The Last Panther

June 1, 2017
A cautionary tale about the perils of humanity's large ecological footprint. Eleven-year-old brown-skinned, "wild"-haired Kiri inhabits an ecologically damaged world. She lives on the edge of a swamp with her conservationist father, a white man named Martin, outside the fugee village. While collecting samples for him on the beach, she sees the villagers pull out a magnificent leatherback turtle, a "once-were creature" thought to be extinct, but she and Martin are unable to prevent its slaughter. After a fight breaks out between Martin and a villager, they are told to not intervene in fugee affairs because they are wallers--those who fled ecological damage to live in walled cities. When a panther Martin tracks later on dies, Kiri vows to somehow protect its cubs. But when Kiri falls ill, she must be treated at the waller city. Price of admission: three panther cubs. Can Kiri save the panther cubs so they can be returned to the wild and also help the fugee villagers and her father come together for the good of all? An author's note discusses the critical endangerment of Florida panthers and leatherback turtles and invites readers to join in creating a more sustainable world. The religious beliefs of the fugees, a multiethnic population, include a practice similar to Day of the Dead and a belief in spirits called "devis." A powerful tale of a future to be avoided. (Science fiction. 8-12)

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May 1, 2017

Gr 4-7-Mitchell's latest novel transports readers to a future where people are divided over the preservation of wildlife and their natural environment. Eleven-year-old Kiri lives outside the city's walls with her father in the jungle. Her father, a scientist, works diligently to protect wildlife in the jungle. Although Kiri loves her father, his job often puts them at odds with the nearby villagers. When Kiri encounters a panther that everyone thinks is extinct, she tries to shield the creature from the people in the village, who need the animal to survive, and her father, who wants to cage the panther in a zoo. Kiri's desire to safeguard the panther and bring understanding between the villagers and her father takes her on a dangerous and exciting adventure. Mitchell has crafted a story that will not only engage readers but also prompt them to ask important questions about conservation and what it means to protect wildlife. The future world Mitchell has created is not completely fleshed out, but the action and mystical encounters make the book difficult to put down. Teachers can connect this absorbing tale to lessons on ecology, endangered species, social structures, and more. VERDICT An important addition on a timely subject. Hand to fans of Carl Hiaasen's Hoot.-Aileen Barton, Choctaw Public Library, OK

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 1, 2017
Grades 3-6 In a not-too-distant future, Kiri lives in a very different world. She and her father, a waller, dwell in a swamp near the coastal village where the fugees live. Animals such as giraffes, narwhals, polar bears, and other once-were creatures now exist only in the books Kiri's dad keeps safely tucked away. When Kiri comes across a panther and her cubs, she promises she will do all she can to protect them, and in the process, Kiri learns what happened to many once-were creatures and the true nature of her father's work, as well as the root of some of the tension between her father and the villagers. Told in vivid, heartbreaking detail and filled with strong, developed characters, this novel, an eerie cautionary tale about the dangers of not protecting the environment, tackles an important theme in a compelling way. In Kiri, young readers will find a protagonist who, although at times afraid, finds the courage to do what she believes to be right. A fantastical tale with roots in real-world issues.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)