The Other Side of the Sky

August 10, 2020
Coauthors Kaufman and Spooner (the Unearthed duology) reunite for this propulsive, tender-hearted duology opener, which juxtaposes the fallibility of religion with the power of faith. Centuries ago, Prince North’s ancestors launched archipelago Alciel into the sky, where enigmatic engines keep it aloft. Alciel’s denizens assume the Below is now deserted, so North is shocked when Nimh rescues him after his glider crashes on the surface. Nimh’s people believe their gods retreated to the heavens last millennium, leaving behind a deity incarnate to protect them; when one living god dies, divinity settles on another. Shortly after Nimh—the current holy vessel—discovers a prophecy about a falling star–accompanied entity who can help remake her dying world, she witnesses North’s flaming descent. Nimh thinks North’s arrival is destiny, but North rejects the notion; he simply hopes that Nimh’s temple archives contain information that can help him return home. The teens’ wary alliance leads to romance, despite Nimh’s being forbidden from human contact. Turbid worldbuilding abounds, but evocative prose, escalating intrigue, and charismatic, predominantly olive- and brown-skinned characters with diverse sexual orientations and gender identities keep the pages turning. Ages 13–up. Agent: Josh Adams, Adams Literary.

August 7, 2020

Gr 9 Up-At 15, beautiful dark-eyed, dark-skinned Nimh is a goddess and magician, beloved by her people and desperate to save them from the ever-growing mist storms, which render humans insane when they don't outright kill them. Following a prophecy, she leads an expedition to find the Last Star. What she finds is North, and the smoking ruins of his glider. North is from the cloudlands where his brown skin marks him as one of the first families, and where Nimh's ancestors fled from the mists a thousand years ago. North is astounded, he has no idea that people still live in the Below, while Nimh is amazed to learn that the cloudlands exist. North's world has science, technology, and transportation in stark contrast to the Below, where there is only the most basic of machines. However, they do have magic, and Nimh believes that North is the Last Star prophesied to help her save the people of Below. But when the two discover the original prophecy scroll, everything Nimh has ever believed in changes beyond comprehension. This is a complex, intricately woven tale, placed in an intriguing and unique world. VERDICT This assionate story will thrill devotees of Kaufman and Spooner's "Starbound" series while also appealing to fans of Naomi Novik, Marissa Meyer, and Claudia Gray.-Gretchen Crowley, formerly at Alexandria City P.L., VA

Copyright 2020 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2020
Grades 8-11 Nimh and North are from two vastly different worlds. On the Surface, Nimh is the living goddess of her people, who are ravaged by a wasting magical disease. Though she's desperately lonely, Nimh must remain apart from her people, unable to touch them, and as she waits for her powers to fully manifest, she seeks guidance from ancient prophecies. In the sky, North lives in a city of machinery. He's desperate to forge his own way, but because of his station as a prince, the life that he wants?a relationship with the two people he loves, work developing new machinery?is out of his reach. Neither Nimh's people nor North's people knows that the other exists, but when an accident sends North crashing down to the Surface, he and Nimh come face-to-face with each other?and their destinies. Kaufman and Spooner, who also collaborated on the Starbound Trilogy, return with another richly drawn, tantalizingly romantic sf series starter. An especially action-packed back half will ensure readers come running back for the next volume.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)