A brief novel, perfect for middle schoolers, that chronicles the attack on Pearl Harbor from the perspective of a young teenage boy.

Gwen lives in New York City with her grandfather. She needs to focus on practicing her violin and preparing for her auditions to 3 top music schools. But how can she focus when her grandfather has disappeared, her great-uncle won’t leave her alone, and her new friend Robert has a strange history that seems to have caught up with him.

This book is a companion to Things Not Seen, which I haven’t read. However, I still enjoyed the story, and its message of self-sacrifice and love is refreshing.

There are so many authors who start out writing good books, and then sit back and coast on their reputation, while cranking out junk. (Stephen King anyone?) Michael Crichton is not one of those authors. He has written another entertaining, educational and somewhat frightening novel.

In Next, Crichton tackles difficult and confusing subjects (DNA, gene research, cloning,stem cells) in a fast-paced novel that weaves numerous plot lines together. My standing complaint about Crichton is that he tends to give too much scientific detail, and this book is no exception. However, many readers will probably appreciate the detail, as it gives the book a more believable feel. In spite of the technical jargon (which one can easily skim over) this book was excellent and I highly recommend it.

I absolutely loved Levine’s Ella Enchanted (before Miramax made it into a cheesy movie, that is.) Fairest is another clever re-telling of a fairy tale (Snow White), but it doesn’t have the magic of Ella.

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