Brightstorm by Vashti Hardy

Abstract

Reviewed by: Brightstorm by Vashti Hardy Natalie Berglind Hardy, Vashti Brightstorm; illus. by George Ermos. Norton, 2020 [352p] (A Sky-Ship Adventure) Trade ed. ISBN 978-1-324-00564-3 $18.95 E-book ed. ISBN 978-1-324-00565-0 $17.48 Reviewed from galleys R Gr. 4-7 Twelve-year-old Arthur and Maudie are the twin children of great explorer Ernest Brightstorm, and when they receive news that he has perished on an expedition to South Polaris and also sabotaged a fellow explorer, they decide to clear their father's name and complete his mission. Maudie is a future engineer, who made her brother an iron arm to replace his missing one, and Arthur is an avid reader; together, they have the skills to discover what's causing disaster at South Polaris and earn back the respect of the community. This UK import joyfully dives right into its steampunk aesthetic with sky ships, clever inventions, and Victorian-inspired clothing. Arthur and Maudie are fully developed characters who survive bandit attacks, thought-wolves, and life-threatening sabotage; the plot has a delicate balance of action versus exposition. The illustrations sometimes contain some frustrating contradictions with the text, but they're cute and appropriately steampunky. Overall, it's a novel of grandeur and action likely to grab junior steampunks. Copyright © 2020 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois