Okay, so technically, these books did not get forgotten, they just happened to fall between the last recent reads post of 2024 and the monthly wrap up for December. (This may or may not become a recurring thing on the blog since I want to make sure that I review every book that I read.)
This was the December pick for the Comix kids subscription. While I do think that it read a little on the young side which thinking of the age of my students (I teach 8th grade), I do think that some may enjoy this read and that it would work even better in a sixth grade classroom. All of the characters are anthropomorphic animals, mainly cats. The main character fancies himself a detective solving a variety of cases when his all
important hat goes missing. It’s simple yet enjoyable.
I originally started this back in October but could not get myself into the narrative and then my TBR schedule moved on so I paused my read then and picked it back up a day before 2024 ended. When I first put this book on my TBR, it was part of the Rick Riordan Presents imprint. Then I could not find the book when I went to update my list of books and could not find it. Months later I saw it again under a new imprint, Freedom Fire,
headed by Kwame Mbalia, a veteran of RRP. That got me excited. Now back to the book itself. I should have gone back and reread the first few pages that I read back in October but be that as it may, I found myself intrigued by the concept. The book has three main characters, cousins, one of which has just moved to the US from the Caribbean – Trinidad and Tobago I think – who have just come into their powers as mokos. As they learn about their powers, Baptiste opens the world of Afro-Caribbean mythology, showing the world around them, the different types of magic, and how they celebrate Carnival. The main conflict has two parts: a racist mayor attempting to crack down on Carnival in the name of “safety” and a new creature cobbling themselves together out of scraps of stories longing to be heard and lashing out because they think that it’s the only way to make themselves known. The concepts are fascinating and I enjoy how she developed the supposed villain. However, I would have appreciated at least one fewer main character because bouncing between the three perspectives prevented the narrative from allowing for deeper character development of any of them.
A couple years ago, I read the first book in this graphic novel series and really enjoyed it. At that time, I knew that it was planned to be a series but since the version I read was a revised reprint of a book originally published about 10 years prior, I did not know how quickly any sequels would come. Apparently they came pretty quickly. I saw what I thought to be the direct sequel on NetGalley and successfully requested an ARC. When I
went to read said ARC, I discovered that I had an ARC of book 3. Whoops. Thus, I checked out book 2, this one, from the library. This series stars a young girl on a quest to find her parents who she does not really remember and along the way discovers a ball of magical golden twine which imbues magic on the user, becomes a monster tamer, makes friends with an oversized dog and a sarcastic, lazy imp, and has all sorts of other adventures along the way. Her crew adds an unexpected new member by the end of the second installment making me eager to read book 3. (I review book three in the recent reads post for January 5-11.)
When I originally looked for a book to fulfill the December 2024 Buzzwordathon prompt, holiday words, I chose this one. I set it aside though because I did not own it at the time and wanted to prioritize my owned TBR. Then I ended up coming to the end of the month (and year) still not having read the book that I chose for the prompt instead. I spotted this one at Barnes and Noble when I shopped their holiday sale so I shifted my
pick. Now, I should get to the actual review. I loved it as I knew I was likely to do given my previous experience with the author. One thing that I did nto expect, but something that made this book wonderful, was the heart and compassion, not something typical of the characters in Artemis Fowl, Colfer’s most well-known series. This book stars Juniper Lane in a world where Santa has stopped his deliveries overwhelmed by the grief of losing his beloved wife. Juniper’s now deceased father started Santa vigils to try to entice him back because even though the reader knows why Santa stopped delivering, no one else does. After his death, Juniper and her mother, and many of the general public, continue the tradition of these vigils. When Juniper’s mother goes unexpectedly missing towards the start of this novel, Juniper seeks out someone who has been helping the local unhoused population because maybe he will help her as well. Of course, this person is Santa. I loved where the book went with the story, a wholesome and enjoyable Christmas read, a great way to finish off my 2024 reading year.