The Corps of the Bare-Boned Plane

If you liked the quirkiness of the Lemony Snicket stories you will find this book enchantingly delicious. Characters are perfectly drawn, the humor is subtle and unique, and the book as a whole is hard to put down. What a great movie it would make!

An accident leaves teen cousins Meline and Jocelyn parentless and they go to live with an unknown, eccentric uncle on his private island - there to discover a tragedy which brings them more fully in touch with their own grief and family connections. Their plans of escape are told in alternating chapters and makes for a vivid story packed with intrigue and revelations - a gripping, chilling tale perfect for leisure readers who demand action and insight.

Jocelyn and Meline are cousins with nothing more in common than a shared tragedy; the death of their parents. Now, both girls have been sent to live with their reclusive Uncle Marten on his private island. Jocelyn and Meline are both dealing with grief in their own way, while trying to adjust to their new surroundings. Uncle Marten seems scatterbrained and completely unable to properly interact with others, much less to offer support to the two traumatized girls. To help, Uncle Marten hires Mrs. Mendelbaum to serve as the housekeeper and Mr. Humdinger as the butler. Unfortunately, Mrs. Mendelbaum is consumed with her own personal losses and Meline is sure that Humdinger's lurking behavior is evidence of untrustworthy actions. Even the island they live on has a dark past. It was once used as the training grounds for pilots in a program that went terribly wrong. Now the island is littered with the wreckage of the planes that crashed during that program. And, Meline is sure that she and Jocelyn can build a plane of their own from the wreckage and escape from the island and their new lives. THE CORPS OF THE BARE-BONED PLANE is a wonderfully written story about how differently each person reacts when faced with grief and change. It is told from the viewpoints of four of the main characters: Jocelyn, Meline, Uncle Marten, and Mrs. Mendelbaum. In addition to the main characters, author Polly Horvath has woven together a rich mixture of people and plots to provide an enjoyable reading experience. Reviewed by: JodiG.

Oh, the wit and the quirky characters remind a bit of Lemony Snicket's Baudelaires and their too myriad unfortunate events, but there is a generosity of spirit, a undertow of flawed loving humanity here that leaves one refreshed and renewed. Polly Horvath knows well how to twist and turn a plot and to keep the reader turning the pages. Her humor is droll, if at times in a scratchy, not entirely comfortable way. This is not only great fiction for young adults, but great fiction; quite possibly worthy of another National Book Award and a Newbery nomination, at very least another ALA Notable Book. Readers enjoying this, will also enjoy her other titles such as THE CANNING SEASON, THE VACATION, and EVERYTHING ON A WAFFLE. Those who like the Lemony Snickets would likely enjoy the wit and irony here as well and there are some vague similiaries in tone and style to CHASING VERMEER, but Horvath always has her own voice --- one that readers of all ages would do well to listen to.