Children of the Flying City

 

My Thoughts:

This action packed first book reads like a Lemony Snicket story in that  the narrator speaks directly to the reader. He warns us, in fact that things will go wrong and we should stop reading, which of course, forces me to read on. It also quickly pulls readers into the street life of a band of orphans banding together to steal enough to eat and pay tithe to the boy "Total King." 

Milo Quick, the leader of his group was brought to Highgate when he was five. Although not quite 13, he is responsible for a family of children, including Dagda, also called Mouse, a "12-year old girl" who unbeknownst to the crew has been 12 for hundreds of years,  and his backup "man" Jules. What he doesn't know is that ever since he arrived in Highgate, there have been powerful men paying The Sandman to both let Milo Quick grow up to be a boy on the streets as well as protect his life should harm come to him. This story is comfortably familiar like Oliver Twist meets Blade Runner.

When we enter the flying city, war is coming in the form of an Armada just outside the gates. These orphans, though, canʻt be bothered by grown up problems. They are just trying to survive. When Milo Quick is called to show up in the court of the Total King, he finds out that the captain of a flying mail ship has just snuck in and revealed Miloʻs real name. They have orders to take him alive  so to stay hidden, the Total King wants Milo and his gang to provide more tithing from their spoils. This starts the series of "unfortunate events" for these groups. Not everyone survives and the story does not end with this book, but it is a fantastic ride: emotional, gripping, sweet and horrifying. Keep reading.

From the Publisher:

Brought to the flying city of Highgate when he was only five years old, orphan Milo Quick has never known another home. Now almost thirteen, Milo survives one daredevil grift at a time, relying only on his wit, speed, and best friends Jules and Dagda.

A massive armada has surrounded Highgate’s crumbling armaments. Because behind locked doors—in opulent parlors and pneumatic forests and a master toymaker’s workshop—the once-great flying city protects a powerful secret, hidden away for centuries. A secret that’s about to ignite a war. One small airship, the Halcyon, has slipped through the ominous blockade on a mission to collect Milo—and the rich bounty on his head—before the fighting begins. But the members of the Halcyon’s misfit crew aren’t the only ones chasing Milo Quick.
 
True friendship is worth any risk in this clever, heart-racing adventure from award-winning author and journalist Jason Sheehan. Sheehan weaves together wry narration and multiple points of view to craft a richly imagined tale that is dangerous and surprising, wondrous and joyful.

Author: Jason Sheehan

Publisher: Dutton Books for Young Readers

Publication date: March 15, 2022