07/04/2016
Yelchin (Arcady's Goal) sets his imaginative, layered mystery—prefaced by a tongue-in-cheek opening note on the story's purported origins—in late-19th-century Saint Petersburg. Twelve-year-old Prince Lev Lvov, who loves drawing and his mother in equal measure, has been called by his paternal aunt to take up his "noble duties" at the family's Falcon House. On his journey he has an unsettling experience: the face of an unknown boy replaces his image in the dark train window. At Falcon House, events unroll with an odd mix of creepiness and comedy: Aunt Olga and her servants are all broad characters who would be at home in a Dahl novel, while the mysterious boy comes and goes with disconcerting speed. As Lev begins to question the tradition of serfdom and his role as master of Falcon House, he also undergoes strange spells of uncontrollable sketching. Finally revealing Lev as an unreliable narrator, Yelchin leaves his fate open to speculation. Offbeat, smudged sketches play a peculiar yet effective counterpoint to the evocative language, and helpful historical notes are included. Ages 9–12. Agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (June)

"The story is both simple—a ghost story—and as complex as the country it rises from, offering glimpses of Russia's unique and brutal history . . . and its exploration of the role of art as a vehicle for liberation. . . . Eerie and effective." —Kirkus Reviews, starred review, on The Haunting of Falcon House

"The novel’s 56 mini-chapters are interspersed with beguiling ink sketches of everything from star-soaked skies and stark graves to pitchforks and dozing kittens. The narrative itself . . . is by turns wide-eyed, inquisitive, and earnest. This is a haunting at its very best." —Booklist, starred review, on The Haunting of Falcon House

“Yelchin (Arcady's Goal) sets his imaginative, layered mystery—prefaced by a tongue-in-cheek opening note on the story's purported origins—in late-19th-century Saint Petersburg. . . . Offbeat, smudged sketches play a peculiar yet effective counterpoint to the evocative language, and helpful historical notes are included.” -Publishers Weekly, on The Haunting of Falcon House

“Readers will enjoy the budding friendship, and the ghost story/mystery is compelling. . . . A unique historical mystery from a celebrated children’s writer and illustrator; a great option for classroom discussion and a jumping-off point for further exploration of Russian history." —School Library Journal, on The Haunting of Falcon House

"Two survivors of Stalinist oppression attempt to form a family in this companion to the 2012 Newbery Honor-winning Breaking Stalin's Nose . . . An uplifting, believable ending makes this companion lighter - but no less affecting - than its laurelled predecessor.” —Kirkus Reviews on Arcady's Goal

"Mr. Yelchin has compressed into two days of events an entire epoch, giving young readers a glimpse of the precariousness of life in a capricious yet ever-watchful totalitarian state.” —The Wall Street Journal on Breaking Stalin's Nose

“A miracle of brevity, this affecting novel zeroes in on two days and one boy to personalize Stalin's killing machine of the '30s. . . . Black-and-white drawings march across the pages to juxtapose hope and fear, truth and tyranny, small moments and historical forces, innocence and evil. This Newbery Honor book offers timeless lessons about dictatorship, disillusionment and personal choice.” —San Francisco Chronicle on Breaking Stalin's Nose

“This brief novel gets at the heart of a society that asks its citizens, even its children, to report on relatives and friends. Appropriately menacing illustrations by first-time novelist Yelchin add a sinister tone.” —The Horn Book, starred review, on Breaking Stalin's Nose

08/01/2016
Gr 5–8—When called to live in his family's ancestral home in St. Petersburg, Russia, 12-year-old Prince Lev is apprehensive. Becoming heir to a foreboding estate that he's never seen is daunting enough, and it is his first time leaving his mother. Add an aunt who can be harsh to say the least, the misrepresented memories of his glorified grandfather, and a night in a haunted study, and it's no surprise that Prince Lev is slightly anxious. But he soon develops a friendship with a mysterious boy who is hardly what he seems. Through a cast of thoroughly quirky characters (with often conflicting accounts), Lev learns the truth about his not-so-honorable grandfather, uncovering some unsettling family secrets and freeing the household from possession along the way. Yelchin introduces czarist Russia to young readers through the use of endnotes and footnotes, a novel albeit uncommon method for this readership. While enlightening, much of the historical content will be missed by children unfamiliar with this technique. Readers will enjoy the budding friendship, and the ghost story/mystery is compelling. Absolutely nothing is overlooked—from plot similarities in the author's introduction to the haunting illustrations, which appear to be drawn by the protagonist. Certainly a different sort of book, this is one that takes time to digest and fully appreciate. VERDICT A unique historical mystery from a celebrated children's writer and illustrator; a great option for classroom discussion and a jumping-off point for further exploration of Russian history.—Rebecca Gueorguiev, New York Public Library

★ 2016-04-13
A "found" Russian manuscript recounts a late-19th-century haunting.Prince Lev Lvov is apprehensive about leaving his beloved mother when he is summoned to St. Petersburg to take up his aristocratic responsibilities in the impossibly cavernous Falcon House. Upon arriving, the dreamy, artistic 12-year-old meets his termagant aunt and an odd assemblage of servants, all of whom remark on Lev's resemblance to his dead grandfather—in whose creepy study his aunt insists he sleep. Lev is unsettled to discover his hand possessed when he sits down to draw to comfort himself. Those drawings, smudged and torn, provide eerie accompaniment to the text. The mysterious young Vanyousha offers Lev companionship but provokes more questions. Adding a further layer of weirdness, Yelchin positions the story in a "translator's note" as a document he found as a child. The story is both simple—a ghost story—and as complex as the country it rises from, offering glimpses of Russia's unique and brutal history in its examination of the institution of serfdom, just recently abolished in Lev's time, and its exploration of the role of art as a vehicle for liberation. Middle graders unfamiliar with that history will be intrigued by the ghost story and the compelling setting, and explanatory notes both provide context and help to prepare them for such books as Candace Fleming's The Family Romanov (2014) and M.T. Anderson's Symphony for the City of the Dead (2015) later on.Eerie and effective. (Historical fantasy. 9-13)