(2) 4-6 Illustrated by Greg Swearingen. After poking around her self-described "friggin' genius" father's laboratory, Libby finds herself able to communicate with animals--and in possession of "lifting soda," which carries her into the city. There she encounters a pigeon-cum-blue jay, a cat with nine "lies," and a troupe of circus performers. Occasional black-and-white drawings ground the story in its contemporary setting while preserving the tale's fantastical elements.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2009

(4) YA As her mother's mental illness worsens, Sage's home life unravels. She remakes herself in the image of a seemingly perfect classmate and begins a relationship with abusive and controlling Roger. Snappy banter and dark humor effectively temper the serious issues affecting Sage and her friends. The story's unfocused plot can be hard to follow.

Reviewer: Amanda Mc. MacGregor

(4) YA Lin's first-person narrative begins in 1996, when she is five and her Japanese grandmother comes to Rhode Island to live with the family. Easton focuses on the psychic abilities Lin and Obaachan share and follows their close relationship through Lin's adolescence and her grandmother's death from radiation-related leukemia. Too many subplots crowd the novel, but the well-written story remains compelling.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander

(2) YA Chrissie, fifteen, is a fish out of water in LA until she meets Gypsy/witch Yvonne, gullible and vulnerable Karen, and Jimmy, the boy Karen loves but who loves Yvonne. Chapters alternate among these four well-differentiated voices, each trying to carve out a sense of self. Easton's elegant, fluid writing; believable teenage emotions; and strong characterizations make the book stand out.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2007

(3) YA Shocked into muteness after his parents are killed in a car crash in Idaho, seventeen-year-old Adam makes his way home to Rhode Island. As he travels, memories of his parents (as well as thoughts of his troubled girlfriend at home) swirl amid his present dangers. Adam's emotions ring true, and his voice conveys layers of conflict and grief with devastating clarity.

Reviewer: Claire E. Gross

(4) YA Twelve-year-old June walks a tightrope as part of her unscrupulous father's revival show. June's faith, though, is more pantheistic than fire and brimstone. Biblical heroes, fairy-tale characters, and sideshow performers all stride through June's narrative. The abrupt happy ending is at odds with the grim Depression-era realities of the rest of the novel.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl

(3) 4-6 Betts Pets Mystery series. Likably quirky narrator Aaron Betts, whose parents run a pet shop, finds on his doorstep a turtle with a painted shell. Soon Aaron is stalked and held captive by a trio of bumbling villains who want the turtle back because the markings on its shell show where five million dollars is hidden. The fast-paced story combines suspense, humor, and engaging family dynamics.

Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta

(4) 4-6 A likable main character and a light, warm tone sustain a brief novel that's about almost too many things: a mystery surrounding fifth-grader Aaron Betts's family pet shop, which has fallen on hard times; the identity of an eccentric and apparently homeless woman; and a new friendship with a seemingly snobby classmate. Animal-lovers should enjoy the pet-centric setting.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano

(3) YA Caustic journal entries, dated from April 1973 to August 1974, record Kristin's observations on family, school, and friends, while increasingly referring to her "ghost" of a brother, who came home from Vietnam physically and mentally damaged. Kristin can be funny and cruel--often simultaneously--but the real pull is witnessing how she works to make sense of the tragedy that "broke [her] family into a million little pieces."

Reviewer: Christine M. Heppermann