NOVEMBER 2020 - AudioFile
Adenrele Ojo establishes distinct voices for the four main characters and the robust cast of supporting characters in this sci-fi audiobook. In 1950s Monterey, California, U.S. residents are called upon to watch the night skies for Russian bombers. Ojo’s performances of John, Bunny, Teddy, and Caroline offer an empathetic window onto four teenage skywatchers—each hailing from a different racial and socioeconomic group—whose lives become entwined after they track the whereabouts of a UFO they witnessed crashing in the woods. If you’re someone who appreciates a bit of theoretical physics and an extraterrestrial story, don’t miss Ojo’s performance of SKYWATCHERS. G.P. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine
From the Publisher
Praise for Skywatchers:
"An expertly crafted genre mash-up of sci-fi, historical fiction, and mystery, with a dash of thriller that will keep readers racing towards the end. A unique and original tale that will appeal to a wide variety of teens. A must-have for all teen collections." —School Library Journal
"Arcos has crafted an excellent mystery, with a hook in the compelling cast and just enough hints to keep readers guessing." —Booklist
"The historical time period, astute character development, and suspense-filled writing will draw readers in." —Kirkus Reviews
"With its multiple elements of romance, the evolving and complex relationships, and its speculations about mind control, aliens, time travel, and alternate universes, many readers, especially science fiction fans, will be drawn into the story." — School Library Connection
Praise for We Are All That's Left:
* "A multilayered view of tragedy and its repercussions." —Publishers Weekly, starred review
* "This complex, compelling story takes readers on a deep dive below the surface, exposing both the fragility of life and the redemptive bonds of love." —Booklist, starred review
Praise for Crazy Messy Beautiful:
"This satisfying and unconventional love story explores the various meanings of the word." —Kirkus Reviews
"Arcos has written a classic story of a budding artist finding out the reality behind the artifice, and does so while keeping a wonderful sense of humor." —Booklist
"Arcos capably probes the mysterious without attempting to solve it as Neruda discovers the difference between crushing on someone he doesn't know and loving someone he does, learning that friendship, too, is a kind of love." —Publishers Weekly
School Library Journal
08/01/2020
Gr 9 Up—In the summer of 1952, seven kids have volunteered for Skywatch club and they scan the sky looking for Russian threats in the midst of the Cold War. Close friends Teddy and John, along with pretty girl Caroline and New York transplant Bunny, chase mysterious lights into the woods, and days later only three of them return. As they struggle with not remembering what happened, they each discover a strange bump in their ear and skills they didn't have before. Sci-fi aficionados and fellow club members Oscar and Frank decide the answer might be aliens, and offer to help the trio recover their memories and figure out why Teddy never came back. Each character is a richly created individual with issues in their past they are fighting to move beyond; including John, whose Japanese heritage has him trying to fit in, and Caroline, who lost her younger brother to drowning. The group learns they must trust and rely on one another if they are going to get to the truth. This book is an expertly crafted genre mash-up of sci-fi, historical fiction, and mystery, with a dash of thriller that will keep readers racing towards the end. VERDICT A unique and original tale that will appeal to a wide variety of teens. A must-have for all teen collections.—Rebecca Greer, Hillsborough County P.L. Coop., FL
NOVEMBER 2020 - AudioFile
Adenrele Ojo establishes distinct voices for the four main characters and the robust cast of supporting characters in this sci-fi audiobook. In 1950s Monterey, California, U.S. residents are called upon to watch the night skies for Russian bombers. Ojo’s performances of John, Bunny, Teddy, and Caroline offer an empathetic window onto four teenage skywatchers—each hailing from a different racial and socioeconomic group—whose lives become entwined after they track the whereabouts of a UFO they witnessed crashing in the woods. If you’re someone who appreciates a bit of theoretical physics and an extraterrestrial story, don’t miss Ojo’s performance of SKYWATCHERS. G.P. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
2020-05-17
A group of teen Skywatchers in Cold War–era Monterey, California, go missing after they see a strange light in the sky.
The teens are members of the Skywatch club, based on the real-life Ground Observer Corps volunteers who watched the skies, reporting any weird observations. One night Teddy, John, Caroline, and Bunny spot a mysterious light in the woods and follow it. They go missing for days and reappear one at a time with no memory of what happened. Except Teddy never comes back. Weirdly, Bunny now has the ability to speak Mandarin, John is a piano virtuoso and a lethal fighter, and Caroline has gone from squeamish to administering competent first aid. Through flashbacks, the mystery of what occurred slowly unravels. The first half of the novel is evenly paced and well-plotted. The historical time period, astute character development, and suspense-filled writing will draw readers in. However, the latter half falls apart, weighed down by exposition, and this mélange of science-fiction tropes never quite coalesces. Time travel, parallel universes, and aliens are all bandied about as explanations for the group’s disappearance, but Arcos never lands comfortably on any of them. Scientific theories abound, and staggering infodumps make the novel difficult to slog through. The rushed ending doesn’t feel well earned and will leave readers unsatisfied. John is Japanese American, Bunny is Puerto Rican, Teddy is Italian American, and Caroline is white.
A failure to launch. (Science fiction. 12-adult)
