A Clatter of Jars
By:
Return to the world of A Tangle of Knots, where a camp for Talented kids just might be a recipe for disaster. Includes drink recipes.
ISBN: 9780399174995
JLG Release: Sep 2016
Sensitive Areas:
None
Topics:
Fantasy
, Magic
, Camps
, Social issues
, Friendship
, Family
, Siblings
Praise & Reviews
Starred or favorable reviews have been received from these periodicals:
The Horn Book Magazine, The Horn Book Guide^, Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly, School Library Journal
School Library Journal
When Liliana Vera arrives at Camp Atropos for Singular Talents, she does so with a heavy heart. Her brother Max should be with her, but three weeks before, she accidentally hurt him. No one knows it was her fault. Now Liliana is stuck dealing with the guilt, her secret about what really happened, and her annoyingly perky stepsister, Hannah. Camp At When Liliana Vera arrives at Camp Atropos for Singular Talents, she does so with a heavy heart. Her brother Max should be with her, but three weeks before, she accidentally hurt him. No one knows it was her fault. Now Liliana is stuck dealing with the guilt, her secret about what really happened, and her annoyingly perky stepsister, Hannah. Camp Atropos is for kids with “Talents,” abilities that are beyond what a human can normally accomplish. Lily can lift objects with her mind. Hannah makes drinks that evoke memories for people and bring them back to a moment clear as day. Not everyone has a Talent, though, and for many of the Fair, having a Talent is a lifelong dream. There is a black market of sorts, and the director of Camp Atropos is in over her head with dealing and stealing Talent rip-offs. If she’s not careful, she may endanger her campers and change the Talented world forever. Readers may remember other Talented characters from A Tangle of Knots, but it’s not necessary to have read it to keep up here. Camp director Jo is a complex and sympathetic villain, making an original story even more unique. The tale comes full circle sweetly, with a fun twist that connects lives from both books in an unexpected way. There is, perhaps, an overabundance of characters, each with his or her own special Talent, and a few too many plot lines, making the story a little hard to follow at times. Still, most readers who enjoy magical fantasy set in an otherwise realistic world will likely embrace these new characters. VERDICT Graff is a master of the magical realism genre, and this offering is worthy of a spot in any middle grade collection.—Mandy Laferriere, Fowler Middle School, Frisco, TX
Horn Book
Graff returns to the magical world introduced in A Tangle of Knots (rev. 7/13),
where citizens are either Talented (possessing gifts that range from asparagus
cooking to memory manipulation) or Fair, with no extraordinary abilities. Here,
children with Singular Talents attend summer camp at Camp Atropos, “a haven
for the most remarkabl Graff returns to the magical world introduced in A Tangle of Knots (rev. 7/13),
where citizens are either Talented (possessing gifts that range from asparagus
cooking to memory manipulation) or Fair, with no extraordinary abilities. Here,
children with Singular Talents attend summer camp at Camp Atropos, “a haven
for the most remarkable children in the world,” just outside Poughkeepsie, New
York. These include the five campers from Cabin 8: twin sisters Chuck and Ellie
(Talent: frog identification); brothers Renny and Miles (the former a mind reader,
the latter possibly Fair); and Lily (who has the ability to move objects with her
nose). Remarkable they are, but perfect they’re not, with campers jockeying to
show off their Singular abilities and using their gifts to substitute for real human
understanding and honest interaction. Each character struggles with truth, familial
love, and acceptance, as Talents are lost and found, relinquished and stolen,
borrowed and returned. And then there’s Fate, who also raises her head when least
expected, reminding readers that it’s not the talents we’re given but what we make
of them that creates happiness. betty carter
Book Details
ISBN
9780399174995
First Release
September 2016
Genre
Fiction
Dewey Classification
Trim Size
5 1/2" x 8 1/4"
Page Count
224
Accelerated Reader
Level 5.3; Points: 6;
Scholastic Reading Counts
Level 5.3; Points: 9;
Lexile
Level 800L
Format
Print Book
Edition
Hardcover edition
Publisher
Philomel
Potentially Sensitive Areas
None
Topics
Fantasy, Magic, Camps, Social issues, Friendship, Family, Siblings,
