Rereading Kiki Strike: Inside the Shadow City by Kirsten Miller

Until the age of twelve, I led what most people would consider an unexceptional life. My activities on an average day could be boiled down to a flavorless mush: I went to school, I came home, I took a bath, and I went to bed. Though I'm certain I didn't realize it at the time, I must have been terribly bored.

Kiki Strike is definitely one of my favorite middle-grade novels. Set in New York City, Ananka Fishbein lives a normal life, until she ventures into a sinkhole near her apartment. She discovers the Shadow City, an underground city beneath New York that has been undiscovered for years. She also meets Kiki Strike, a tiny girl with white hair who wears only black and rides a Vespa. Kiki Strike is a mysterious character who certainly knows a lot about everyone and the Shadow City. Kiki and Ananka form the "Irregulars", a group of girls who explore the Shadow City. Betty Bent is a master of disguise, Luz Lopez is a mechanical genius, Deedee Morlock a chemical genius, and Oona Wong a master hacker and forger. Suspicious things are happening, and it's up to the Irregulars to get to the bottom of them.

I love this book. It's easy, but a fun read, about girl power. At the end of each chapter, Ananka gives tips about different things, like how to spot a lie, be a detective, give first aid, and do a little lying yourself. I enjoyed reading those, and since I love New York, this book is a good one for me. Also, the neighborhood that most of the action takes place in is really familiar to me, which I just noticed on rereading the book.

Read Kiki Strike: Inside the Shadow City:

• if you like books set in New York
• if you like books about underground/hidden cities
• if you like books with girl power
• if you like mystery

387 pages.

 

Outstanding Book That Will Stay On My Bookshelf For Rereading (jf I own it)!