Mystery and humor mix with lessons on friendship and self-awareness.
Can a sixth grader who’s determined to be great at something—anything, really—solve a murder?
Redheaded Grady, a middle child whose mom is a nurse and whose father is deceased, approaches every opportunity with enthusiasm, conviction—and zero skills. When a chauffeur-driven woman delivers a note from local millionaire J.T. Bancroft asking Grady to solve his murder, Grady is ecstatic. Everyone else is just confused. But when Bancroft is duly murdered, Grady plunges into the investigation with unbridled verve. Initially oblivious to or dismissive of help offered by friends and family, Grady also discounts everyone’s doubts and breaks promises to his mother. But if he really wants to solve the murder, he must first scrutinize his own attitudes and behavior and learn how to be a true friend. This complex, twisty mystery, a debut by screenwriter Dye, unfolds at a good pace and features wry humor that invites readers to see truths Grady misses. Though Grady’s investigative style is slapdash at best, his ideas do lead to some valuable clues as he ricochets among plot developments and interactions with other characters. Unfortunately, the self-centeredness and self-aggrandizement that alienate his few friends may likewise irritate readers. Those who stick with him will applaud Grady’s learning to be introspective and coming to terms with what drives his need to achieve. Grady’s family is cued white, and there’s ethnic diversity among the secondary characters.
Mystery and humor mix with lessons on friendship and self-awareness. (Mystery. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 30, 2025
ISBN: 9781665967075
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Aladdin
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2025
Unforgettably quirky, fast-paced fun.
In a race against their enemies, the Porch girls must find a peculiar pearl in order to foil a fiendish plot.
After defeating a monstrous Kyrgalops in The Millicent Quibb School of Etiquette for Young Ladies of Mad Science (2024), Gertrude, Eugenia, and Dee-Dee Porch find themselves (after a series of madcap events) at Lake Kagloopy’s Purple Pearl Hotel with their mentor, Millicent Quibb. Quibb informs the trio that they must find the titular pearl before the members of their evil mad-scientist rivals, the KRA, do. If they fail, the KRA (whose members include the malevolent mayor, Majestina DeWeen, and her slimy sycophantic lawyer, Ashley Cookie) plans to use the gem to bestow the Gift of Endless Vibrancy on the villainous Talon Sharktūth. Hilarity ensues as the Porches attend the annual Shrimp Ball, encounter Umbrella Turkeys, search for Cloudite (floating cloud rocks), and don invisible but smelly woolen coats. Jokes aside, the girls’ story is intriguing, offering more clues to their mysterious backgrounds and tantalizing tidbits promising later adventures. McKinnon offers bountiful backstory (alongside a running joke to encourage readers to pick up the preceding volume) and enough guffaw-inducing jokes, zany footnotes, and creative jargon to enthrall readers both new and old with her delightful sophomore effort. Mixing humor, found family, and well-wrought worldbuilding, this sequel is a certain crowd pleaser. Final art not seen; in the previous book, the grayscale illustrations showed the girls with varying skin tones.
Unforgettably quirky, fast-paced fun. (appendices) (Adventure. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 30, 2025
ISBN: 9780316555296
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant.
Robot Roz undertakes an unusual ocean journey to save her adopted island home in this third series entry.
When a poison tide flowing across the ocean threatens their island, Roz works with the resident creatures to ensure that they will have clean water, but the destruction of vegetation and crowding of habitats jeopardize everyone’s survival. Brown’s tale of environmental depredation and turmoil is by turns poignant, graceful, endearing, and inspiring, with his (mostly) gentle robot protagonist at its heart. Though Roz is different from the creatures she lives with or encounters—including her son, Brightbill the goose, and his new mate, Glimmerwing—she makes connections through her versatile communication abilities and her desire to understand and help others. When Roz accidentally discovers that the replacement body given to her by Dr. Molovo is waterproof, she sets out to seek help and discovers the human-engineered source of the toxic tide. Brown’s rich descriptions of undersea landscapes, entertaining conversations between Roz and wild creatures, and concise yet powerful explanations of the effect of the poison tide on the ecology of the island are superb. Simple, spare illustrations offer just enough glimpses of Roz and her surroundings to spark the imagination. The climactic confrontation pits oceangoing mammals, seabirds, fish, and even zooplankton against hardware and technology in a nicely choreographed battle. But it is Roz’s heroism and peacemaking that save the day.
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant. (author’s note) (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9780316669412
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023
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