Look Out for the Fitzgerald-Trouts

February 8, 2016
Technically, the Fitzgerald-Trout children are stepsiblings, but in this quirky series kickoff—a sort of modern-day answer to the Boxcar Children—family is family. Abandoned by their various parents, Kim, Kimo, Pippa, and Toby live in a parked car on an unnamed tropical island, a setting that comes alive with its lush beaches and to-be-avoided forest filled with poisonous iguanas. Their mothers—one a wildly vain country singer, the other a stockbroker “so greedy that she wore diamonds all over herself”—stop by occasionally to give the children (barely) enough money to get by. But they are outgrowing the car and need a more permanent home. The Fitzgerald-Trouts’ struggle to find stability feels urgent throughout, but Spalding, a poet and screenwriter making her children’s book debut, balances the direness of their situation with over-the-top characters and humor-driven narration. If the story’s magic lies in its Dahl-esque approach to topics like homelessness and parental neglect, its heart lies in the relationship between these four mutually devoted children. Art not seen by PW. Ages 8–12. Author’s agent: Jackie Kaiser, Westwood Creative Artists. Illustrator’s agent: Emily van Beek, Folio Literary Management.

Four loosely related kids share different combinations of absent mothers and fathers as they quite capably raise themselves on the beach of a desert island. Narrator Caitlin Kelly enthusiastically recounts their adventures and misadventures as they try to find a house to replace the too small car they've been living in. Kim, Kimo, Peppa, and Toby each are given unique voices that mirror their personalities. Kelly's delivery is full of energy and expert pacing, adding nuance to the humor and giving the listener plenty of reasons to cheer for these quick-witted, resilient kids. The PDF file of map and illustrations enhances the listening experience, letting listeners enter the world of the amazing Fitzgerald-Trout family. N.E.M. © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine

April 15, 2016
Four children of complicated parentage live in a car on a tropical island and hunt for a place to call home. Kim, the oldest at 11, and Kimo, Toby, and Pippa have lived in the car since Kim was in first grade. Dr. Fitzgerald, father of all but Kimo, moved them into it to facilitate their work as his forced research assistants. After teaching Kim to drive--cans taped to her shoes help her reach the pedals--he abandoned them. They're relieved he's gone. Days, they attend school; nights, they sleep in the car, parked at the beach. The forest harboring deadly, blood-sucking iguanas excepted, the island's a stereotypical tourist destination. The boys' mother, Tina, a vain, selfish country singer, drops off money occasionally; the girls' mother, Maya, a miserly, crooked stockbroker, gives less. The children view both with mild dislike. Harsh circumstances and their own lack of affect make the children's adventures more grueling than enjoyable, more improbable than imaginative. Child abandonment, homelessness, and cruelty are portrayed as trivial yet rendered in fairly realistic detail by a Dahl-esque narrator whose whimsical tone is out of step with events. Misplaced humor, often adult-oriented, leaves a sour aftertaste, as when, played for laughs, Maya's sent to jail. The plot feels at war with itself, fantasy clashing with realism unsuccessfully. Here's hoping subsequent volumes find a better balance. (Fantasy. 8-12)

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May 1, 2016

Gr 4-6-Author and screenwriter Spalding ventures for the first time into middle grade literature with this tale of a hodgepodge family of kids (think the Boxcar Children) thrown together by a mix of DNA, circumstance, and absentee parents. The Fitzgerald-Trouts, led by oldest sibling Kim, start life with daily lists-at the top, finding a house. The siblings live in a car and occasionally get grocery and gas money from an assorted set of oddball parents (none of whom want to actually care for the kids full-time). Despite the sad circumstances, the kids are cheerful and the novel is amusing. Kim is warmhearted and motivated, and readers will root for the spunky youngsters. Upper-elementary and lower-middle school readers will relate to the kids' simple desires for a normal life, complete with goldfish in bowls and room to sleep.

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 15, 2016
Grades 3-6 Move over, Boxcar Childrenthe Fitzgerald-Trouts are here. Kim, Kimo, Pippa, and Toby are a cobbled-together family of four kids with a mishmash of four terrible parents who, for better or worse, only show up to drop off money. The rest of the time, the kids live in a little green car, roam around their tropical island home, and try to find a house. Kim, the eldest, feels it's her responsibility to take care of the rest of her siblings, and she tackles the challenge daringly. One gambit involves hiding in an IKEA-like store, and anotherthe most audaciousmeans driving through a treacherous forest populated by blood-sucking iguanas. Spalding's playful tone takes the edge off the neglectful parents and dire circumstances, largely thanks to the plucky, self-reliant kids who know (rightly) they are better off on their own. While a late-breaking reveal ushers in a bit of an abrupt change in tone, the episodic storytelling and intrepid, clever children nevertheless easily carry the plot, and a hint of further adventures happily signals a sequel. Illustrations not seen.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)