The Remarkable Inventions of Walter Mortinson

February 1, 2019
A pair of preteen misfits escapes their lackluster town in pursuit of adventure in this debut middle-grade novel.As far as Walter, the widowed mortician's son, is concerned, nothing interesting ever happens in the dreary town of Moormouth. Covered in a smog that makes Moormouth as depressing as Dorothy's Kansas before she escaped to Oz, the inhabitants are as gray and spiritless as the landscape. For Walter, who is a talented inventor, everyone from the schoolteacher who intentionally mis-educates her students to his own mother conspires to thwart his ambition and force him to conform to the sameness all around him. A mysterious invitation from Flasterborn, a magicianlike fabled inventor, changes everything, and before long, Walter is stealing his mother's hearse and, along with Cordelia, his friend and fellow misfit, heading out of town toward his destiny. Sosna-Spear's debut novel contains elements of Oz and Harry Potter with a healthy dollop of Willie Wonka thrown into the mix. The author's love for the material and fondness for her characters are palpable, but occasionally the novel falls into the trap of telling rather than showing. While questions such as how Walter's father died and the depth of his connection to Flasterborn will titillate readers, the principal characters are not grounded enough at the beginning and occasionally feel two-dimensional. Walter has red hair and dark skin; Cordelia is default white and wears an eye patch.An earnest novel that celebrates courage and individuality. (Adventure. 8-13)

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February 18, 2019
Walter Mortinson, 12, decides to run away from Moormouth, his bleak factory town, after an unfortunate funeral incident leads his mortician mother to demand that he destroy his many miraculous inventions. Joined by his onetime friend Cordelia, who has her own reasons for leaving, he steals the family hearse and embarks on a strange and wonderful road trip to find the famed inventor Flasterborn, mentor to his deceased father. The meandering plot relies on some tenuous connections and drops a few too many threads. Oddly, it’s Walter’s mother, not the young protagonists, who emerges as the most interesting character—through the use of multiple timelines and points of view, Sosna-Spear skillfully alters both Walter’s and the reader’s perception of her as the book progresses. Striking scenes feature vivid descriptions of places such as a treetop city, playful and odd devices including a parade that travels in an endless loop, and characters who would be at home in a Roald Dahl novel. Despite the sparkling visuals and humor, loss and death are the real themes, explored effectively in many ways through this uneven yet thoughtful debut. Ages 8–12.