(3) 4-6 Young Ben (Blackwater Ben) has spent the winter helping his father, the cook at a Minnesota logging camp; now Ben is ready for the adventure of a log drive. Along the way, he faces dangerous rapids--and hungry lumberjacks. Set on the Blackwater River in the late nineteenth century, this story has enough historical detail for school use but also a swift pace supported by the loggers' buoyant stories and antics.

Reviewer: Lisa Catherine Findlay

(3) YA During Finland's 1939 Winter War against the Soviet Union, Marko, crippled by polio, volunteers as a messenger for the Finnish army. Marko's loyalty to his country, family, and friends makes him a hero. Grisly war scenes and fast-paced action fit the genre. An excellent afterword succinctly explains Finland's conflicts with Russia from the 1800s to the aftermath of WWII. Reading list, websites.

Reviewer: Laura A. Woollett

(4) 4-6 Jake is understandably reluctant when his father decides to move the family from Minnesota to Karelia, Russia, in 1934, but life in the new Soviet Union is even harder than any of them could have imagined. Based on the historical migration of Finnish-American communists to Karelia, the novel has plenty of rich context but fails to develop three-dimensional characters to inhabit it.

Reviewer: Roger Sutton

(3) 4-6 During the winter of 1898, Ben works as an assistant to his father, the cook at a Minnesota logging camp. This slice-of-life story moves at a measured pace as Ben makes friends with an orphaned boy also working as a "cookee," adjusts to the colorful members of the logging crew, and deals with harsh weather conditions. A historical note supplements this detailed, quietly effective portrait of a bygone era.

Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta

(3) 4-6 My Name Is America series. In his journal, thirteen-year-old C.J. Jackson writes of his farm family's experiences traveling from Oklahoma to California in 1935. The narrative gives a vivid picture of the grim life of Dust Bowl migrants: looking for back-breaking, low-wage work, living in "Hooverville" camps, and coping with prejudice. Accompanied by archival black-and-white photos, an afterword offers additional historical information.

Reviewer: Lauren Aimonette LIang

(3) 4-6 The author of The Journal of Otto Peltonen again tells about a turn-of-the-century Finnish immigrant family. Matti, fifteen, works in the Minnesota iron mines with his father and uncle. A deadly mine accident reinforces the family's desire for their own farmstead. Details of pioneer life and of Finnish culture are smoothly woven into this engaging coming-of-age story.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander

(3) 4-6 My Name Is America series. Fifteen-year-old Otto describes his family's immigration to Minnesota in 1905. Otto, his parents, and sisters all find life in the iron mining community difficult and vastly different from their comfortable home in Finland. Historical facts are neatly woven into the story, which gains suspense with union struggles and a miners' strike. Historical notes, photos, and maps are appended.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander

(3) 4-6 My Name Is America series. Sean's diary traces the two years he and his father spend working on the Union Pacific Railroad. Before the golden spike is laid in Promontory, Utah, Sean has progressed from water carrier to a member of the spiking crew, with each intervening job providing a different perspective on this historic labor experience. Factual information is well woven into the sometimes moving narrative. Notes, maps, and reproductions are appended.

Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta

(4) YA In this sequel to The Broken Blade, fourteen-year-old Pierre continues canoeing through the wilds of Canada for a fur-trading company. He makes friends with the Ojibwe natives at Windigo Point but must still endure the constant taunting of a brutish crew member. The 1801 setting is well defined, but the episodic plotting makes the novel somewhat choppy and slow paced.

Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta

(4) 4-6 Golf Legends series. Durbin, Sirak, and Wukovits chronicle the careers of three golf champions in readable texts illustrated with adequate black-and-white photos. Accompanied by chronologies and lists of stats, these formulaic books offer descriptions of major tournaments and give some sense of the athletes' personal lives. Wilner briefly profiles eleven other professionals, such as Tom Watson, Fred Couples, and Paul Azinger. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: The Horn Book, Inc.

(3) 4-6 Black Americans of Achievement series. Drawing upon newspaper accounts of the twenty-one-year-old celebrity golfer and his father, Durbin emphasizes Woods's closeness with his parents and how his father helped him develop his precocious golf skills as a toddler. Stock black-and-white photos illustrate the text. A brief overview of the sport of golf is included at the end. Bib., glos., ind.

Reviewer: The Horn Book, Inc.