Stork

October 4, 2010
Virulent, communicable cradle cap is an improbable candidate for the next big paranormal trend, but that is the manifestation bestowed upon 16-year-old Kat Leblanc, newly relocated to Minnesota from California and in revolt against everything in her new life. Kat is a fashion diva—arrogant, sharp-tongued, and hurting from her parents' divorce. After an impulsive episode in a backseat with someone else's boyfriend, she's also a social outcast. The only acceptance she finds is among a group of strange old women who acknowledge that she is a "Stork"—one who mystically chooses which women will become pregnant. Kat's outbreaks of cradle cap, "scratching my darn head until blood and pus trickled down," call the group to meet ("Once you start scratching, we will all get the cap"). It's a strange and gross misstep, as the book strains for novelty while Kat works her way through romantic minefields and the blossoming of her powers. First-time author Delsol is more than capable of writing convincing imaginative scenes, but they form more of a bumpy patchwork than a well-paced whole. Ages 12–up.

January 1, 2011

Gr 7 Up-Katla Leblanc has recently moved from LA to northern Minnesota, the ancestral home of her mother's family. The story immediately takes on a magical twist when she is summoned to the scary basement of a seemingly abandoned fabric shop only to find a chair being held for her among a circle of old women. It's a secret meeting of the Aslendigas Storkur Society-storks who recommend and vote on the placement of new souls in "vessels." Couple that with the new boy who apparently knows her from "before," and you have the making of a breathtaking urban fantasy. Delsol uses colloquialisms and rich language to create vivid characters and detailed settings. The inclusion of Nordic mythology and a sense of fate add to the tenor of mysticism, and the two young men in Katla's life, one of whom might be posing a danger to her, add interest and suspense.-Leah Krippner, Harlem High School, Machesney Park, IL

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 1, 2010

In this intriguing debut, a fashion-conscious California teen moves to northern Minnesota and has trouble fitting into her new surroundings, especially when she learns that she has supernatural powers. Katla is 16 and can't imagine how she'll survive in the backwater town where her grandfather lives. Soon after arriving, however, she learns that she is a "stork," the youngest of a group of white witches who have the power to decide which woman in her town will become pregnant. As Katla struggles with this bizarre twist in her fortunes, she also tries to adjust to her new school and cope with the attentions of two boys. Obnoxious Wade won't leave her alone, and mysterious Jack claims some shadowy connection with her. Delsol rather deftly weaves the two strands of her story together, revealing layers of back story as she builds suspense. Katla comes across as a breezy, bright teen who finds herself overwhelmed by the increasingly odd circumstances of her life but learns that she can cope. Skillfully written and quite engaging. (Paranormal romance. 12 & up)

(COPYRIGHT (2010) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

October 15, 2010
Grades 7-11 When her parents divorce, 16-year-old Katla Leblanc and her mother leave Los Angeles for the tiny rural Minnesota town where her mother grew up. Fashionista Katla misses Starbucks and shopping but is soon absorbed with her inadvertent and unwanted induction into the Icelandic Stork Society, an ancient order of local women who pair up unborn babies with would-be mothers. Then theres Jack Snjosson, the gorgeous, brooding farm boy who seems fascinated with Katlawhen he is not being rude and distant. (It turns out that Jack and Katla have met before, in a traumatic near-drowning accident five years earlier.) This snappy, lighthearted supernatural romance blends Norse mythology and contemporary issues with an easy touch. Although not as deep a read as something from Shannon Hale or Donna Jo Napoli, Delsols debut novel offers an engaging, humorous narrative voice along with the comfortable predictability of the folklore on which it draws.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)