DISPLAY: Matthew Kirby

Author Matthew Kirby will be visiting the Provo City Library on Wednesday, August 30, at 7:00 to talk about his latest books. Why not get ready for his visit by reading some of his great children’s fantasy/science fiction?

The Clockwork Three
By Matthew Kirby
Scholastic Press, 2010. Fiction. 391 p.
As mysterious circumstances bring Giuseppe, Frederick, and Hannah together, their lives soon interlock like the turning gears in a clock and they realize that each one holds a key to solving the others' mysteries.

Icefall
By Matthew Kirby
Scholastic, 2011. Fiction. 325 p.
Princess Solveig and her siblings are trapped in a hidden fortress tucked between towering mountains and a frozen fjord, along with her best friend and an army of restless soldiers, all awaiting news of the king's victory in battle, but as they wait for winter's end and the all-encompassing ice to break, acts of treachery make it clear that a traitor lurks in their midst.

The Lost Kingdom
By Matthew Kirby
Scholastic, 2013. Fiction. 348 p.
On the eve of the French and Indian War, Billy Bartram and his naturalist father travel into the American wilderness in an airship--pursued by a party of French soldiers and haunted by a terrifying bear-wolf--on a quest to find the lost kingdom of the Welsh prince Madoc.

Spell Robbers
(The Quantum League #1)
By Matthew Kirby
Scholastic Press, 2014. Fiction. 263 p.
Ben Warner is invited to join a "science camp" led by a quantum physicist Dr. Madeleine Hughes, and with his new friend Peter he discovers the secret art of Actuation--the ability to change reality by imagining it differently--but he also finds that there are people willing to kill for that secret.

The Arctic Code
(The Dark Gravity Sequence #1)
HarperCollins, 2015. Fiction. 324 p.
The Earth is in the grip of a new Ice Age, and when twelve-year-old Eleanor's scientist mother disappears in the Arctic, Eleanor sets off on a dangerous journey to find her--and uncovers a mystery, a crime, and evidence that Earth has been visited by extraterrestrials.

Island of the Sun
(The Dark Gravity Sequence #2)
By Matthew Kirby HarperCollins, 2016. Fiction. 369 p.
Desperately searching for the other Concentrators that are fatally disrupting Earth's orbit, Eleanor and her companions are labeled as terrorists by G.E.T. forces that would eliminate all but a few select people.

Rogue World
(The Dark Gravity Sequence #3)
By Matthew Kirby
HarperCollins, 2017. Fiction. 400 p.
After the shattering new discoveries they made in Egypt, Eleanor and her friends unite in the desperate hope of saving the entire planet. They are preparing for a trek to the icy Himalayas, where they believe they’ll find the Master Concentrator and get a chance to end the threat of the rogue planet—one way or the other.

Comments

Review: Fowl Play

Fowl Play By Kristin O'Donnell Tubb New York: Katherine Tegen Books, 2024. Fiction 277 pages. Still reeling from her beloved uncle's death, Chloe Alvarez is comforted and confused when at his last will and testament reading, Uncle Will gifts her his African Grey parrot, Charlie. Charlie has a robust vocabulary and loves to make Alexa requests for her favorite songs, but when she starts saying things like, "homicide," and "cyanide," Chloe becomes convinced that Uncle Will may have met his demise by murder instead of a genetic disease, as was previously thought. Ultimately, bringing in her brother, Grammy, and Uncle Frank (and of course Charlie,) Chloe's ragtag and adoring family support her search for answers ---going on stakeouts, engaging in fast pursuits, and searching for clues. But as the suspects stack up and the mystery grows, Chole will learn that the process of death and grieving is complicated, and in the end her Uncle Will's words that, ...

Review: The Factory

The Factory By Catherine Egan New York, NY : Scholastic Inc., 2025. Fiction. 306 pages. Thirteen-year-old Asher Doyle has been invited to join the Factory, a secretive research facility in the desert which ostensibly extracts renewable energy from the electromagnetic fields of its young recruits. But Asher soon realizes something sinister is going on. Kids are getting sick. The adults who run the Factory seem to be keeping secrets. And the extraction process is not only painful and exhausting, but existentially troubling. Asher makes a handful of new friends who help him with an investigation that turns into a resistance, which turns into...a cliffhanger! The Factory is a page-turning sci-fi with multidimensional characters, an intriguing plot, and refreshingly straight-forward writing. Egan weaves in detail about climate crises and social unrest, making the story's dystopian setting feel rich and plausible. With its sophisticated themes and accessible storytelling, I would recomm...

Review: A Game of Noctis

A Game of Noctis By Deva Fagan New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2024. Fiction. 310 pages. On the island of Dantessa, social standings and wealth are determined by your place in the Great Game. If you keep on winning, you can reap treasures, power, and security for yourself and your family; but if you lose too many games, you'll be exiled to Pawn Island and a life of servitude. That's what happens to 12-year-old Pia's grandfather. Due to poor vision, he struggles to see the games, but also can't afford new eyeglasses without winning. When his score falls to zero, he is sent away. Desperate to bring him back, Pia joins a ragtag group of misfits to form a team for the annual game of Noctis. The game requires contestants to perform dangerous challenges in front of a live audience, and no one outside the wealthy Diamond District has ever won. Each member of Pia's team, the Seafoxes, has their own reason to compete, but if they're going to win they'll h...

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