Aptly titled, this Australian tale of unlikely friendship and first romance oozes with the sort of bittersweet yearning experienced so fully by young people. Two teen girls alternate telling the story of their interactions and the ways they change each other during a summer in a small town outside Melbourne. Music metaphors flow from shy, lonely, private Charlie's narrations while bluntly disillusioned Rose tells it straight up. Complete with a perfect guy ("worth writing songs about") and wild off-road Australian scenery.

Rhona Campbell

Each morning, Amos McGee boards bus #5 bound for the City Zoo, where he cares for the animals. As he makes his rounds, Amos visits with each of his friends, giving each one just what they need: Amos and the elephant play chess, and he races the tortoise, who always wins. Because the penguin is shy, Amos sits quietly with him; and he gives the rhinoceros his handkerchief for his runny nose. At the end of the day, Amos reads stories to the owl, who is afraid of the dark. When Amos didn't come to work one day, the animals were sad. They missed him, so they went to the bus stop and and boarded the #5 bus to Amos' house. Amos was happy to see them, and today he was the beneficiary of their friendship. The elephant set up a game of chess. The tortoise hid in his shell to play hide and seek, since Amos was too tired to race. The penguin kept Amos' feet warm while he took a nap, and the rhinoceros was ready with a handkerchief when Amos sneezed. Just before they turned out the lights, the owl read a story. This is a quiet, soft story of friendship and caring. It will be published 5/25; I had a chance to read it for a project I'm working on with some other folks. It is just lovely.

Terry Doherty