(3) YA Ray and Sasha have never met: his mother and her father, bitterly divorced, alternate weeks at a beach house with their respective families and the half-sisters Ray and Sasha share. Over one summer, Ray and Sasha uncover secrets, fall in love, and endure tragedy. Fans of Brashares's lighter Sisterhood books may be surprised by--but not disappointed in--this weighty, contemplative family drama.

Reviewer: Rachel L. Smith

(3) YA Prenna, an immigrant from the future, leads a restricted, secretive life. When a homeless man tells her that she can change the course of history for the better, however, she teams up with Ethan, the cute guy in her physics class, to prevent a murder. Teen fans of love stories with a sci-fi twist will enjoy this bittersweet time-travel romance.

Reviewer: Barratt Miller

(2) YA Ama, Polly, and Jo sealed their friendship in third grade by planting trees; by the end of middle school, the girls have drifted apart. This novel traces a summer in which each experiences challenges and finds herself longing for the other two. The characters are well developed, and their struggles feel real. The end-of-summer resolution is satisfying.

Reviewer: Lauren Adams | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2009

(3) YA Readers awaiting another summer of the traveling pants will find themselves sad yet satisfied to have this final volume in the series. Lena, Carmen, Bridget, and Tibby are as beach-readable as ever, this time around learning to rely less on the magic pants and more on themselves to keep the sisterhood together whether they're miles or continents apart.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander

(2) YA The Traveling Pants and the girls who wear them are back for a third summer--their last before heading off to different colleges. While the Pants only play a bit part this time, the starring role still goes to those unbreakable bonds of Sisterhood that carry the four girlfriends through all kinds of family and boyfriend dramas.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2005

(2) YA The four girlfriends--and, of course, the magic Pants they share--from The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants are back for more summer adventures. Brashares again creates an engaging drama of friendship, romance, and family relationships, with some unexpected plot turns. Fans of the first book, enamored with the girls' friendship--and their excellent Pants--will eagerly travel with the sisterhood once again.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2003

(4) 4-6 Techies series. These run-of-the mill biographies trace the personal and professional lives of three leaders in the computer technology revolution: Jobs of Apple Computer, Andreessen of Netscape, and Bezos of Amazon.com. Jobs is the best of the three with its balanced description of the visionary taskmaster; Bezos is the weakest, due to choppy writing. Bland stock photos add little to the volumes. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Tanya D. Auger

(4) 4-6 Techies series. Although the books in this series include biographical information, their strength is the clear way they present computer history and technology and highlight their subjects' contributions to it. Torvalds's operating system Linux, Ellison's relational database Oracle, and Yang and Filo's Yahoo! search engine are discussed in journalistic prose illustrated with bland, sometimes tangential stock black-and-white photos. Bib., ind. [Review covers these Techies titles: Linus Torvalds, Larry Ellison, Jerry Yang and David Filo.]

Reviewer: Frieda F. Bostian

(2) YA Four teenagers--best friends since babyhood--have different destinations for the summer. When they find a pair of "magic pants" (secondhand jeans that fit them each perfectly, despite their different body types), they vow that the Pants will travel with them and "keep us together when we are apart." This first novel is a breezy, feel-good book about friendship and growing up.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2001