Book Review: Initiation - Sky Raider Academy Book One

Life just couldn’t get any worse for 11-year-old Tommy. After the death of his father, he and his mom move from New York to Colorado, and (even worse) they’ll be staying with Tommy’s eccentric Uncle Joe, who owns a llama farm, and is (adding to the even worse part) a conspiracy theorist and something of a joke to the townsfolk. His new school is called Mustang Mountain Elementary and Tommy’s convinced, especially after a rocky start, that he’ll never be happy there. The teachers are also a bit eccentric, albeit in an interesting way, and the school bully has homed in on him from day one. Life sucks! But then life changes in (literally) a flash of light as a mysterious stranger, Mr. Bellarium, appears to Tommy one night and whisks him away to a very different kind of school, one in the sky called The Sky Raider Academy. This is where specially chosen kids learn how to manage the weather. Tommy’s father was a Sky Raider, and considered to be one of their most gifted and inventive students. Tommy’s problems with fitting into a new town, a new school, and dealing with new people fade into insignificance when it becomes apparent that a rogue Sky Raider is wreaking havoc on the world by manipulating the weather ... with disastrous consequences! Can Tommy, with his new Sky Raider friends, Will and Rachel, find the courage to combat this enemy and emerge victorious, and how much did this rogue Sky Raider have to do with Tommy’s father’s mysterious death?

First up, kids who aren’t even vaguely interested in science and meteorological phenomena will be riveted by how the author has turned science into magic. After all, “magic is just misunderstood technology.” There aren’t any magic wands, but there’s a plethora of gadgets, gizmos, rides, and novel pieces of equipment to delight any kid who loves to tinker with “stuff.” There is danger, excitement, and feats of derring-do aplenty. In between all the otherworldly Sky Raider activities, Tommy fits in a normal day’s school every day.  The author shines here in making real the dialogue, the problems, the events, and the interactions normal kids would have. As Tommy realises the world is bigger than he is, he starts noticing more about others; for example, his mom seems happier here on the farm now. It’s easy to turn inward and feel sorry for oneself, but Tommy rises to the occasion, especially the one that demands a final act of heroism.

There’s a large cast, but young readers won’t get confused because teachers (both at school and the Academy), family members (including Pinky the llama that eats almost anything), and friends are well defined and stand out as individuals. Hopefully, there’ll be more on them in subsequent books. I found the setting up a little slow, but considering this is to be a series, the information will serve young readers well. As an adult, I also found the meteorological and scientific details a bit too much, but looking at this book from a young reader’s point of view, I am sure that won’t be a problem. Author Kirsten Pulioff’s middle grade book, Initiation, tackles issues that children have to deal with and often struggle to cope with adequately (death, bereavement, moving, leaving friends behind, new school, bullying), as well as infusing a real world with a parallel world of fantasy, adventure, heroism, and more. I enjoyed the moment where Tommy stands up to the school bully and, in a unique way, gives him a “taste of his own medicine.” This could be seen as a book for boys, but Rachel is a very appealing sidekick and girl readers will love her character. A good start to an exciting series!

Book Review: Frankie Dupont and the Lemon Festival Fiasco

Frankie Dupont, boy detective extraordinaire (aged 10 and 3/4) is back in his second adventure, accompanied by his faithful ex-sniffer hound Sherlock (the subject of a class ‘show and tell’) and his cousin Kat. In this adventure, the mystery starts off when he attends a combined class at school, taken by Mr. Mulberry (Mr. M) and assisted by Miss Chestnut. Miss Chestnut has very kindly brought along a fresh baked pie with zesty lemon filling. It smells utterly delicious. Mr. M is invited to taste first, but the results are horrendous, with Mr. M being taken terribly ill after just one mouthful, and Sherlock acting very strange after sniffing the pie, which ended up all over the floor. Once Frankie is told to take Sherlock home, he grabs the opportunity to test some of the pie filling, which landed on Sherlock’s coat, using his special catalysing agent from his evidence sampler kit. The results are very scary. Who has tried to poison Mr. Mulberry? Was it Miss Chestnut because she wanted to be in charge and not just assist? How will Frankie question a suspect who is a teacher?

Frankie hasn’t got time to do much more because the class goes off to Enderby Manor to help pick lemons for the lemon festival the next day. Enderby Manor has a slightly sinister past and that’s the reason Frankie feels a bit uneasy. The problem with sinister pasts is that some bits of it might come back… Given that several characters from Frankie’s first adventure are still resident at Enderby Manor, Frankie thinks his gut instincts are right. Even more so since Miss Mercure, previously the hotel receptionist but now occupying a higher position, is there, as snarky as ever, and has taken charge. Even more worrying is the fact that once the lemons are picked for the festival, no one is allowed back into the orchard. There’s something very strange going on to do with the past ownership of Enderby Manor and Frankie is determined to find out what it is!

Frankie is an endearing character and will truly win young fans who are interested in mysteries, detective work, gadgets, and a bit of science thrown in. And yes, the Fingerprint Diagnostic Device makes another appearance! Readers who began with Book One: Frankie Dupont and the Mystery at Enderby Manor will love seeing familiar faces from Frankie’s first mystery such as chef Simon Le Mont with sous-chef parrot Ingrid (who looks just like her predecessor Igor and with the same kind of vocabulary!) and of course stalwart garden gnome Gerome who does his bit as well. The pace is fast, the action is non stop, and the clues come thick and fast as Frankie and Kat have to race against time to save Enderby Manor from unscrupulous developers.

I enjoyed the age appropriate language and style, which make Frankie and his friends really believable. Kids are encouraged to think for themselves and to work things out, based on information they find. I also enjoyed Frankie’s Mum who is quite a character, albeit in brief cameos. This is such a fun series that gets kids involved in both adventure and science, making facts fun and entertaining. Once again the black and white illustrations add to the mayhem and help create the scenes for budding young detectives. New characters move the series forward for more adventures but I’d advise young readers to start with Book One to really help cement the back history of the series and add to an enjoyable read.