(2) K-3 Illustrated by Magdalena Mora. Kiki Karpovich feels too shy to join in playing with the other kids on her vibrant, racially diverse city street. One day she looks down at the sidewalk and notices something odd: "The asphalt glistened like water in the heat. Kiki saw something...moving...a giant fish!...'Help,' it seemed to say." She rushes the creature inside, puts it in the bathtub, and fills up the tub, thus saving its life. When the grateful fish, surprisingly, offers up a wish, Kiki asks to be granted lots of friends. This request is too big for our "fish of small wishes," so Kiki goes away to think. "I wish I weren't so shy," she says to the (now larger) fish, but this is also beyond its scope. The next day she has a new idea, including a way to help the fish, but again: no deal. Finally, in contemplating their interactions, she's able to fulfill her own wishes and assist her fishy friend. Color-splashed and varied mixed-media illustrations ably and playfully reflect both the story's fantastical and down-to-earth elements. An appended note describes Arnold's inspiration: a story her grandmother told about her own kindhearted grandfather's fish rescue. ("No gefilte fish for Passover" that year.)

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2024

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Elisa Paganelli. On the shortest day of the year, people gather on a beach to build a bonfire and make "a wish for light. A wish for hope. A wish for renewal." The poetic text also includes scientific information about the winter and -- across the world at the same time -- the summer solstice, both further discussed in the back matter. Paganelli's vibrant illustrations embrace rich purples, blues, and reds for dazzling nighttime images that reflect the sense of comfort and belonging that the bonfires represent. A particularly powerful spread displaying togetherness features people passing candles and lanterns across panels highlighting other winter solstice celebrations.

Reviewer: Cynthia K. Ritter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2024

(3) 4-6 Illustrated by Kristina Kister. Mandala artwork by Ben Guterson. With his parents away on a research trip, Zander Olinga is spending five weeks with his grandmother at the Number Nine Plaza, the wondrous department store she owns in the Eastern European-esque city of Novatrosk. The building possesses wish-fulfillment departments to tempt any young shopper—nineteen floors of pet stores, magic shops, bakeries, reading rooms, art museums, and ice cream parlors, with a giant Ferris wheel on the roof. Zander would enjoy it all immensely but for the looming threat of Darkbloom, an evil spirit who invades the minds of the weak, once conjured by his great-great-great uncle Vladimir. A magical plate bearing a sandstone mandala that gave the Nine its exceptional ability to enchant has been missing for ninety-nine years, and Zander hopes to recover it before Darkbloom’s minions can use it to destroy the Nine. If the plot is a little MacGuffinish, the setting and mystery are constructed with great skill, with Zander and his friend Natasha dodging acts of sabotage that have plagued the department store and seeking out a series of nonsensical inscriptions that Uncle Vladimir left behind. Readers will enjoy trying to puzzle out the cypher coded in the inscriptions and will cheer Zander’s attempts to conquer his acrophobia, a bit of personal development that comes into play at the climax. Despite the ongoing threats and danger, the story has built-in guardrails that keep the action from getting too intense, giving younger readers the security to wallow in the sparkling fantasy Guterson invents, of a store more magical than Santa’s workshop, without fear. Final interior art not seen.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam

(2) K-3 Our hardworking protagonist, the newsboy, wears many hats. Though his primary job is "to bring to the town of Bad Goodsburg their daily news," he also acts as chimney sweep, shoe shiner, and milk deliverer. "He was assured by the townspeople that this was a fair arrangement." One day breaking news brings an upsetting update: the local wishing well is on the fritz, leaving the town's doctor, shopkeeper, and baker's purportedly altruistic wishes (health, happiness, and sustenance for all) ungranted. They call on the newsboy to investigate, and he discovers several unexpected, and humorous, truths. With three brief sections, the narrative is well paced and easy to follow. Digital illustrations in a limited palette have the look of chunky, weighty woodcuts combined with simple-shaped children's drawings; faces are round or oblong, noses are red circles, and eyebrows look like smiles or frowns. There are unique perspective shifts, too, such as the newsboy looking into the well -- and the spider gazing back up from inside. In the end, the three mendacious wishers are brought to "justice...sort of," and a twist conclusion sees the put-upon protagonist seizing his opportunity -- and then some, thanks to a little blackmail and extortion.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2024

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Tonya Engel. On the first day of spring, Yaya and her mother get up before the sun to go to the sea. Mommy tells Yaya to "pick out the shiniest dimes. We are going to take them to Mama Ocean and make a wish." Three of Mommy's friends accompany them, and after a long ride on the subway, they are finally at the beach. The mother and her friends have white clothes and towels, and each has special gifts for Mama Ocean. The women walk into the ocean and share their gifts with her before quickly dressing and heading back to the city without looking back. The picture book conveys the joy of welcoming spring and of rituals that African Americans have adopted and adapted from their ancestors. Engel's brightly colored paintings evoke the love, joy, and excitement that surround the moment. Marable's straightforward storytelling captures the voice and perspective of a young child. An author's note shares that the book is based on a real trip the author and her friends made to perform a ritual for Mama Ocean.

Reviewer: Nicholl Denice Montgomery | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2024

(2) K-3 Shinbi is a ghost who doesn't care for haunting houses. She prefers sitting on her favorite rock and stargazing. When a shooting star flies through the sky, she wishes for a friend. One day, she sees a "Hi" on her favorite rock and leaves a response. Its recipient is Greem, the shadow formed by the same rock during the daylight hours, who also longs for a friend. The two leave messages for each other, primarily about constellations, something Greem has never seen. Greem thinks the Big Dipper looks more like a whale, and Shinbi says Cancer looks less like a crab and more like a child doing a handstand. When a "star parade" adorns the night sky, it provides enough light for them to finally meet, "pouring their hearts out to each other" for one glorious night. Min's depiction of Shinbi is the sort of ghost that won't frighten children: she's composed of rounded lines and rosy cheeks. Greem is shaped precisely the same but filled with the dark colors of night. Most of the richly colored spreads are full bleed; the occasional use of borders accelerates the action. The sky filled with shooting stars is particularly dazzling with its sparkling, warm colors against the darkness.

Reviewer: Julie Danielson | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2024

(2) 4-6 Magic-wish stories, in folklore and fiction, are perfect vehicles for exploring unintended consequences. Voigt takes full advantage of this narrative device in a compilation of, essentially, four novellas featuring middle-grade children who are each given a pair of wishes. Bug wishes for a skateboard. Zoe wishes her parents would stop having "Ugly Fights." Casey wishes for a dog. Billy wishes for a unicorn. The upshot of these wishes includes alienation from friends, a parental separation, a threat to a tenuous living situation, and a sobering realization about the misuse of power in relationships. In each case, the first wish is the mess-up wish and the second is the tidy-up wish. In working out these dilemmas toward plausible happy endings, Voigt treads a skillful line between magic and concrete human realities, between getting what you want and discovering what you value -- all with convincing, flawed characters, child and adult, in a variety of family situations. The narrative voice, complete with direct address to the reader, is ever-present here, and the moral lessons learned -- honesty, compassion, generosity, humility, grit -- are made explicit in a way appropriate for fable, which is really the storytelling territory these tales inhabit.

Reviewer: Sarah Ellis | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2024

(2) YA Korean American Yuna feels stifled by the traditional ways of her immigrant parents. She brings homemade lunches to school while her classmates get pizza. She stays home while her friends have sleepovers. A Korean legend passed down to Yuna from her halmoni (grandmother) says that if one gathers a thousand paper stars into a jar, a wish is granted. Yuna takes on this challenge, and upon folding the thousandth star, makes a fateful wish to return to Korea and so lead a "normal" life. The next morning, she awakes to learn that Halmoni has died unexpectedly and finds that her own hand has started transforming into paper. In Korea for her grandmother's funeral, she strives to fold another thousand stars in order to reverse her wish and bring Halmoni back to life--and avoid turning into paper ("I am a paper girl...blowing in the wind. Alone and fragile. I am invisible"). Yi's poignant graphic novel weaves together themes of isolation, belonging, guilt, death, and family along with the complex dynamics of forging a Korean American identity. The plot oscillates between the past and present, unraveling events through intermittent flashbacks. Yuna's memories unfold through pastel shades of blue; her mother's memories of her childhood and Halmoni, in sepia tones. Montage panels reflect Halmoni's endearing acts of love. Memory, magic, and mystery converge to tell an intergenerational story that captivates the imagination and heart.

Reviewer: Jerry Dear | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2023

(4) YA In this sweet treat for tweens and teens looking to indulge in some romantic reading, Chicago high school students Liya Huang and Kai Jiang are childhood best friends whose parents own a Chinatown general store and bakery, respectively. What keeps these two would-be love birds apart is a misunderstanding at a bubble tea shop and the grudge Lia’s father has against Kai’s father for dumping garbage into their shared alleyway. Chao tries to complicate this breezy summer will-they-won’t-they love story with more serious subplots. Liya still mourns her dead grandmother; Kai struggles with his gambling-addicted father and bullying older brother; and the pair attempts to save the Huang’s business from eviction by organizing a lantern festival inspired by the Chinese Double Seven holiday (Qixi is similar to Valentine’s Day). The novel runs long at more than three-hundred pages and there are some minor quibbles (the teens’ wish-granting/matchmaking scheme is a bit twee and mooncakes are usually just made and eaten for the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival). Nevertheless, readers searching for a starry-eyed tale will enjoy this trifle about second chances and growing up.

Reviewer: Michelle Lee

(2) 4-6 The setting is Prince Edward Island, sometime close to the turn of the twentieth century. "The dirt road was reddish, like all the earth on the island, as if it were flushed with pride at its own prettiness." A spirited, impulsive orphan--romantic about nature, self-dramatizing, and fond of poetry--is taken in by a grumpy old woman. What the child passionately longs for are connection, friendship, and kindness. So far, so Green Gables--Grace is certainly a literary second cousin to Anne. The twist is that she is also a witch, and so is the grumpy old woman. The plot involves a series of tests, a year's worth of spellcasting as Grace apprentices to her craft. The stakes are high. If she cannot master all one hundred (and a half) spells, she will lose her magic powers, and thus her identity. A supporting cast includes a crow familiar, a bullying mean girl, a wish-granting fairy (and nascent romantic interest), and a sensible, supportive best friend. This alternative-universe romp is perfect for those who like their fantasy light and sentimental and enjoy a bit of L. M. Montgomery pastiche (yes, the raspberry cordial disaster resurfaces, and there's even a hint of Matthew).

Reviewer: Sarah Ellis | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2023

(1) 4-6 When the school bus drops Lily off after the last day of fifth grade, four months after the death of her twin brother, Anders, her loneliness is so palpable that even the birds express concern. Lily's single-parent mother is absorbed in her own grief, and Lily's classmates are keeping their distance. She finds real comfort only in "the overlap," a place behind a barn where she can still see and talk to her dead twin. Otherwise, Lily soldiers on through summer alone, except for occasional interactions with a sympatico high school girl, a generous neighbor, and a bunch of chickens. The narrative slowly reveals details from the previous year, allowing readers to develop a more intimate connection to the characters and to make sense of Lily's isolation and feelings of guilt. Told in the third person, this poignant, mostly realistic exploration of processing grief is punctuated by a few observations from anthropomorphized local animals and the supernatural moments between Lily and her brother. Though Anders seems to be losing his connection to the world, he supports Lily as best he can, encouraging her to enjoy what little time they have and to find ways to go on living. This achingly sad but also hopeful story set on a small Maine island poses questions about the power of our connections--to other people, to animals, and to the world around and beyond.

Reviewer: Julie Roach | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2023

(2) YA It's 1987, and Gracie is the new girl at her Pittsburgh high school; her family has recently moved in with her grandmother, who has Alzheimer's. After some embarrassing encounters with her new classmates, Gracie wishes she could be more interesting and less awkward. So when she finds a blank journal in her grandmother's vanity, she imagines just that, writing a scene in which she is sophisticated and mysterious. Then she discovers that whatever she writes about comes true in real life. The hot guy, wearing the same army jacket she described in the journal, suddenly seems interested in her; the mean girl, after complimenting her outfit, hands her the exact lipstick she wrote about the night before. While Gracie's newfound power is intoxicating, the journal's interpretations of her words can be dangerously unpredictable. (After she experiments by writing about her career as a bird photographer, for example, a rare owl shows up at school, causing chaos.) Ultimately, the journal helps Gracie understand that "the things we can't control, and the broken parts, and the mistakes are all part of what make us who we are." A charming romance with the boy across the street and the faithfully rendered 1980s setting (think corded telephones, cassette tapes, and midnight showings of The Rocky Horror Picture Show) complete this original and absorbing fantastical tale.

Reviewer: Rachel L. Kerns | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2024

(2) YA Illustrated by Choo. This post-apocalyptic, archipelago-set graphic novel teems with atmosphere and angst, in addition to gutsy witches, mysterious curses, and horrifying monsters. Teenage ­Li-Zhen, or Lizzy, is a witch with a tragic family history--her mother, father, and grandmother died fighting a sea serpent, the Leviathan, when she was an infant. Now Lizzy, traveling on her own for the first time to market to sell her and her grandfather's farm goods, spends all her money at the fair (where she passes time with her same-sex crush, Eli). She steals three coins from a wishing well to pay her ferry fare home; cursed, she must fulfill the three wishes that she stole, or the well will take her "down into the water, into the dark." A series of accelerating adventures unfolds, all leading to a ferocious battle between Lizzy and the Leviathan. Choo's manga-influenced cartooning is cinematic and immersive, expertly balancing long-distance establishing shots with up-close character-driven action. The digitally produced illustrations are rendered in a thin black line, providing plenty of open space for an ever-changing, emotive color palette within immersive, intriguing visuals.

Reviewer: Patrick Gall | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2022

(2) PS Illustrated by Sarah Massini. A lonely little witch who lives in a cozy cave wants to magic herself a friend, but she's missing a key ingredient for her spell: "some furriness from a one-eyed teddy bear." She imagines a "huge and hairy...extremely scary" creature; nevertheless, she's determined to do whatever it takes and bravely heads out on her broom. Her crystal ball guides her to young Lily and her (not terrifying) well-loved bear, Ted, who work their own friendship magic on the witchling: "That's what a friend would do! / You thought of me, you thought of Ted, / you didn’t think of...YOU!\" Fraser's warm rhyming text and ­Massini's fanciful mixed-media illustrations cast an inviting spell.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2022

(2) 4-6 After her mother dies in a tragic accident, twelve-year-old Kela Boxhill becomes a shell of her former self. She pushes away her father, her best friend, and her vibrant Caribbean community of St. Rita. She neglects her artistic ambitions because her creative activities remind her of the storyteller mother she's lost. One day, while searching for sea glass on the beach, Kela finds a magical comb belonging to the mermaid Ophidia. Desperate to retrieve the comb because its magical power keeps her young, Ophidia offers Kela a wish. But magic always comes at a price. Kela's wish to bring her mother back has unexpected consequences, and well-meaning adults prevent her from immediately returning the comb as promised, which incites the mermaid's wrath. As the island faces potential devastation from a hurricane caused by Ophidia's rage, Kela must figure out how to appease the vengeful mermaid while also protecting her loved ones, her community, and herself. The story is imbued with magic, but Stringfellow's powerful writing makes the fantastical feel like reality. Through narrative perspectives centering both Kela and Ophidia, the author recalls the call-and-response structure prevalent in Black storytelling traditions. Fans of Baptiste's The Jumbies and Rhodes's Bayou Magic will enjoy spending time with Kela as she navigates a journey filled with grief, love, loss, and discovery.

Reviewer: S. R. Toliver | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2022

(2) 4-6 Arnold presents an accessible and relatable immigration story, engagingly interwoven with magic. Holding the hope of her family on her shoulders, ten-year-old Gabrielle is determined to be on her best behavior when she leaves her home in Haiti for the "heaven" of America, moving in with her uncle and his family in Brooklyn. However, she realizes that life in the U.S. is not as magical as she had anticipated: her English is limited, her hair doesn't flow like it does for the girls on TV, and her clothing stands out. All she wants is to be a regular American girl. Seeing her desire to fit in, an evil witch, Lady Lydia, offers Gabrielle a deal. The witch will grant her three wishes, but, with each wish, ­Gabrielle will lose some "small, insignificant" thing--a strand of hair, a sock. Although that seems like a harmless exchange, Gabrielle soon realizes that her desire to be "­American" will cost her much more than she'd bargained for, and she must decide how much she is willing to lose in order to belong. Although the pacing is somewhat uneven at the end, the book presents an engrossing story of self-acceptance and ­self-discovery and will appeal to readers who enjoyed Callender's Hurricane Child (rev. 5/18).

Reviewer: S. R. Toliver | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2021

(2) 4-6 As Carl Sagan posits, "we're made of star-stuff." Here, Baldwin asks readers to move that fact one step into fantasy and accept that some individuals on this Earth are actually fallen stars who choose to take human form, individuals like Ivy Mae Bloom's mother and her two aunts. Their special status imbues them with magical powers; Mrs. Bloom can barter wishes to those who are troubled and repair slight tears in the Earth's magical fabric. Such responsibility requires constant travel from town to town. And therein lies Ivy's problem. More than anything, Ivy wants a forever home, not the cramped RV her family of five takes on the road 360 days a year. She steals nine of her mom's wishes and requests her "One True Place"--but these wishes have consequences, landing the family at Aunt Agatha's home on Whistling Ridge. Something is wrong there; the town is decaying, its magic weakened. Ivy's self-absorbed twelve-year-old voice is spot on, as are her frustrations with her sisters, but so is her concern for Whistling Ridge. There are multiple plot threads, but a believable young girl emerges as she tries, sometimes awkwardly and sometimes gracefully, to find her place.

Reviewer: Betty Carter

(2) PS Illustrated by Katie Wilson. This gentle picture book opens with a question: "Have you ever had an extraordinary wish?" The opening pages set the stage by proposing dreams of flying with eagles or harnessing unicorns, but soon the rhyming text and accompanying spreads shift to suggesting that moments in daily life can be equally "extraordinary." "The extraordinary bellows, / it trumpets and booms. / It towers above us, / it blazes and blooms. / But what of the ordinary, everyday thing? / The soft, quiet moment that makes the world sing?" As the words describe the sensations of an experience, the soft art depicts the source of those special moments: a bird's nest, a shooting star, a full moon, a bountiful garden, a quiet forest. The moments chronologically cover the seasons of the year from spring through winter: each picture shows a child absorbing a detail of the world around them, either alone or with friends or family, which can give readers and listeners an entry point to think about their own special moments as well as providing a springboard for identifying new ones. Endpapers bracket the book's timeline, with migrating birds heading one way in spring and in the opposite direction in winter.

Reviewer: Julie Roach | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2021

(1) K-3 Illustrated by Victo Ngai. A little girl living in an unsafe place watches her grandfather out the window. "The night wished it was quieter," reads the text. With a page-turn: "The bag wished it was deeper," as other family members swiftly pack food. Wishes made by the light, the clock, the path, the boat, the sea, and the sun follow, and it gradually becomes clear that the girl's family is fleeing their home to undertake a perilous journey to a new place. The collaboration between text and illustration is impressive; Văn's lyrical and poetic writing gently propels the story forward, while Ngai's honest and detailed pictures depict the heartbreaking reality of separation and extend the tale beyond its words. The final wish, which is also the only wish made in the voice of the girl ("And I wished...I didn't have to wish...anymore"), is slowly revealed through four double-page spreads that display the final moments of the family's harrowing journey. The changing color palette throughout, including on the front and back endpapers, serves as a powerful, aesthetic representation of the changes that occur over the course of the story--from dark night to brightening sky, from danger to safety, from fear to hope, and most important of all, from the end of one journey to the beginning of another. Back matter includes author and artist notes and reveals the personal connection that Văn has with the story.

Reviewer: Weileen Wang | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2021

(2) PS Pinkney brings readers Black mermaids and a richly imagined undersea world in this addition to his picture-book takes on classic tales (most recently The Three Billy Goats Gruff, 2017). Most of Hans Christian Andersen's original elements remain--a Sea King in a merfolk kingdom; the titular mermaid princess with a "majestic" voice, who longs to walk on land; and a sinister Sea Witch, looking for revenge. Pinkney's most significant change is that he replaces the romance in the original tale with a friendship. Melody, the little mermaid of the story, visits the Sea Witch to swap her voice for legs so that she can spend time with Zion, her new friend on land, who tells her she shouldn't have given up her voice "for anything." When Melody learns that the Sea Witch is endangering her family, she swims back and saves them. Pinkney gives the protagonist more autonomy and less punishment than in the original; in a closing author's note he explains such choices. Pinkney's lush, iridescent illustrations are breathtaking. His beautifully colored, primarily blue undersea world is juxtaposed with the earth-toned, sand-covered world above and its "fiery ball" in the sky. The Sea Witch--who has fingered tentacles, horns, and sharp, terrifying teeth--is particularly menacing and is always surrounded by ghoulish sea-creature sidekicks. A spirited and elegant revisioning.

Reviewer: Julie Danielson | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2020