(3) YA After years of barely managing, Addie winds up in a juvenile psychiatric ward for help with her severe OCD. There she meets Fitz, a handsome boy whose diagnosis is schizophrenia and whose cryptic utterances intrigue Addie, an aspiring playwright. Addie's witty voice and her burgeoning friendship with Fitz help offset the novel's sober themes.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl

(3) 4-6 After her beloved grandfather dies, Libby and her daddy are the only ones left in the broken Lochewood family. But then Grampa's spirit starts visiting Libby, giving her clues to something hidden in the lake that will help restore depressed Daddy's sense of hope. Libby's boldness shines in this story of loss and recovery, as do Williams's descriptions of 1960s rural Florida.

Reviewer: Mariko Turk

(3) 4-6 When Maddie, sixth-grade funny-girl (she's known for sporting fake mustaches), is diagnosed with a brain tumor, undergoing surgery prompts her to reexamine her class's friendship dynamics. She is also inspired by the school Romeo and Juliet production to fight for what matters. Based on the authors' daughter's struggle, the story is both believable and inspiring, particularly as Maddie's true friends gather--in her trademark mustaches--to help her fight her illness.

Reviewer: Rebecca Kirshenbaum

(4) 4-6 Fablehaven series. Illustrated by Brandon Dorman. Now that the demons have been defeated, Kendra and Seth face a new threat: dragons. The teens agree to quell rebellion by becoming caretakers of the dragon sanctuary, but is this alliance a trap? Many nods to the original Fablehaven series will please fans, but this first book in a "sequel series" primarily sets up what's to come in future installments without much plot development.

Reviewer: Amy Bennett-Zendzian

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Charlotta Janssen. Joan, a white girl from Virginia, became curious about social stratifications in her grandmother's Georgia town; she grew into an adult committed to ending discrimination against black people in the South. Each spread of the informative book, coauthored by Mulholland's son, focuses on a different event or anecdote of her civil rights activism. The blend of photographs and collaged art creates a scrapbook feel. Timeline.

Reviewer: Lauren Causey

(4) 4-6 This second Mysteries of Cove book brings Trenton and Kallista to dragon-ravaged Seattle in search of Kallista's inventor father. They're imprisoned by the dragon-worshipping Order of the Beast, then freed by the technocratic Whipjacks, led by Fagan-esque Cochrane. Double-crosses, dragon attacks, steampunk flourishes, and emotional reunions bring imaginative detail to a familiar fantasy story line.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz

(4) 4-6 After a very implausible beginning--a caterpillar is transformed into a spider rather than a butterfly--this story brings to life a world inside a glass "menagerie" (a derelict greenhouse?). Butterflies don't interact with other insects, and exiled spider Westly tries to fit in with the industrious bugs. After many missteps and a major threat, he finds his place. Delicate line drawings enhance the mood.

Reviewer: Gail Hedges

(4) 4-6 Thirteen-year-old Trenton lives in Cove, an underground city that outlaws creativity, but he yearns to improve the technology his community needs to survive. When Trenton meets feisty Kallista, they begin to build a mysterious machine and learn the truth about Cove's origins. This dystopian novel doesn't go anywhere different, but middle-grade readers new to the genre may enjoy the ride.

Reviewer: Morgan Stewart

(4) 4-6 Adventurers Wanted series. Young wizard Alex (Slathbog's Gold) embarks on another quest, this time a search for the tomb and lost treasures of Albrek the dwarf. Fans can look forward to more magical adventures and the continued development of Alex's magical powers. Static supporting characters don't add to the action, but Alex is a dynamic main character with an appealing sense of honor and adventure.

Reviewer: Beth L. Meister

(3) YA Tales of the Dragon's Bard series. The village of Eventide is turned on its head when Edvard, the Dragon's Bard, visits looking for story material. Love is won, lost, and won again as the town's secrets are explored by the bard. This farcical approach to the classic quest trope never takes itself too seriously. Humor abounds as mischief and mistakes become the rule of the day.

Reviewer: Lauren Chambers

(4) YA Perspective alternates between Sara, a seventeen-year-old photography buff visiting NYC, and Sam, her new muse, to cover their twenty-four-hour interaction. Each teen is coping with loss, and their adventure through the city seeking a meaningful work of art for a demanding celebrity provides an opportunity to connect. Dull dialogue and overwritten platitudes detract from the novel's emotional success.

Reviewer: Allison Cole

(4) YA Stone Mage Wars series. Princess Ivy's kidnapping sparks a motley cast of characters to rescue her and their kingdom--but only if they can master the magical powers they never knew they had. Unfortunately, no one in the cast is fully developed and frequent changes of character perspective are dizzying, but the action and complex world will appeal to fans of epic fantasy.

Reviewer: Lauren Chambers

(4) 4-6 The final volume in this fantasy trilogy features more danger and magical adventures, including the hatching of the final dragon egg and the appearance of the dragon king and his guardians. Beck is an appealing protagonist, though other characters are flatly drawn. Fans of the previous books will expect drama, humor, and action, and there's plenty here for them to enjoy.

Reviewer: Beth L. Meister

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Casey Nelson. After she breaks the cookie jar while trying to sneak a treat, a girl tells her dubious mom an elaborate whopper. The rhymes have adequate punch when not contorted with preachiness ("I've learned a big lesson about fibbing today. / I will never tell lies--it's the truth I will say!"). Likewise, the illustrations have verve, if not always grace.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(4) 4-6 If the forces of evil open the demon prison Zzyzx, the world will be destroyed; it's up to Kendra, Seth, and their allies to stop that from happening. Sounds familiar, but Mull skillfully balances most of the elements of his Fablehaven series ender--quests, betrayals, hair-raising escapes, humor, pathos, a little romance, and a cataclysmic final battle.

Reviewer: Amy Bennett-Zendzian

(4) 4-6 Illustrated by Bryan Beus. This second 13th Reality story takes Tick and his friends on another quest to save the branching alternate realities composing the universe. This time the threat is a nano-disease created by the villainous CEO Reginald Chu that drives its victims insane. As in the first volume, Tick moves ahead in his rather formulaic adventure by solving puzzles (here less intriguing).

Reviewer: Deborah Kaplan

(4) 4-6 Adventurers Wanted series. After fifteen-year-old orphan Alex Taylor responds to a sign stating "Adventurers Wanted," he finds himself traveling to a magical land. There he joins a quest to defeat a legendary dragon. In this derivative story, Forman creates a hero who slowly discovers his own strength as well as the power of magic. Fantasy fans may be entertained by Alex's adventures.

Reviewer: Beth L. Meister

(4) YA Abby feels constrained by her normal, predictable life--until she meets Dante, a mysterious exchange student who turns out to be Leonardo da Vinci's apprentice, exiled (along with his betrayer) from his own time for a crime he didn't commit. Mangum adds some interesting new elements to the girl-next-door-falls-for-supernatural-hunk trope du jour, but her emotional plot lines are more convincing than her speculative ones.

Reviewer: Rebecca Hachmyer

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Brandon Dorman. Gremlin-esque Pingo is the best imaginary friend a boy could have. But as Chad grows older, he tires of being teased about Pingo. Pingo follows Chad throughout his adolescence and adulthood until the two friends are reunited in old age. The story is a little message-y and light on kid-appeal. Caricature illustrations show the two main characters in humorous situations.

Reviewer: David Elzey

(4) 4-6 Farworld series. Marcus and Kyja (Water Keep) continue their quest to save Farworld. They make their way underground, tracking land elementals and participating in a series of tests designed to evaluate their worthiness. The story is slow to start, and info-dumping abounds. An exciting climax features old friends, unexpected traitors, and touching sacrifice.

Reviewer: Thom Barthelmess