The Legend Of Koolura / Michael L. Thal

Reviewed by: ?wazithinkin

Genre:  Fantasy / Middle Grade

Approximate word count: 35-40,000 words

Availability    

Kindle  US: YES  UK: YES  Nook: NO  Smashwords: NO  Paper: YES

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Author:

Michael L Thal lives in Sherman Oaks, CA. He's the proud father of two adult daughters, Channie and Koren, and the grandfather of Arielle and Shaye.

Mr. Thal is an accomplished freelancer, is the author of The Legend of Koolura and Goodbye Tchaikovsky. He has written and published over eighty articles for magazines and newspapers including Highlights for Children, The Los Angeles Times, and San Diego Family Magazine. He is also a reviewer here at BigAl’s Books and Pals, you can learn more about him at Goodreads.

Description:

Koolura is a sixth grade Armenian girl, she and her father have relocated so often she has few community ties. Here, at her new school, for the first time she feels right at home. Koolura isn’t an ordinary girl. She has what every child dreams. She has the COOL. 

Will Koolura realize and learn to use these powers to stop her stalker who is determined to retrieve her unrealized COOL powers with the mysterious decoolerizer before it is too late?

The hour approaches for her final confrontation with her nemesis, the stalker believed to be responsible for her mother’s death.

Appraisal:

Koolura is a pretty savvy kid for a sixth grader, she is kind, smart, and just wants to fit in. Most of the story is told through her eyes so we know her thoughts and feelings. As her COOL powers are starting to kick-in, she becomes more conscientious about her surroundings along with developing insight into her classmates’ personalities and the problems they are trying to cope with as well as her own. Michael Thal has done a good job simplifying the dynamics of relationships so that middle-grade-aged children will have a better understanding of how people cope or struggle differently with the same problems.

I was proud of Koolura when she decided she liked the people and community she lived in and didn’t want to move again despite the threat of her stalker. Then I became frightened for her safety when she decided to face this man on her own. He was after all one twisted sociopath and we were allowed to view parts of the story through his eyes also.

I did feel like the story dragged a bit in the middle and I wished there was more time devoted to Koolura testing and experimenting with her developing COOL powers. Other than that this story is packed full of life lessons that will enhance developing minds of young readers everywhere.

Format/Typo Issues:

No significant issues.

Rating: **** Four stars