(3) YA When Eddie was four, his mother's abusive partner locked them in a small, filthy apartment; tortured his mother; and intimidated young Eddie, who remained imprisoned. Once rescued, Eddie must adjust to life on the outside and also grapple with who he may become. Told from multiple points of view, including those of Eddie, his foster parents, and social workers, the novel is gripping and powerful.

Reviewer: Betty Carter

(3) YA Yuri grows up listening to gloomy tales of despair under the czar's reign, yet he is utterly unprepared for the hardships the Glorious Revolution brings. Desperate and determined, Yuri survives exile, deportation, and labor camp, but only by suppressing his own humanity. Yuri's spare, bitter, first-person narrative raises difficult questions about the costs of endurance and survival.

Reviewer: Megan Lynn Isaac

(2) 1-3 Illustrated by Penny Dale. In the first story, preschooler Jamie tries to prepare his stuffed Highland bull Angus (The Jamie and Angus Stories) for the visit of a little girl who plays too roughly. Jamie comes up with a childlike but successful solution. Throughout the six stories Fine always maintains Jamie's complete believability, conveying his perceptiveness and empathy side by side with his limited perspective.

Reviewer: Susan Dove Lempke | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2007

(3) 1-3 Illustrated by Kate Aldous. When Iola's friend Jennifer gets a diary, Iola is jealous. She should have it since she's bursting with ideas, and Jennifer can't think of a thing to say. The diary causes friction until Iola manipulates Jennifer into giving it to her. Aldous's realistic line-art illustrations contrast Iola's angelic looks with her quick, biting--occasionally verging on nasty--wit.

Reviewer: Patricia Riley

(3) 1-3 Illustrated by Steve Cox. Tuffy (Diary of a Killer Cat) is overjoyed that his family's going away ("a whole week of not being...stroked and petted by Ellie and her soppy friend Melanie"). But his spirits are dampened when the vicar--a.k.a. "Mr. Fussbudget"--comes to cat-sit. Tuffy's cranky, irreverent voice makes him a kitty with an attitude. Cox's clean line drawings help dial down the sarcasm.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz

(2) 4-6 Illustrated by Georgina McBain. Life's been hard for Clarrie and Will since their father left the family; it's made harder still when their mother is arrested. Clarrie must hold the family together, with the dubious help of their layabout uncle. With an ending as uplifting as the beginning is grim, here's a piece of Edwardiana with just a touch of the macabre.

Reviewer: Vicky Smith | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2006

(2) 4-6 The holiday described in this very funny farce is the antithesis of a Hallmark-card Christmas. The relatives about to descend on Ralph and his family include "soppy" cousin Titania; Great-aunt Ida, on loan from the nursing home; and misanthropic Great-granny. This book could only have been served up by Anne Fine, characterized as it is by her particular brand of dark humor, the specialty of the house.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2003

(1) 4-6 Struggling with the possibility that Stolly tried to take his own life, Ian relates trenchant memories of his best friend in vignettes that have the pacing and humor of comedy skits, even when the content is dark and disturbing. What initially seems to be a character study of a wildly imaginative mixed-up kid becomes a testament to the power of friendship--and to the power of story as well.

Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2002

(1) 1-3 Illustrated by Penny Dale. In six tales about Jamie and his beloved stuffed bull, Angus, Fine has a pitch-perfect ear for the dialogue between Jamie and his parents, between Jamie and his maverick youthful uncle, and, most especially, between Jamie and Angus, who is silent, although the reader is sure he says lots. The tone is natural and sentimental in only the right ways. Dale's pencil portraits of boy and bull are worthy of this charming collection.

Reviewer: Susan P. Bloom | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2003

(3) 4-6 When bookworm Melanie is assigned to partner creepy new-girl Imogen, she discovers that Imogen lives through the worst parts of books merely by touching them--a "gift" that ruins her schoolwork and leaves her a social outcast. Using knowledge gained from countless novels, Melly leaves the world of books and takes action to save Imogen from the curse. This undemanding, lightweight fantasy will appeal to fellow bookworms.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam