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Victoria Ying

City of Secrets

Ever Barnes is an orphan living in the old Switchboard Building in the city called Oskar. He isn’t supposed to be living there, but he has a secret. A very important secret that his father entrusted him to guard. Besides, the employees of the building tolerate his presence so long as he stays out of the way. That all changes when Hannah Morgan spots Ever while visiting the building with her father, the building’s new owner. She wants to be his friend, and help him, for she hates to think of him all alone in the gloom, but Ever keeps pushing her away. Once Ever starts to be followed by shadowy men, can he keep refusing Hannah’s help?

The city of Oskar is an intriguing place, and it’s as much a character as the people residing in it. Its secrets lure you deeper into the mystery. To me, an adult, the story was a little predictable, but the middle grade target audience will be on the edge of their seats the entire time.

Sketchy ink and watercolors drew up a steampunk world. The linework is busy and lively. There is a sepia undertone to all, which makes it seem like the entire thing was printed on yellowed newsprint or toned paper. This fit the steampunk aesthetic perfectly. To me the steampunk elements seemed a bit watered down, probably to better focus on the characters, but more of them would have been welcome.

Middle-grade readers will be thrilled by this steampunk fantasy mystery.

– Kathleen

Ying, Victoria. City of Secrets. 2020.

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Diana: Princess of the Amazons

Eleven-year-old Diana is lonely! She is the only kid on the entire island full of Amazons. Though she loves her mother and all her aunts, she feels like everyone is now too busy for her. Remembering the story of her birth, she sculpts a friend out of clay and sand and tries to breathe life into her. To Diana’s surprise, her friend Mona comes to life! Mona and Diana run around, have fun, and create mischief together. It’s all fun and games until the daring Mona tries to recruit Diana into a prank that – in Diana’s opinion – goes too far. Did Diana create a friend, or a monster?

Shannon and Dean Hale are a husband and wife team of juvenile books. Shannon has written the award-winning Princess Academy and the Ever After High book series for children. It’s easy to see here why they make a good team! Their Diana is too old to consider herself a kid, but too young for anything else. She feels like it’s impossible to be like the women she’s grown up with and looks up to. They perfectly captured that frustration and loneliness everyone her age feels.

The art is, frankly, adorable. I loved the soft, rounded, and expressive figures, which children will love and are easy to look at. The palette is bright and colorful, in jewel tones that perfectly reflect Diana’s island home. The limited action scenes read a little goofy to me, as I’m an adult reading a children’s book, but there is no excessive violence and no blood. I’d happily give it to a child who expresses interest in it without worrying that they would get scared.

Here is a rare book of a Diana who is not yet Wonder Woman, but not a child anymore either. The target audience will see their own feelings reflected in Diana, and will easily be able to navigate the adorable art.

– Kathleen

Hale, Shannon, Dean Hale, and Victoria Ying. Diana: Princess of the Amazons. 2020.

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