(4) 4-6 Survivors series. Suspenseful and fraught with danger, the third-person narration alternates between orphaned Maximo (circus elephant handler in training) and equilibrist Jodi. When their circus train wrecks in rural Kansas, both children face challenges: Jodi's fear of heights since her mother's crippling accident, and Max's inexperience with animals. Details of circus life are incorporated throughout; unfortunately, this formulaic historical-fiction series lacks contextual back matter.

Reviewer: Amy Seto Forrester

(4) 4-6 Survivors series. With their father injured, a broken wagon axle, and limited resources, Will and his sister must travel alone through perilous Death Valley to search for help to save their stranded family. Like other historical Survivors installments, the book is formulaic, but Duey and Bale provide a tense, gritty portrayal of the 1849 westward journeys on which small mistakes could be fatal.

Reviewer: Andrea Curtis

(4) 4-6 Survivors series. Cousins Maggie and Haydn become close while surviving extreme cold, snowslides, and starvation in an 1886 Colorado blizzard. The fast-moving (if formulaic) historical narrative alternates between hardworking country girl Maggie and spoiled, citified Haydn; practical Maggie is more endearing than whiny Haydn, but the survival story remains compelling. Many Rocky Mountain flora, fauna, and locations are mentioned, lending authenticity to the setting.

Reviewer: Amy Seto Forrester

(4) 4-6 Survivors series. Bread delivery boy Brendan and an unhappily betrothed girl from Chinatown, Dai Yue, make for unlikely companions as their paths cross during the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. Duey and Bale's incorporation of interesting cultural and historical details work to offset the formulaic structure of this series in which strangers must work together to survive crisis.

Reviewer: Andrea Curtis

(4) 4-6 Survivors series. Duey and Bale tackle the retelling of two historical tragedies--the sinking of the Titanic and the Great Chicago Fire--each through the alternating perspectives of a boy and a girl. Period references supplement formulaic plot lines, in which two strangers fight for survival together; each personal and immediate-feeling story handles death in a peripheral but meaningful way. Review cover these Survivors titles: Fire and Titanic.

Reviewer: Andrea Curtis

(4) 4-6 Survivors series. Duey and Bale tackle the retelling of two historical tragedies--the sinking of the Titanic and the Great Chicago Fire--each through the alternating perspectives of a boy and a girl. Period references supplement formulaic plot lines, in which two strangers fight for survival together; each personal and immediate-feeling story handles death in a peripheral but meaningful way. Review cover these Survivors titles: Fire and Titanic.

Reviewer: Andrea Curtis

(3) 1-3 Faeries' Promise series. Illustrated by Sandara Tang. Alida's faerie colony adjusts to living in hiding in the meadow while making preparations for the upcoming winter using both old and new magic. The faeries and their human neighbors take one step closer to living in harmony, and Alida's path becomes unexpectedly entwined with Ellen, daughter of the evil Lord Dunraven. The stakes are thus gently raised in this unassuming, entertaining series.

Reviewer: Susan Halperin

(3) 1-3 Faeries' Promise series. Illustrated by Sandara Tang. Princess Alida's faerie colony members, defying evil Lord Dunraven's edict, return to their magical meadow near Ash Grove. The queen teaches Alida a potentially dangerous invisibility spell to protect the group during its treacherous journey; Alida also uses her magic to help her human Ash Grove neighbors. The story line and illustrations are engaging and uncluttered.

Reviewer: Susan Halperin

(3) 1-3 Faeries' Promise series. Illustrated by Sandara Tang. Human boy Gavin helps release imprisoned faerie Alida from evil Lord Dunraven’s tower (Stone). Together they search for her exiled faerie colony, which Dunraven's predecessor had banished, and in finding it they discover Alida is a princess (Following). This new companion series to Duey's Unicorn's Secret books, illustrated with anime-inspired pictures, is sweet without being too cloying. Review covers these Faeries' Promise titles: Following Magic and Silence and Stone.

Reviewer: Susan Halperin

(3) 1-3 Faeries' Promise series. Illustrated by Sandara Tang. Human boy Gavin helps release imprisoned faerie Alida from evil Lord Dunraven’s tower (Stone). Together they search for her exiled faerie colony, which Dunraven's predecessor had banished, and in finding it they discover Alida is a princess (Following). This new companion series to Duey's Unicorn's Secret books, illustrated with anime-inspired pictures, is sweet without being too cloying. Review covers these Faeries' Promise titles: Following Magic and Silence and Stone.

Reviewer: Susan Halperin

(2) YA Resurrection of Magic series. Magically attuned servant-girl Sadima (Skin Hunger) plots rebellion against her exploitive master Soumiss. Two hundred years later, apprentice wizard Hahp does the same. What happened to Sadima in the meantime? Duey doles out clues with an eyedropper, keeping readers busily but happily engaged in connecting dots even as the horrors and triumphs of the unfolding story hold them spellbound.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2009

(4) 1-3 Hoofbeats series. Margret and her sister have been orphans for years, working their way west with the wagon trains of the 1870s. Margret must convince her sister that they have found a place to call home with a widow and a mysterious horse that Margret loves. While it's a pleasant read, the story verges on oversentimental.

Reviewer: Juliet S. King

(4) 1-3 Hoofbeats series. Twelve-year-old Silence loves riding her mare--and dislikes learning to be a lady--in colonial Boston. When the citizens begin to revolt against new English rules, her family's loyalties are tested. The trajectory offers few surprises, but details worked into the plot, such as a British officer moving into Silence's home, help give readers some interesting historical perspective.

Reviewer: Lauren Aimonette LIang

(2) YA Resurrection of Magic series. Sadima, who can speak with animals, joins the household of coldly brilliant, ambitious Somiss, who's obsessed with returning true magic to the world. Generations later, in a society now run by magic, Hahp is apprenticed to Somiss. As Sadima's and Hahp's stories unfold, including episodes that resonate across generations, puzzle pieces fall into place. Duey sweeps readers up in the page-turning excitement.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2007

(4) 1-3 Hoofbeats series. Nine-year-old Lara yearns to work with horses, but Irish girls in fourteenth-century Norman-controlled Ireland are not allowed to. These four books follow Lara's adventures with the filly Dannsair and her determination that Dannsair doesn't end up a war horse. Poor character development won't deter die-hard fans of horse stories. Review covers these Hoofbeats titles: Lara and the Gray Mare, Lara and the Moon-colored Filly, Lara and the Silent Place, and Lara at Athenry Castle.

Reviewer: Jeannine M. Chapman

(4) 1-3 Hoofbeats series. Nine-year-old Lara yearns to work with horses, but Irish girls in fourteenth-century Norman-controlled Ireland are not allowed to. These four books follow Lara's adventures with the filly Dannsair and her determination that Dannsair doesn't end up a war horse. Poor character development won't deter die-hard fans of horse stories. Review covers these Hoofbeats titles: Lara and the Gray Mare, Lara and the Moon-colored Filly, Lara and the Silent Place, and Lara at Athenry Castle.

Reviewer: Jeannine M. Chapman

(4) 1-3 Hoofbeats series. Nine-year-old Lara yearns to work with horses, but Irish girls in fourteenth-century Norman-controlled Ireland are not allowed to. These four books follow Lara's adventures with the filly Dannsair and her determination that Dannsair doesn't end up a war horse. Poor character development won't deter die-hard fans of horse stories. Review covers these Hoofbeats titles: Lara and the Gray Mare, Lara and the Moon-colored Filly, Lara and the Silent Place, and Lara at Athenry Castle.

Reviewer: Jeannine M. Chapman

(4) 1-3 Hoofbeats series. Nine-year-old Lara yearns to work with horses, but Irish girls in fourteenth-century Norman-controlled Ireland are not allowed to. These four books follow Lara's adventures with the filly Dannsair and her determination that Dannsair doesn't end up a war horse. Poor character development won't deter die-hard fans of horse stories. Review covers these Hoofbeats titles: Lara and the Gray Mare, Lara and the Moon-colored Filly, Lara and the Silent Place, and Lara at Athenry Castle.

Reviewer: Jeannine M. Chapman

(4) 1-3 Hoofbeats series. Katie has been living with the cruel Stevenses ever since her family was wiped out by fever. When a wild mustang is brought to the farm, Katie befriends it, and the two eventually escape and travel the Oregon Trail. These four books each describe one leg of the journey, and while sometimes melodramatic, the adventures are sure to be enjoyed by horse fans. Review covers these Hoofbeats titles: Katie and the Mustang: Book One, Katie and the Mustang: Book Two, Katie and the Mustang: Book Three, and Katie and the Mustang: Book Four.

Reviewer: Jeannine M. Chapman

(4) 1-3 Hoofbeats series. Katie has been living with the cruel Stevenses ever since her family was wiped out by fever. When a wild mustang is brought to the farm, Katie befriends it, and the two eventually escape and travel the Oregon Trail. These four books each describe one leg of the journey, and while sometimes melodramatic, the adventures are sure to be enjoyed by horse fans. Review covers these Hoofbeats titles: Katie and the Mustang: Book One, Katie and the Mustang: Book Two, Katie and the Mustang: Book Three, and Katie and the Mustang: Book Four.

Reviewer: Jeannine M. Chapman