Meet Lucky Linderman, a bullied and nearly suicidal teenager. Lucky stays sane through a vivid dreamscape that plays in his mind. In his dreams, he attempts to rescue his grandfather, a POW-MIA, from the Vietnamese jungle. In reality, Lucky and his mother flee to Arizona where Lucky gains some much needed perspective. Kirby Heyborne makes Lucky’s fantasies believable. With an intimate reading, Heyborne keeps listeners inside Lucky’s world rather than at a distance. Heyborne’s biggest challenge is not the dream shifts but the temporal shifts that take place as Lucky revisits his freshman year. Heyborne speaks in an even, contemplative voice, introducing each section clearly, but the timeframes are still confusing. His low-key reading does not always amplify the violence of the jungle scenes, but the story’s bully is properly menacing. Overall, Heyborne delivers a powerful, inventive story of redemption. C.A. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine
Chances are, if you’re a reader, you’re also a dreamer. Books, much like dreams, have that wonderful ability to transport you someplace magical. Epic fantasy realms where you can fly, breathe underwater, fight dragons. Intense visions of the future with galaxy-spanning space battles. Or you know, just a world where that certain someone is as smitten […]
Despite the questioning nature of the name “A.S. King,” the author’s evocative, unique, magical-realism-inflected works are often the answer—whether you’re looking for a thoughtfully written work with multiple perspectives (Please Ignore Vera Dietz), or a stellar LGBT addition to your YA shelves (Ask the Passengers). And now, King is back with Glory O’Brien’s History of the Future, about a girl who develops the […]