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Reviewed by:
  • Carnival in a Fix by Philip Reeve
  • April Spisak
Reeve, Philip Carnival in a Fix; illus. by Sarah McIntyre. Random House, 2017 [224p] (Not-So-Impossible Tales)
Library ed. ISBN 978-0-385-38803-0 $15.99
Trade ed. ISBN 978-0-385-38800-9 $12.99
Reviewed from galleys R Gr. 2-4

In this newest entry in the buoyant Not-So-Impossible Tales series (last appearing in Pugs of the Frozen North, BCCB 1/16), Reeve and illustrator McIntyre once again offer a zippy fantasy for young readers. In this novel, Emily helps save the day when her beloved Funfair Moon, the amusement park on a moon where she has lived since she hatched from an egg (illustrations give Emily a useful combination of a tail and pointy ears with a human face and hands), is threatened. There’s a totally unfair inspector threatening to shut the place down, weird spiky things that are causing havoc, and a missing royal kid whose evil overlord father will cause utter destruction unless kiddo turns up soon. Gray and orange illustrations add humor and drama to the text, frequently accenting the most important aspect on each page, helping to break up the chapters, and keeping things moving along in concert with the bouncy text. The fact that Reeve manages to give his main bad guy a backstory with some significant longings of his own (he’s right that Office World, with its sensible, practical attractions, could be more successful if it were the only option available) is admirable given the minimal page count. Fans of the series will find this a worthy addition, and as the books are each standalone entries, new readers will dive right in with full understanding and appreciate having others to explore once they finish this one. [End Page 233]

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