Middle Grade Review: Bravo Victor, by Jemima Pett

 

Title: Bravo Victor (Princelings of the East #6)
Author: Jemima Pett
Publisher: Princelings Publications, 2014. 181 pages

Summary:
Young Victor from the Inn of Seventh Happiness gets his own adventure in this 6th book in the Princelings series. He is off and about, tracking down a plot to import Wozna cola, and searching for Prince George, who has gone missing with his airplane. His adventures take us to new lands and include encounters with a number of interesting and mysterious characters, some familiar from other books in the series.

Review:
First, though I can't recall if I was sent a review copy or got it from Amazon, this is a book I eagerly awaited and am delighted to review. On the down side, reading it means that I am caught up with all the Princelings books--now I have to wait for Ms. Pett to write more books before I can read any more.

The book of course met my expectations in terms of quality of writing and editing, which are impeccable. The story was complex enough to hold my adult interest, though I think wholly suitable for middle grade children. The Princelings, like my own Ninja Librarian, straddle the age categories, being either children's stories disguised as adult fantasy, or vice versa, and appeal to both age groups. This book contains some tense situations, and a modest amount of violence, but nothing to distress either children or protective parents.

The adventure was gripping, and once I got started, I raced through the book to see what happened next. Again, though some elements of the story might be over a child's head, younger readers will find plenty to draw them in, and will probably just ignore the passages that deal with business (Victor is, after all, trying to become a sort of business guru). I'm not sure whether those slower moments are a good foil to the action or pull it down a little, but nothing is in the story that does not need to be there, so read on and enjoy the creativity of Victor and his creator!

Recommendation:
A fast, fun read with just the right amount of adventure and a little growing-up. I recommend reading all the Princelings books, and while they each stand alone, reading them in order can help a lot. So I recommend this for those who have read at least the first three books, and I recommend the whole series to anyone who enjoys a bit of light fantasy/alternative history and highly imaginative action. Oh, and guinea pigs, as all the characters are (rather anthropomorphic) guinea pigs.

Full Disclosure: I probably picked up a copy of Bravo Victor on a free day of my own volition, and received nothing from the writer or publisher in exchange for my honest review.  The opinions expressed are my own and those of no one else.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Mystery Monday: Restless in the Grave by Dana Stabenow

 

Title: Restless in the Grave

Author: Dana Stabenow

Publisher: Minotaur Books, 2012.  373 pages.

Source: Purchased ebook 

Summary:
Stabenow has yielded to temptation at last and brought her two Alaska detectives together in one story. Liam Campbell has finally met a crime, or a possible crime, he can't handle himself. His own wife is a key suspect, and what he most wants is for Kate Shugak to prove it wasn't Wy who messed with a fellow-pilot's plane. What Kate encounters, of course, is way bigger than either of them imagined.

Review:
This book has everything I've come to expect of a Dana Stabenow mystery: a complex plot, a modest amount of violence, sex, and a touch of humor that holds it all together. In addition, it has both of her star detectives, whom I like very much: PI Kate Shugak (and her sidekick Mutt, who is "only" half wolf), and Liam Campbell, sole representative of the Alaska State Troopers in Newenham on Bristol Bay.

I found the mystery compelling (and far beyond my ability to predict, though I picked up on a couple of connections that I knew had to go somewhere), and the violence is kept to a level I can live with. Since Kate and Jim Chopin, her Significant Other, spend the story on opposite sides of the state, the sex is also kept at a more tolerable level. [This may or may not be an issue for some readers, but I'm beginning to find Stabenow's sex scenes a bit over the top.]  I do get a little tired of male characters who have a magical sex appeal that makes even sensible and otherwisely committed women lose their heads. Of course, Kate and some others have the same effect on a lot of the male characters, so maybe this is a comment on Alaska?

In any case, as a long-time fan of Kate Shugak and Mutt, I greatly enjoyed their latest adventure, and have no complaints about the plot and story development.

Recommendation:
If you've read other Stabenow mysteries, read this. If you haven't, I recommend starting with Kate from the beginning. Each novel does stand alone, but there is a lot of backstory that has built up over 19 novels, and the read will be richer if you know the history. Besides, it's fun to watch Stabenow's style change and develop over the years. I do wholeheartedly recommend the series to anyone who likes mysteries with a bit of an edge (definitely not "cozies") but also just a touch of humor, in a great setting.

Full Disclosure: I purchased Restless in the Grave with my own money and of my own volition, and received nothing from the writer or publisher in exchange for my honest review.  The opinions expressed are my own and those of no one else.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Trekking the Cordillera Blanca, Part I

In lieu of my usual Friday flash fiction, for the next several weeks I will be posting photo-essays of our recent trip to Peru. I posted a summary of the whole trip and a few shots from our pre-trek dayhikes here.  This week, as titled: Trekking the Cordillera Blanca. It's Part I, because it was a 10-day trek and I'm hanged if I can do the whole thing in a single post of reasonable length.

The main purpose of our Peru trip was to do two major treks, in the Cordillera Blanca and the Cordillera Huayhuash (both are fairly popular and well-established routes). We did the treks with full support--not our usual approach, but it was a nod to age, altitude, and the local economy. Despite feeling a little bit lazy for doing it that way, we have no regrets. The passes were high, the knees are old, and we would have suffered carrying full loads over that route. Having someone else do the cooking was a real luxury for me, the chief cook on our usual trips! And being brought warm wash water and tea in my tent first thing every day was an enjoyable novelty.

Most treks in the area are based out of the city of Huaraz, as it is the main population center in the area, and has many tourist services, including restaurants that are safe for our pampered First-World guts. We enjoyed our stay there (at Mi Casa B&B, clearly catering to trekkers and, during our visit, research scientists), including shopping at the local artisan markets.  Alpaca wool products are all the thing--very light and warm, as well as beautiful.

The 5-hour drive from Huaraz to our trailhead left the pavement early on, and climbed over Portachuelo de Llanganuco. At 15,700' the pass offered views of Chacraraju (left) and Yanapaqucha mountains, as well as of Huascaran (highest in Peru but not shown here).

The trek started in the "town" of Vacaria, where we ate our sack lunches and watched the crew scramble to pack up all the gear necessary for 8 gringos and 6 staff (1 guide, 1 cook, and 4 wranglers, including a head wrangler and a gofer, who ended up being frequently deployed to keep up with and guide "los Tres Muchachos").

The first lesson on leaving the trailhead was that we have to go down in order to go up. Both because of geographical necessity and because the trails were there first of all to get the locals from town to town, they descend into every valley and climb back up around the base of the long ridges. So we began the trip by dropping several hundred feet from Vacaria into the valley and the town of Colcabamba.

Below we find Los Tres Muchachos--my two teen sons (on either side) and their 24-year-old cousin (in red shirt) in a typical attitude. These three were always out in the lead, and often (especially the older two) to be found climbing things. Our guide quickly realized that they needed their own guide, and deployed the young wrangler-of-all-work to keep up with them. At times, he sent the 56-year-old cook ahead with the boys, and he (a man of the hills with 30+ years as porter and cook for mountain expeditions) kept them humble by hiking them into the ground.

Our second day was a dayhike (well, we did move camp a short distance as well) to Punto Union (15,600'), part of the very popular 4-5 day Santa Cruz trek route.  We just enjoyed the summit and turned back to return to our longer route.

A typical camp scene (Camp 2). The clouds became a common afternoon feature, too, with rain often falling between tea time (5 p.m.) and dinner or beyond. We were lucky, though--it never rained on us while we were hiking! And with meals served in the large tent (to the right of the even larger rock), we could eat comfortably whatever the weather. Daily festoonings of the tents with laundry were also normal; we washed up whenever we could and (thanks to the donkeys) had enough clothes to let things take two or three days to dry.

 

Mornings could be glorious, however.  Here we are, having breakfast al fresco at Camp 4, in the Pishgopampa valley. It felt a bit weird to sit around at a table in the middle of such a place, but was undeniably more comfortable than sitting on the ground, especially given the amount of cow poop and donkey dung on the ground.

Morning sun could be fickle, though.  On Day 3, we woke to sun, climbed to fog and mist, and then enjoyed several hours of mostly sun.

It was probably at this spot, on the third day, that I realized to what extent I could kiss my knees goodbye! For the record, the only days (besides the first half-day) we didn't go over a pass. . . we went over two.

Halfway through the trek, we dropped (after going over two passes) into Huilca, where two or three houses constituted the "village," with far more sheep and alpaca than humans. There were a few people about, including this man weaving at a back loom.

 

A pair of alpacas discussing the visitors in their pasture.