ME AND MARVIN GARDENS

Pollution and other serious themes dominate this contemplative middle-grade novel. Obe Devlin wishes for the days before the new housing development destroyed the places he loved to play, before his best friend became his enemy, before his family lost their land. Kirby Heyborne narrates with a quiet deliberateness well suited to Obe's thoughtful personality, but his narration creates an underlying tension that is sometimes warranted, as when Obe is drawn into a turf war with the new kids and when Obe discovers a strange new species of animal that eats plastic--an animal he names Marvin Gardens. Sometimes, however, Heyborne's dark tone is misplaced. Even enjoyable moments with his sister; his new friend, Annie; or the remarkable Marvin Gardens often feel anxious and fraught. L.T. © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine [Published: MARCH 2018]