(3) 4-6 Secrets of the Pied Piper series. Max and her friends are back on the Summer Isle, searching for her younger brother Carter, who has teamed up with their former enemy, the Piper, to learn magic. Can they unite to defeat the evil Grannie Yaga? Cody treats Carter's mobility impairment with nuance and partially subverts the unfortunate "magical cure" from book two, bringing the trilogy to a pleasing conclusion.

Reviewer: Amy Bennett-Zendzian

(4) 4-6 Secrets of the Pied Piper series. Carter is still trapped in the Summer Isle with the Pied Piper; separated, big sister Max is desperate to return to Carter and the other Hamelin children. The growing cast has become unwieldy, and a magical-cure trope disrupts what began as a thoughtful depiction of Carter's mobility impairment. Nevertheless, this middle book has a clear thematic arc; each parallel narrative reaches a satisfying, dramatic resolution.

Reviewer: Amy Bennett-Zendzian

(3) 4-6 Secrets of the Pied Piper series. In this series-opener, the Pied Piper transports Max, nearly thirteen, and her brother, ten-year-old Carter, from modern-day Hamelin to the magical Summer Isle, where the stolen children of Hamelin circa 1284 have been living in endless youth. The siblings' quest to escape features thrilling encounters with both new and familiar fairy-tale faces. Cody's perceptive portrayal of Carter's mobility impairment is especially notable.

Reviewer: Amy Bennett-Zendzian