Juniper Berry [Hardcover]

M. P. Kozlowsky (Author), Erwin Madrid (Illustrator)

Book Description

Release date: April 26, 2011 | Age Range: 8 and up | Lexile Measure: 700L (What's this?)

Juniper Berry's parents are the most beloved actor and actress in the world—but Juniper can't help but feel they haven't been quite right lately. And she and her friend Giles are determined to find out why.

On a cold and rainy night, Juniper follows her parents as they sneak out of the house and enter the woods. What she discovers is an underworld filled with contradictions: one that is terrifying and enticing, lorded over by a creature both sinister and seductive, who can sell you all the world's secrets bound in a balloon. For the first time, Juniper and Giles have a choice to make. And it will be up to them to confront their own fears in order to save the ones who couldn't.

M.P. Kozlowsky's debut is a modern-day fairy tale of terror, temptation, and ways in which it is our choices that make us who we are.

Editorial Reviews

Review

In a story at once harrowing and touching, Kozlowsky enlivens the narrative with a deft hand, melding imagery that recalls the work of Neil Gaiman, Lemony Snicket, and Hans Christian Andersen...This compelling read promises to draw reluctant and avid readers alike. (ALA Booklist )

The quirky plot (who knew brightly colored balloons could represent such dire consequences?) is nicely accented with a slightly out-of-time feel...Kozlowsky wisely builds toward a rich and complex climax worth these often-splendid characters. (Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books )

About the Author

M.P. Kozlowsky was an English teacher before becoming a writer. Juniper Berry is his first book. He lives in New York with his wife and daughter.

Product Details

• Age Range: 8 and up
  
• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Walden Pond Press (April 26, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061998699
• ISBN-13: 978-0061998690
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 6.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #854,458 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Modern Fairy Tale March 24, 2011

By Gypsi Phillips Bates VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

Subtitled "a tale of terror and temptation", Juniper Berry is a modern day fairy tale. Our heroine is the brave preteen, Juniper Berry. Juniper is the daughter of film actors, who have become very famous over the course of the past few years. The more famous they have become, the more odd they have acted and the more they have distanced themselves from her. She is sad and lonely and would willingly give up everything to have her old life back.

One day she spots a boy about her age, trespassing in her woods. Over the course of conversation with her new friend, she discovers that his parents, too, are famous and distant. Even worse: Giles has seen them doing something very odd in Juniper's woods.

Piecing together the unthinkable, Juniper and Giles set out to save their parents from whatever influence is causing this behavior. What they discover changes them both, and Juniper faces tough choices, terrible temptation, but comes through a true fairy tale heroine.

Juniper Berry is told from an omniscient narrator and occasionally uses words that I feel are probably not in the vocabulary of a 9-12 year old. This happens early in the book, though, and the narration evens out as the story builds. It has a good pace, and the story unfolds smoothly. The characters of Juniper and Giles are particularly appealing, making their weaknesses seem all the more vulnerable and believable. Juniper's parents are truly horrible, and the reader is able to feel Juniper's mix of hurt and confusion, making the redemption of said parents even sweeter.

Like most fairy tales, Juniper Berry has a moral, and it is spelled out very plainly at the end by the wood chopper (yes, there IS a wood chopper, told you this is a fairy tale!...), Dmitri: "There will always be temptation, wherever we go in life, with whatever we do. There will always be an easier way out. But there's nothing to gain from that. We have to overcome such urges; we have to be stronger. I fought hard and won."

While the moral of this story is a good one, it came across a bit preachy to me. I felt like this moral of resisting temptation and winning as a result was obvious from Juniper's actions and didn't need to be spelled out. However, I am not one of the targeted age-group; I am an adult reader.

This was Kozlowsky's first novel, and overall he did well. There are a few things (namely vocabulary and blatant moralizing) that I think could be improved, and I expect will be improved with his next publication. I hope he is published again soon, and would look forward to reading another of his fairy tales. Read more ›

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Beware the Red Balloon! June 5, 2011

By The Three Woods VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

Juniper Berry is a young girl of 11 who lives with her very famous mother and father in a sprawling mansion with extensive grounds. She misses the days when her parents were not famous and were more attentive to her. Lately, they have been acting very strangely towards her - almost animalistic- and Juniper is determined to find out why. Not being allowed to have friends or to speak to anyone other than her tutor (who is more interested in working for famous people than teaching her), Juniper is left to discover everything about her world through books and through the lenses of her various telescopes, spyglasses and binoculars. This has made her a very observant character that can see "truth" through her lenses. One day she meets a young boy, Giles, who has been having the same issues with his parents. Together they discover that a gnarled old tree, a raven, and red balloons are at the center of the mystery. One evening, the two venture out to the old tree to see what mysteries lie inside. The raven who always sits on the branch of the tree shows them how to open it's door to enter. Once inside, Juniper and Giles meet Skeksyl, a ghoulish and sinister man who trades red balloons filled with the answer to your dreams for a "breath." Giles quickly falls prey to his dream of becoming stronger while Juniper fights the temptation to give in to her dream of having her parents back with her by becoming a famous writer for them. Will she give in to the temptation as easily as her friend? Will she ever get her parents back? What exactly does the red balloons do to those who inhale the contents? Who or what is Skeksyl really? You'll have to find out by reading the book.

The story is full of detailed and imaginative beings and scenery.... The sinister character, Skeksyl, might give some young minds nightmares as he's very demonic. Parents should use discretion when following the book's recommendation of Grades 5 and up as it would be a little too intense for some young readers. Here are just a few instances of violence from the story:
Both Juniper and Giles are treated horribly by Juniper's mother -bordering on extreme child abuse. At one point, Juniper is shaken hard enough to make her head flop around. In another part of the story, Juniper's mother first grabs Giles about the neck and screeches at him. Later, she digs her nails into his arm while spouting out abusive language.
Juniper later discovers both her parents tearing into their arms and legs leaving deep and bloody scratches as they babble on about their lives.
After ingesting a red balloon, a victim's skin is described as "boiling" with grotesque features to the face, drooling while guttural noises escape their lips. Read more ›

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Very nearly 5 stars April 27, 2011

By Misty Braden

Format:Hardcover

When I came across this on Goodreads, it became one of those things that just takes over your brain. Or takes over my brain, anyway... Everything from the cover to the title to the fantastic little tag line just called to me. So when I was offered a copy out of the blue, of course I casually said, Oh, thanks but nah.... O_O Or HELLS YEAH. It was one of the two.
And when it came in the mail (so if you went with Choice 1, sorry, you lose), I promptly sat down and made short work of it. And though the beginning was a little rocky for me, I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Juniper Berry for me was interesting in that it pleased both my adult side and the 9 year old Misty that was obsessed with creepy books and made her mother worry that she had "unhealthy" reading habits (because apparently to moms, Goosebumps is acceptable only in small doses. A steady diet of it = serial killer, or something. Or, at least that's what meddling neighbors lead moms to believe. Moving on...) Reading it, I got the same impression I had when I read Coraline: that my younger self would have eaten this up. It was just creepy enough, and unflinching in its darker aspects, that it would have delighted me to no end. It had this fantastic dark circus feel, with fairy tale elements in there as well (hence it's inclusion in Fairy Tale Fortnight), but it still remained its own thing. There were certain little unexpected elements that delighted me (kid and adult) and gave it this great visual appeal, and I have always loved a book that makes you see what is going on and leaves you with lasting images. Certain quirky things are always going to pop into my head when I think of this book, and I love that. This is of course aided by the fantastic illustrations.... My copy, being unfinished, only had some of the illustrations, which means I'll have to track down a finished copy to see the rest. But from what I saw, they were perfectly suited to the text, and stylized nicely.

I mentioned Coraline earlier, and I want to bring it up one more time because the comparison doesn't end just in the fact that I liked it as an adult and know I would have loved it as a kid. It also reminded me of Coraline in that it was disturbing in the way that Coraline was disturbing. In Coraline, there was the Other Mother, and good lord, if she is not the creepiest character for a kid to read... And it's not just the black button eyes, or the eating of souls. She's disturbing because she is a parent (or, looks like one and pretends to be one, anyway). Though there is a villain in this (more on him in a minute), what ups the disturbing factor in this is the parents. You know - and Juniper knows - that they are good people, but that something is wrong. Having your parents do these strange dark things ups the creep out factor immensely, and I loved it.

But moving on to the actual villain of the piece, Skeksyl, my reaction to him was...interesting. In some respects, he's a very good villain. He's creepy, he's dark, he's tempting, and he has a raven for a sidekick. (Villain: '). But there was one thing that I found off-putting, and this is just because I'm me. I don't think kids would be bothered by this, but every time Skeksyl is described by Juniper, his nasally, high-pitched, screechy voice is mentioned, which just made me want to laugh. I can't take a villain seriously with a nasally, high-pitched, screechy voice (unless it's a wicked witch, and then, sure). I know that's minor and silly, but it affected my overall impression of the villain, and really, I just needed to share that with someone. So there. I could have done with a little more subtlety from him, too, but whatever, it's a kids book.

And Skeksyl was the only one that got on my nerves at all or made me question. I loved all of the other characters, especially Juniper. She's smart and quirky and strong, and above all else, she knows herself. She knows who she is and what she wants (which is kinda the point of the whole thing), and beyond just loving this personally, I think it sends a powerful and much-needed message to young readers. I love having a character for this age group who is so self-aware and confident in who she is. I love that she's not ashamed of her intelligence and her interests. Juniper knows who she is and says so proudly. The book as a whole is a great statement on insecurity and acceptance, and it's refreshing and welcome. That's why, if you know a kid who will be able to handle the darker elements, I would highly suggest recommending them (or gifting them!) this book.

Side note: I absolutely adore it when an author uses big words for young kids, and uses them without being condescending or explaining/excusing the word away. Just unashamedly using a word and meaning it. I love that. Respect your reader (and your reader's intelligence and inquisitiveness), and they'll respect you. Read more ›