(3) 4-6 Home life is difficult for Sebby. Escape is made easier after he discovers the "Hole in the Wall," a mysterious natural oasis practically in his backyard. When strange things start happening in his mining community, he and his sister, Barbie, look for answers. This imaginative and fast-paced story is bolstered by Sebby's unique narrative voice.

Reviewer: Pearl Higgins

(3) 4-6 Dear America series. This is an engaging fictional account of real events. Deliverance, a pious twelve-year-old girl, recounts events during the Salem witch hunts of 1692. Her friendship with a woman who is later persecuted as a witch and the unfounded claims of the accusers cause the young girl to rethink her beliefs. An illustrated historical note is appended.

Reviewer: Lauren Rizzuto

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Benny Andrews. After Gran dies, Louis, who is blind, chooses to keep her favorite hickory chair as a reminder of her love for and special understanding of him. It isn't until many years later that he discovers Gran's note willing the chair to him inside its seat. The story, with its distinctive oil and collage illustrations, has appeal, though the plot isn't entirely convincing.

Reviewer: Martha Sibert

(4) YA Eleven original stories by noted young adult authors, including Chris Crutcher and M. E. Kerr, delve into the subject of secrets that threaten to destroy family relationships. The selections include ghost stories and a personal memoir, and the "family secrets" involve topics such as transsexualism, an unwanted pregnancy, and child abuse. Most of the entries are well written, but a few threaten to sink under their own gravitas.

Reviewer: The Horn Book, Inc.