The New York Times Book Review - Laurel Snyder
Katherine Applegate may be best known for the Newbery Medal-winning novel The One and Only Ivan, but she is also the writer who gave us the young adult science fiction series The Animorphs. Her new book…calls to mind both accomplishments as it blends careful and often lovely prose into a wild, fast-paced fantasy…Perhaps the most powerful thing about Endling: The Last is that the characters are capable of serious wrongdoing as well as genuine goodness…As these characters are threatened or empowered and come to know one another better, their instincts and relationships shift, and so does our understanding of them. We see that almost anyone has the capacity to become a hero or a villain…Readers will fall in love with Byx and race with her through Nedarra, breathless and eager, thinking deeply all the way.
From the Publisher
★ “Applegate effortlessly constructs her fantasy world, briskly moving readers through its imaginative details while creating winning, unique characters. This epic series starter is a bracing, propulsive read that will be a challenge to keep on the shelf.” — ALA Booklist (starred review)
★ “Fantasy lovers are in for a treat with this smartly paced, enthralling adventure. The heart and courage Byx and her companions must find as they stand up against unimaginable odds will inspire and delight. A sweeping fantasy epic that will have readers clamoring for a follow-up.” — School Library Journal (starred review)
★ “Applegate skillfully builds a fully realized world of intrigue and wonder without ever letting up on the story’s quick pace. Themes of genocide, conservation, and magic are interwoven, providing thought-provoking questions for astute readers. A savvy choice for readers of fantasy.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
★ “A suspenseful, tautly drawn quest.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Endling: The Last blends careful and often lovely prose into a wild, fast-paced fantasy. Readers will fall in love with Byx and race with her through Nedarra, breathless and eager, thinking deeply all the way.” — New York Times Book Review
“The first book in a new series, this volume will whet readers’ appetites for more of Byx’s fascinating world and the next stage of her quest. Give this to lovers of animal fantasies and environmentally minded readers.” — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
Praise for The One and Only Ivan: ★ “Will capture readers’ hearts and never let go. A must have.“ — School Library Journal (starred review)
★ “Exemplifies everything youngsters need to know about courage.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
★ “Animal-loving youngsters and their adults will find plenty of food for thought in Ivan’s extraordinary story.” — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books (starred review)
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books (starred review)
★ “Animal-loving youngsters and their adults will find plenty of food for thought in Ivan’s extraordinary story.
New York Times Book Review
Endling: The Last blends careful and often lovely prose into a wild, fast-paced fantasy. Readers will fall in love with Byx and race with her through Nedarra, breathless and eager, thinking deeply all the way.
ALA Booklist (starred review)
★ “Applegate effortlessly constructs her fantasy world, briskly moving readers through its imaginative details while creating winning, unique characters. This epic series starter is a bracing, propulsive read that will be a challenge to keep on the shelf.
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
The first book in a new series, this volume will whet readers’ appetites for more of Byx’s fascinating world and the next stage of her quest. Give this to lovers of animal fantasies and environmentally minded readers.
Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
The first book in a new series, this volume will whet readers’ appetites for more of Byx’s fascinating world and the next stage of her quest. Give this to lovers of animal fantasies and environmentally minded readers.
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
The first book in a new series, this volume will whet readers’ appetites for more of Byx’s fascinating world and the next stage of her quest. Give this to lovers of animal fantasies and environmentally minded readers.
Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books (starred review)
★ “Animal-loving youngsters and their adults will find plenty of food for thought in Ivan’s extraordinary story.
Kirkus Reviews
★ 2018-02-19
What do you do when you're the last of your kind?Applegate transports her readers to a new land, one inhabited by numerous sentient species, six of which have fought to the top of the food chain: humans, dairnes, felivets, natites, terramants, and raptidons. In this world, readers meet Byx, a dairne—a doglike creature that walks erect, glides like a flying squirrel, and has opposable thumbs—on the day she becomes the last of her species. It's also a day when Byx meets two other creatures: Tobble, a wobbyk, with large ears and a short round body, and Khara (short for Kharassande), a 14-year-old, brown-skinned human girl who pretends to be a boy so that she is not limited by the gendered rules of human society. Bonded through lifesaving acts, the three embark on a journey to find Ferrucci the Gharri, a scientist and scholar who may be able to protect Byx from a human emperor who is hellbent on killing off her entire species. Applegate skillfully builds a fully realized world of intrigue and wonder without ever letting up on the story's quick pace. Themes of genocide, conservation, and magic are interwoven, providing thought-provoking questions for astute readers and educators.A savvy choice for readers of fantasy; individual readers and book clubs will love it and demand to know when the sequel will be available. (Fantasy. 8-11)
