Birdbrain (Kelli Anne Hawkins, HarperCollins)
In her return to middle-grade fiction, Kelli Anne Hawkins delivers another madcap caper for 10- to 12-year-olds that has puns aplenty and some genuine chuckles. Hadley Boggs is 11 and not so different from all the other kids, although she is homeschooled in a caravan with her wildly inventive (although spectacularly unsuccessful) dad Barry, and their savvy budgie, Mr Beaks. After another of her father’s money-making schemes flops, they are delighted to be whisked away to a small European country called Ludrovia, where Barry is next in line to the throne following the untimely demise of his mother and six elder siblings. They settle into a life of luxury and Hadley finally has the chance to make some friends—but all may not be as it seems. A nefarious Texan, a mysteriously ineffectual maid and a lot of dancing goats are just a fraction of this action-packed novel. The style can only be described as extravagant: puns, similes and farcical character traits are crammed onto every page. Imagine mashing together The Emperor’s New Groove and The Princess Diaries and you’ll be in the ballpark. If you had to dig for themes, friendship, loyalty and trusting your gut come to mind, but to best enjoy Birdbrain, you have to embrace its silliness.
Annie Waters sells books, writes about books and podcasts about books.
