Dangerous Games by Joan Aiken

Rating: 2/5

Dangerous Games is another “filler” book about Dido’s adventures between the events of Nightbirds on Nantucket and (presumably, since I’ve never read it) The Cuckoo Tree. I have chosen to read these books chronologically, though I wonder if it might have been better to read them in publication order, as Aiken once again incorporates a much more magical world than was in any of the first three books. This makes me wonder if fantasy elements are more prevalent in the later books, or if Aiken decided to play off the “magical exotic island” trope.

Anyway, Dido once again finds herself caught up in political forces as she finds herself caught in the middle of a feud between the island king and his brother, the natives and the settlers. Dido is much more of a passive onlooker in this book than she was in any of the previous, as most of the action is off-screen, and the action conducted on-screen involves other characters. In addition, the plot is fairly similar to the previous book, with another “long lost” islander returning to their home and fighting against forces set against them. In this one, it’s Dr. Talisman, who doesn’t have much of an issue with anything in this book (the villain in general is mostly just menacing—there’s never any indication that he will actually win, especially once the general power of the “witches” of the island is made known).

While I wouldn’t necessarily call this book “bad,” I did find it a little tiresome. I’m not a huge fan of the written-years-later “filler” books, as they’re usually unnecessary, and I felt this one in particular did nothing to contribute to Dido’s characterization. It also was a little too similar to the previous filler book in terms of plot. I’m very ready to move back to the “main” arc and hopefully the books don’t get too tired in plot as unfortunately these side stories suggested.

Info: Joan Aiken; published 1999 by Delacorte

Genre: Children’s, Historical Fiction, Fantasy

Warnings: None.

Recommended Age Range: 10+

Homesick: My Own Story by Jean Fritz

Rating: 4/5

Given a Newbery Honor in 1983, Homesick: My Own Story is the memoir of Jean Fritz, best known for her children’s history books, and her life growing up in China during its Republic years (Sun Yat-Sen, Chiang Kai-Shek, and civil war). It describes some of the turmoil in China at the time, particularly the siege of Wuchang near Hankow (where Jean lived with her parents), as well as some of the cultural opposition to the British and American presence in China. However, since this is a memoir, most of it is filtered through Jean’s eyes, so most of that is only focused on towards the end of the novel when Jean and her parents are preparing to leave China.

The book mostly describes Jean’s complicated feelings about America and China and in general is about her growing up with the same sort of concerns that any child of that age might have. There’s a particularly heartbreaking moment in the book when Jean’s baby sister dies, and some more humorous ones involving her wanting to name herself “Marjorie” and everyone flatly telling her what a terrible name that is (so much so that it becomes almost like the running joke of the book). And, once they get to America, Jean struggles to fit in to American life.

Fritz is a compelling writer, so the whole story, though fairly basic, is linked together well. Jean herself has a great personality and voice, and despite the casual names tossed around that are offensive today, we can still cheer when Jean flatly contradicts peers’ perceptions of China and scolds them for using even more offensive terms. Really, the star of this book is Jean, whose stubborn determination lights up each page and turns this book into something special.

Info: Jean Fritz; published 1982 by Putnam

Genre: Children’s, Nonfiction/Memoir

Warnings: None

Recommended Age Range: 10+

Jahanara by Kathryn Lasky

Rating: 3/5

Jahanara: Princess of Princesses is at first glance the story of a relatively unknown princess of the Moghul Dynasty. And, due to the rigid and limited roles and customs for women and the fact that Jahanara mentions how a princess of her position doesn’t marry, you might wonder why have a book about this princess at all. But, of course, despite Jahanara’s relative lack of power (she does go on to become an advisor to the emperor) and overall lack of presence in history (only really known as the emperor’s favorite daughter), this book does communicate a great deal about the Moghul dynasty, specifically about Shah Jahan and the Hindu/Muslim clashes. And if you don’t know who Shah Jahan is, just think of the Taj Mahal—he’s the one who constructed it for his wife (the mother of Jahanara).

The politics and religious tension are really the most fascinating part of this book, and unfortunately Jahanara herself is probably the least interesting. This book, above a lot of the others in the series, reads so much like the author is merely using the character to show off the culture and time, as opposed to feeling like an actual person in history. This is somewhat mitigated by Lasky’s author note detailing the lengthy amount of research that went into this book and how she dedicated herself to rendering the characters’ personalities as closely as possible to the historical figures, but still, Jahanara mostly feels like a mouthpiece. And half the characters she interacts with are fictional, so that doesn’t really help things seem more real.

Nevertheless, this is still an interesting look at the close of the Moghul Dynasty, of the tension growing between Islam and Hinduism (that will later be magnified in the split of Bangladesh from India) at the time that extends through to today, and of the powerful and popular Shah Jahan, one of the world’s most well-known architects. Lasky conveys the politics well, especially the clash between Shah Jahan’s son and the rest of the family, which also sows the seeds for the religious conflict, and the insidious Nur Mahal. 

Info: Kathryn Lasky; published 2002 by Scholastic

Genre: Children’s, Historical Fiction

Warnings: None

Recommended Age Range: 10+

2021 Newbery Medal: When You Trap a Tiger by Tae Keller

Rating: 3/5

When You Trap a Tiger reminded me a great deal of a Newbery Medal book from a couple of years ago, Merci Suarez Changes Gears. It features a fairly similar plot (sickness in an elderly family member) and a focus on a specific culture (Korea in this one). It’s also similar in writing, delivery, and pace, and I liked it about as much.

The book is not bad by any stretch of the means. The magical/reality combination is interesting, and though it starts off seeming to scream magical realism, it really is much lighter on the magic aspect than one might expect from a book that starts off with a girl seeing a magical tiger on the side of the road. And though punctuated by several obvious messages, there were some excellent observations about grief—accepting it, working through it, etc.—centered around the idea of the tiger and stories in jars.

The ending, though, was not particularly strong, and I felt the storytelling section at the end too on-the-nose and just a little bit unrealistic. Girls at Lily’s age don’t generally tend to have such sweeping life realizations that they can then sum up nicely and neatly into a coherent story at the drop of a hat; this was one of the biggest feelings of “adult trying to speak through a child” in the book (and there were many others). And the whole story, though united in theme and focus, stopped just short of a deep, rich engagement.

Also, there was insta-love, which I despise.

When You Trap a Tiger was good, but not great, lacking something in style and theme integration, and though it starts off fairly interesting and manages to maintain that interest, the ending felt too grand and sweeping, too wrapped-up-all-neatly-in-a-story.

Info: Tae Keller; published 2020 by Random House

Genre: Children’s, Realistic, Fantasy

Warnings: None

Recommended Age Range: 10+

The Sixty-Eight Rooms by Marianne Malone

Rating: 3/5

The Sixty-Eight Rooms is an interesting book about a real-life art exhibit, the Thorne Rooms, and the not-so-real magical key that two children stumble across that cause them to shrink down and able to explore the rooms—and the worlds that lie beyond them. It’s part fantasy, part time-travel, and it’s fairly charming, though a little too simplistic for me.

This is a series, and I can see why—there’s lot of opportunity here for Malone to explore various time periods and places. I wish there was just a trifle more detail and accuracy added to the historical places—the encounter in Salem was jarring in its complete lack of believability for anyone familiar with the time period. For kids it would probably be just different enough to be interesting, but I thought the interaction of the kids with the other children and adults was implausible at best (not to mention horrendously stereotypical).

I probably would have liked this book just a little bit more if there was a little bit more charm and zing to it. However, the whole book fell flat overall despite the fairly interesting premise. Good, but not interesting enough for me to continue with the series.

Info: Marianne Malone; published 2010 by Random House

Genre: Children’s, Realistic, Fantasy

Warnings: None

Recommended Age Range: 8+

The Secret of the Skeleton Key by Penny Warner

Rating: 2/5

The Secret of the Skeleton Key is the first book in a code-breaking-themed series aimed for young readers, full of codes to crack (and a helpful reference guide and key in the back). The reader is invited to solve the mystery along with the characters and to decode the various messages (and chapter titles) along the way. It’s a fun, interactive book that code-loving readers would probably really enjoy, with a mystery simple enough and villains comical enough to draw them in.

However, it’s a pretty juvenile book for an adult to read, so I didn’t really enjoy it. The villains are bumbling, cackling miscreants who crack fart jokes and are deterred by obvious tricks and ploys; the trail of clues to Mr. Skelton’s will are perhaps believable, but the fact that said villains didn’t immediately find the will considering where it was (and since we’re supposed to believe they are constantly searching the house looking for it) is unbelievable. And the lead-up to the kids actually getting on the case is so obviously engineered (Skeleton Man just HAPPENS to like codes and JUST HAPPENS to live across from the street from someone else who loves codes who JUST HAPPENS to be looking out the window at just the right moment)…I mean, it’s a children’s book, so nothing here is unusual, but my favorite children’s books are the ones that are clever and nuanced and this is not that.

If you know a child who loves codes, they will probably really enjoy this series. There’s suspense, the requisite school bully, an interesting enough mystery, and a large cast of characters, plus an entire website to supplement everything in the book. But this is not one of those children’s books that adults would also enjoy just as much. In fact, I think The 39 Clues likely did the whole code-breaking thing a whole lot better (though perhaps it’s unfair to compare them).

Info: Penny Warner; published 2011 by Egmont

Genre: Children’s, Realistic

Warnings: None

Recommended Age Range: 8+

Kazunomiya by Kathryn Lasky

Rating: 4/5

Kazunomiya: Prisoner of Heaven takes place during the tense shogunate, Chained-In-Country/sakoku period, when the shoguns and the Emperor were at odds about opening up Japan to trade with other countries. The subtitle “Prisoner of Heaven” details Princess Kazunomiya’s feelings as being part of “Heaven” (a. k. a. the Imperial court), but completely powerless as she has little say in what goes on.

This is an interesting look at this period in Japanese history (an area I don’t know much about), and it’s full of cultural details. I rated this book a 4 simply because I felt as if every single diary entry was related to conveying some aspect of either Japanese life or this time in Japanese history. Nothing felt even remotely tacked on or random. This isn’t to say every dialogue and exchange felt quite natural—but at least Kazunomiya didn’t spend nearly a ¼ of her diary entries talking about dresses or playing cards. And it’s sincerely an interesting story about a young woman who feels trapped, who takes whatever freedom she can have, even if it’s something like getting to choose the day of a special ceremony or sneaking out to meet up with a former betrothed.

Plus, those historical notes at the end with the conspiracy theories about Kazunomiya were fascinating.

Kazunomiya may not be The Best, but it is very interesting, giving insight into the history of a country that still remains fairly closed off and exclusive even today, and after a myriad of boring and unfocused Royal Diaries books, this one’s close focus on the culture and history was really refreshing.

Info: Kathryn Lasky; published 2004 by Scholastic

Genre: Children’s, Historical Fiction

Warnings: None

Recommended Age Range: 10+

Lady of Palenque by Anna Kirwan

Rating: 1/5

Lady of Palenque: Flower of Bacal is the most boring book in the Royal Diaries series yet, which is unfortunate because it’s probably the time/place in history that’s one of the least well-known. In fact, Kirwan basically admits in the notes at the end just how much she had to make up, including constructing an entire lineage for the main character (whose real name is unknown, but here has the name of ShanaK’in Yaxchel Pacal, otherwise to history known only by title).

One of the reasons I think this book is so hard to get into (unless you’re already interested in the topic) is the plethora of names thrown at you from the beginning. It’s hard to distinguish who’s who in the narrative, and I had a hard time distinguishing the animals from other human characters, since they were treated almost essentially the same way by the characters. And the number of names never gets any fewer—even on her way to marry “Fire Keeper,” there is a host of names to remember and between which to distinguish.

In addition, the plot itself is simplistic and unexciting. The Lady of Palenque travels across the country to marry, and that’s the whole book. Now, obviously Kirwan layers in a whole bunch of cultural things, so if that’s your cup of tea, you probably will find this book interesting. Normally I enjoy the cultural things, too, but I didn’t this time. I honestly just think the bombardment of names combined with the fairly unexciting plot caused me to just gloss through the whole book, so I wasn’t able to enjoy some of the more interesting cultural details (and I do think these books are fairly well researched, so I have no large qualms about the quality of the presentation in that regard). It’s a shame because like I stated earlier, that period of history and that culture is virtually unknown by all but those who study it or claim it as a heritage, so it’s disappointing that some of the elements of the book got in the way.

Info: Anna Kirwan; published 2004 by Scholastic

Genre: Children’s, Historical Fiction

Warnings: None

Recommended Age Range: 10+

The Secret of Platform 13 by Eva Ibbotson

Rating: 4/5

Every so often, as I’m browsing books on Goodreads, I see Eva Ibbotson and I think “Oh, yeah! I like her!” This is only my third book by her, but I really enjoyed Which Witch? so I thought I would give her another shot.

The Secret of Platform 13 is maybe just a bit of a misnomer, as it sounds like the book will be about discovering the secret of Platform 13. Instead, the book is about the hidden world that lies behind a gateway in Platform 13, and what happens when those two worlds collide in a search-and-rescue mission.

For a book written in the ‘90s, I would argue that the plot and mechanics are actually quite original for the time. While the plot is predictable, Ibbotson throws in enough magic shenanigans to pleasurably pass the time until the villains are thwarted and the Hero returns home. There’s a great absurdist slant to the overall world and plot that exaggerates things enough that it truly does feel as if you’re exploring a world that’s only slightly familiar to what you know—familiar enough to be recognizable, but not so familiar that the absurd becomes unrealistic. Everything is just ever so slightly exaggerated—the overweight Raymond and Mrs. Trottle, the vague references to previous Trottle villainy, the sharp needles of the bodyguard, the ever-increasing encroachment of the island creatures in England, complete with blouse- and bloomer-wearing harpies. And yet things are nicely grounded, despite the presence of a one-eyed ogre, an old wizard, and a girl with a beet on her head, with the gentle, kind Ben and his trips to the ordinary hospital. It’s hard to explain what I mean—I just think Ibbotson achieves the perfect balance between exaggeration and realism, between magic and normality, and between lightheartedness and seriousness.

Anyway, I really enjoyed this book for its charm and its well-put-together world, characters, and plot. More Ibbotson for me…? Hopefully so!

Info: Eva Ibbotson; published 1994 by Dutton

Genre: Children’s, Fantasy, Realistic

Warnings: None

Recommended Age Range: 10+

Sondok by Sheri Holman

Rating: 4/5

Sŏndŏk, Princess of the Moon and Stars is another typical book in the series, but I found this one a little bit more interesting than normal just because it presented a setting than I’ve read nothing about: ancient Korea. And while the book suffers from that “But did this actually happen?” syndrome as all the early Royal Diaries books do, I thought that this was a plausible and interesting story about what Sŏndŏk’s early life might have been like, and what might have caused her to build the Ch’omsŏngdae Observatory (the oldest remaining astronomical tower).

While some of this book is clearly more speculative than other parts (the relationship between Chajang and Sŏndŏk comes to mind), and while I don’t know anything about the history of Korea, I do think that Holman did a great job explaining and developing the culture and beliefs of the time. I especially loved that instead of a diary format, it was presented as a collection of notes that Sŏndŏk wrote and placed (or burned?) in her grandmother’s urn. And the historical notes at the end do more to explain the interplay between Buddhism, Confucianism, and Shamanism at the time. The astronomy aspect was done well, too, as a way for the author to give some incentive as to why the real Sŏndŏk might have built an observatory.

All in all, I thought that the book was very well done and very interesting. I enjoyed the look at a country whose history I don’t know too much about, and that made the book more enjoyable for me even if it’s still just a standard book in the series.

Info: Sheri Holman; published 2002 by Scholastic

Genre: Children’s, Historical Fiction

Warnings: None

Recommended Age Range: 8+