Yelchin, Eugene. The Haunting of Falcon House.

Yelchin, Eugene.  The Haunting of Falcon House.  Henry Holt/Macmillan  2016      310p    $15.99  ISBN 978-0-8050-9845-7     elem/ms  Fantasy  VG-BN

In this tale-within-a-tale, Lev, a young Russian nobleman of the early 20th century, aged about twelve, is sent to live with his eccentric aunt in St. Petersburg, where he encounters the ghost of a servant boy who served his grandfather. Only by breaking a curse put on the ghostly serf can Lev resolve the story’s mystery, finish a drawing he had started with his mother, and release the ghost from its misery. The story brings to mind some classics of Russian literature, such as the stories of Gogol and Tolstoy, with its descriptions of Tsarist Russian life and its wry humor. The characters are interesting and quaint, the sentences old-fashioned and eloquent, and the plot twisted and fanciful. The author sprinkles his own wonderful drawings throughout, giving them the look of old documents that have been slightly damaged by age. In the back, there are footnotes pertaining to Russian history which will be helpful to the young readers who get into the novel. The novel, like Yelchin’s previous work, will appeal to readers who are intellectually open to immersing themselves in Russian culture.  Recommended for upper-elementary and middle-school students who are into multicultural stories and fantasy.

Summary: A young nobleman in Tsarist Russia is sent to live with his aunt in an old gothic mansion, where he encounters ghosts and learns about his family’s secrets from the past.                      

Ghosts-Fiction, Russia-Fiction                                                                                  --Carol Kennedy

Lane, Andrew. Black Ice.

Lane, Andrew.  Black Ice. (series: The Sherlock Holmes Legend Begins)  Macmillan/Farrar Strauss  2011  278p  $17.99     ISBN 978-0-374-38769-3   ms/hs  Mystery/Detective  VG-BNS 

In 1868, teenaged Sherlock Holmes faces danger in a train station for the dead, a museum of curiosities, and downtown Moscow as he helps his brother, Mycroft, who has been framed for murder.  Third in the series (Sherlock Holmes: The Legend Begins), Black Ice follows the adventures of teenaged Sherlock Holmes as he tracks clues to solve a locked-room murder/mystery with diplomatic impact as far away from London as Moscow and which frames his brother, Mycroft.  With the help of his tutor, Amyus Crowe, Sherlock is able to clear Mycroft’s name, cleverly determining that Mycroft was drugged and the murder charge is a set-up.  But Mycroft buys into a conspiracy theory involving a vast American land purchase and takes Sherlock with him to Moscow to sort out matters.

Mystery lovers will enjoy fourteen-year-old Sherlock’s brilliant insights and evolving philosophy as circumstances mold him into the man he will become in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s tales.  Those who have read the previous installments in this series may miss characters featured in the other volumes (Matty, Virginia, Crowe).  Instead, Lane focuses on Sherlock’s relationship with Mycroft and introduces a new villain mastermind who is a worthy opponent for Sherlock’s developing skills. (There is no mention of Moriarty.)

Lane weaves elements of Victorian history and science into the story.  Teen readers will be fascinated by descriptions of the Necropolis Railway, which carried dead bodies from London to the country.  The museum in which Sherlock is attacked by a bird of prey is based on the author’s memories of the Passmore Edwards Museum in East London.  Artistic license must be granted the descriptions of mid-19th-century Moscow, as there is little in the way of documentation, according to Lane.  Still, several of the powerful personages Mycroft and Sherlock interact with in that setting are true historical figures, and contribute to an intriguing glimpse of a mysterious country and time period.

Even readers who are not fond of mysteries will be swept along by the fast-paced plot.  This is an exciting and entertaining story.

Sherlock Holmes, Murder-Fiction, Russia-Fiction             --Hilary Welliver

Pyron, Bobbie. The Dogs of Winter.

Pyron, Bobbie.  The Dogs of Winter.  Scholastic Press  312p  $16.99     978-0-545-39930-2 2012  ms/hs   VG-BN     Historical Fiction

This is a novel that portrays the struggle of many children in Russia after the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.  The economic situation was in tatters, and the safety net for the homeless and poor were gone.  Many parents had to abandon their children.  The people’s hardships and the spread of alcoholism, physical neglect, and gangs are all pictured in this story of a young boy named Ivan Mishukov who struggles to stay alive.  His struggle is even harder than that of other children because his mother taught him not to lie and steal.

Mishka is saved from the gangs of older boys by a pack of dogs.  They adopt him and care for him on a daily basis, like a real family.  Boy and dogs depend upon the other’s skills and aptitudes to survive the brutal Russian winter.  It is this interdependence that makes the story such a heartwarming read, especially since it is based on a true story.  Readers learn that a family can have many different types of members, and embody different types of love.

Street children-Fiction, Human-animal relationships-Fiction, Dogs- Fiction, Russia–Fiction                                    --Linda McNeil

Yelchin, Eugene. Breaking Stalin’s Nose.

Yelchin, Eugene.  Breaking Stalin’s Nose.  Henry Holt/MacMillan Children's Publishing Group,  2011.  151p  $15.99 ISBN 978-0-8050-9216-5     elm/ms (Grades 6-8).VG-BN Historical

     This unusual story introduces young readers to the oppression and fear of the populace in Russia under Stalin.  Sasha lives in Russia during the rule of Stalin.  He unwaveringly idolizes Stalin.  He is all set to join the Young Pioneers and then his father, who is in the Secret Police, is falsely arrested.  Sasha is forced to rethink his beliefs.
     In a society where anyone can accuse another person and send them to jail without trial or an attempt to find the truth, how easy it is to find an “outsider” in any situation. Sasha joins in on picking on the only Jew in his school, but you can tell he really doesn’t want to participate.  Then he himself becomes the “outsider”.  There are many lessons a student can learn from this book about compassion, true camaraderie, and the poison of false accusations.
This is a period of history that will be unfamiliar to most readers.  The author’s note does help set the stage.  It might be helpful to place this information as an introduction.
     The illustrations in black and white at times lend a comic tone to the story with the caricatures used.  At the end of the story they lend weight and solemnity to the words.
     The reading level appears simpler but due to the subject matter, this title should be for grades 6-8.             

Subject: Stalinist Russia - Fiction

Joan Theal

 

Another note on Breaking Stalin's Nose:

     This book relies heavily on the reader's familiarity with Gogol's classic short story "The Nose", which will be familiar to Russian readers, but not necessarily American readers.  It is my feeling that Yelchin or the publisher should have included a foreword briefly outlining the story of "The Nose" and acknowledging the connection between it and this story.

Carol Kennedy