(3) 4-6 Black cats, ladders, sidewalk cracks--all potentially deadly if you're an "Unlucky" in Fortune Falls. ("Luckies" enjoy green lights, correct guesses, etc.) Sadie, still an Undetermined, will take her Luck Test soon, but she seems predestined to fail. Goebel presents a fresh, well-crafted story with a strong sense of place, a determined main character readers will root for, and a satisfying ending.

Reviewer: Nancy Sheridan

(3) 4-6 39 Clues: Doublecross series. In their third mission, the Cahills divide and conquer: while one team travels to the Netherlands to stop the Outcast's next disaster--an event projected to rival Hurricane Katrina--a second looks to history for clues to stop the Outcast indefinitely. This nail-biter packs historical and cultural facts in with suspense and mystery for a generous portion of action-adventure with a side of knowledge.

Reviewer: Lana Barnes

(4) PS Illustrated by Steve Mack. Foreman Frankie and friends pave a highway, with verses to the tune of "Yankee Doodle" relating each step--mixing concrete, moving dirt, adding ditches and drainage pipes, and so on until the job is completed. Bright, blocky illustrations of machines and smiley, hardhat-wearing characters combine with a cheerful (though not always easily singable) text to create a sense that hard work is worth doing.

Reviewer: Shoshana Flax

(4) 4-6 Bernie wants to help out with the family business while her parents grieve the loss of their infant son. When townspeople begin to die mysteriously, Bernie suspects the sinister Mr. Stein may be involved, a man her father hired to engrave headstones. The supernatural story is a touch creepy, but this is more about coping with loss. Lethargic plotting mars an otherwise successful debut.

Reviewer: Shara Hardeson