They Set the Fire

March 10, 2023
Grades 4-6 The allegorical slant of Kraus's trilogy becomes even plainer in this closing episode as at least some of the teddy bears who came awake in the opener in a landfill called "Garden E" learn at last the horrible truth about why they were thrown away but find peace when their lonely, long sought "Creator" welcomes them to her mansion on "Revelation Road." Before that, though, there are adventures, narrow squeaks, and opportunities for selfless heroism aplenty as the plush pilgrims squabble, bond, and make their way through a dirty, dangerous city. But as readers of the previous volumes should be primed to expect, teddies continue to die in dreadful ways (as the title hints)--here sometimes taking human children with them--and even the survivors literally have the stuffing torn out of them before reaching their destination. There is renewal for the Furrington teddies at journey's end though, complete with Real Silk Hearts for those who don't have them already. So there's that. Illustrations not seen.

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Starred review from November 1, 2022
The teddies discover the answers to their greatest mysteries in this trilogy finale. Picking up where They Stole Our Hearts (2021) left off, the remaining teddies--Sunny, Reginald, Nothing, and their committed leader, Buddy--have found Proto, the first Furrington Teddy made by the Creator. Once again, the teddies set off on a mission, this time to the courthouse to find the Suit who made them dangerous to children. And once again, their plans take them in unexpected directions as they don armor to attend a community protest against the Suit and help a human kid with scars of his own find his place in the world. In this volume, which is less adventurous than the first two, Kraus brings the story full circle, revealing the answer to the question that kicked off the saga--why the teddies were thrown away--and remembering the stalwart teddy pals lost along the way while finding redemption amid loss. As Buddy continues to grapple with friendship, anger, death, and being a leader, the end of his existential journey is really a new beginning in growing up. Young readers, too, will leave the saga changed, recognizing, through Buddy, the ups and downs of life and their own burgeoning independence. Final art not seen. A fitting, heartfelt conclusion to this thought-provoking, nuanced fantasy series. (Fantasy. 10-14)

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