be enough to feed your fiction addiction!
Skandar and the Unicorn Thief by A.F. Steadman Series: Skandar #1
Also in this series: , Skandar and the Phantom Rider
Published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers on May 3, 2022
Genres: Fantasy, Middle Grade
Pages: 448
Source: The Publisher
Cover Artist: Two Dots
My rating:
Soar into a breathtaking world of heroes and unicorns as you’ve never seen them before in this fantastical middle grade debut perfect for fans of the Percy Jackson and Eragon series!
Skandar Smith has always yearned to leave the Mainland and escape to the secretive Island, where wild unicorns roam free. He’s spent years studying for his Hatchery exam, the annual test that selects a handful of Mainlander thirteen-year-olds to train to become unicorn riders. But on the day of Skandar’s exam, things go horribly wrong, and his hopes are shattered…until a mysterious figure knocks on his door at midnight, bearing a message: the Island is in peril and Skandar must answer its call.
Skandar is thrust into a world of epic sky battles, dangerous clashes with wild unicorns, and rumors of a shadowy villain amassing a unicorn army. And the closer Skandar grows to his newfound friends and community of riders, the harder it becomes to keep his secrets—especially when he discovers their lives may all be in graver danger than he ever imagined.
Skandar and the Unicorn Thief is an exciting middle grade fantasy adventure, filled with elemental magic, dangerous unicorns, and backstabbing betrayals. First off, I thought the worldbuilding in this book was really interesting. I loved the concept of the unicorn races and the idea that unicorns are born with a bond to a particular individual, and if that person doesn’t show up at the hatchery, the unicorn is born wild (and even more dangerous and unstable than your average unicorn). I’d love to see even more of how the unicorns and humans interact beyond the races (feels like there might be even more important jobs?)—it will be interesting to see if that will be expanded upon in future books. This book focuses on the mystery of why Skandar is specifically singled out at the exams (in a way I won’t spoil), his budding relationships with the other kids on the island, and the mysteries surrounding the villain, the Weaver. The book is full of action, so it will definitely keep middle grade readers interested, and there are some definite twists that I saw coming as an adult, but MG readers might not (and the book is still interesting and entertaining, even if you guess at the main twist). Highly recommended for fans of magical fantasies like dragon books!
***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher so I could provide an honest review. No compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***
Valentina Salazar Is Not a Monster Hunter by Zoraida Córdova Published by Scholastic Press on June 28, 2022
Genres: Contemporary Fantasy, Middle Grade
Pages: 368
Narrator: Ana Osario
Length: 8 hours and 9 minutes
Source: Library
Cover Artist: Lissy Marlin
My rating:
Sal and Gabi Break the Universe meets Supernatural in a heartfelt, hilarious adventure about a trio of tight-knit, monster-loving siblings from acclaimed author Zoraida Córdova .
It takes a special person to end up in detention on the last day of school.
It takes a REALLY special person to accidentally burn down the school yard while chasing a fire-breathing chipmunk.
But nothing about Valentina Salazar has ever been “normal.” The Salazars are protectors, tasked with rescuing the magical creatures who sometimes wander into our world, from grumpy unicorns to chupacabras . . . to the occasional fire-breathing chipmunk.
When Val’s father is killed during a rescue mission gone wrong, her mother decides it’s time to retire from their life on the road. She moves the family to a boring little town in upstate New York and enrolls Val and her siblings in real school for the first time.
But Val is a protector at heart and she can’t give up her calling. So when a mythical egg surfaces in a viral video, Val convinces her reluctant siblings to help her find the egg before it hatches and wreaks havoc. But she has some competition: the dreaded monster hunters who’ll stop at nothing to destroy the creature . . . and the Salazar family.
The title says it all. Valentina Salazar is NOT a monster hunter—her father broke away from his hunter family to become a monster protector, and Valentina is determined to follow in his footsteps, even though it ended badly for him. As a fan of Supernatural, I really loved the vibe of this book. It kind of reminded me of a friendlier version of Sam and Dean where the lines between good and bad “monsters” gets blurry. The story starts out with Valentina missing the monster-filled life her family had lived before her father was killed. She struggles with the changes the family has endured and she feels like they’ve all lost themselves in addition to losing her father. Valentina ends up dragging her siblings on an adventure, whether they like it or not. Valentina’s family relationships take center stage, and her sidekick Brixie adds an adorable humor element to the book. The quest is filled with lots of magical creatures and plenty of action!
As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow by Zoulfa Katouh Published by Little Brown Books for Young Readers on September 13, 2022
Genres: Contemporary, Young Adult
Pages: 432
Source: NetGalley
Cover Artist: David Curtis
My rating:
Salama Kassab was a pharmacy student when the cries for freedom broke out in Syria. She still had her parents and her big brother; she still had her home. She had a normal teenager’s life.
Now Salama volunteers at a hospital in Homs, helping the wounded who flood through the doors daily. Secretly, though, she is desperate to find a way out of her beloved country before her sister-in-law, Layla, gives birth. So desperate, that she has manifested a physical embodiment of her fear in the form of her imagined companion, Khawf, who haunts her every move in an effort to keep her safe.
But even with Khawf pressing her to leave, Salama is torn between her loyalty to her country and her conviction to survive. Salama must contend with bullets and bombs, military assaults, and her shifting sense of morality before she might finally breathe free. And when she crosses paths with the boy she was supposed to meet one fateful day, she starts to doubt her resolve in leaving home at all.
Soon, Salama must learn to see the events around her for what they truly are—not a war, but a revolution—and decide how she, too, will cry for Syria’s freedom.
This book highlights the humanity and resilience of the Syrian people, who have been battered by war. Most people know something about the crisis happening in Syria. The news used to be flooded with reports of Syrian refugees fleeing a wartorn country. But I didn’t honestly know much beyond the fact that there was some sort of war there and people were in dire need of help. I’m sure I read news accounts that told me it was a civil war and possibly gave some details of why it was all happening, but honestly those reports never stuck with me. If you’d asked me before I read this book who was fighting who and why, I would have told you I had no idea. That’s why books like this are so impactful. I forget a news report, but a fictional book set during the beginnings of the Syrian civil war sticks with me. It helps me delve into the hearts and minds of people who actually lived this experience. Salama is a pharmacy student forced into the role of doctor and surgeon. She sees the horrible realities of the war every day. The book focuses on her experiences as a doctor and her struggle to decide whether or not she should try to flee the country with her pregnant sister-in-law. The book explores the question of whether it is better to stay and fight for freedom or leave (and fight in another way—by spreading the word). The story is haunting and there is a pretty huge twist that I did not see coming at all. This book changed my understanding of the conflict in Syria and forever branded my heart with its people’s stories!
***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley so I could provide an honest review. No compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***
I Cannot Draw a Horse by Charise Mericle Harper Illustrator: Charise Mericle Harper
Published by Union Square Kids on October 11, 2022
Genres: Picture Book
Pages: 48
Source: The Publisher
My rating:
Award-winning author and illustrator Charise Mericle Harper delivers a fantastically funny adventure about doing the impossible: drawing a horse.
The cat wants a horse. The book cannot draw a horse. The book CAN draw a squirrel, a beaver, and a bunny. Fun . . . but the cat still wants a horse.
Can the quick-draw book appease the horse-obsessed cat with an impressive collection of horse-y alternatives (all created from the same “nothing shape”)? Or will the cat finally get a horse? The cat REALLY wants a horse.
A very cute story of a simple shape and the many things that shape can become… but not a horse. The story’s narrator wants to prove to the shape that it is not nothing, so it creates a cat from it. The cat immediately wants a horse, but the narrator insists it cannot draw one with the shape and goes about drawing a myriad of other creatures and objects to try to make the cat happy. The result is a fun book that shows how a simple shape can become so many other things, limited only by the imagination!
This book would be fun paired with a preschool or young elementary art project where little ones are challenged to see what they can create with a simple shape!
***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher so I could provide an honest review. No compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***
Yes! I knew you’d love As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow! The twist completely devastated me and I never had even a smidge of a clue it was coming. I still think about this book.
These are all wonderful reviews. I like the look of Valentina Salazar Is Not a Monster Hunter, it gives me Scooby Do vibes.
The Lemon Trees book is on my TBR. Glad to hear it was good. The others sound like good middle school books. Thanks for sharing!