At the start of this third book in Valente's Fairyland series, most readers will be just as eager as heroine September to find the way back to Fairyland and all of its marvelous and frightening things.
Alas, it is not to be, for on this adventure, September must go to the Moon. She first visits the town of Mercator with the cruel Blue Wind, where she learns a few secrets about money and is declared a Criminal and a Professional Revolutionary. Then, against her desires, September is on her way to the Moon in her beloved Model A Ford (who, as it turns out, is named Aroostook).
Many new friends aid September on her journey, and she discovers her mission may not be what she was told it was. And so, too, is the content of this third book different from the first two. September is, unknowingly, part of "the bustle of thirteen-year-olds becoming fourteen-year-olds," with all the confusion that implies. She rejoins her beloved A-Through-L, the Wyverary, and tangles again with her fate and her temper--but she also meets Ciderskin, the Yeti, and does battle with her self-identity and the choice of whether or not to fall in love. Though some readers may not be ready for the larger ideas tackled here, Valente's sumptuous writing fits readers of any age. For even as the tale grows darker, it is a pleasure to be immersed once more in the lives of the characters and places she so ably brings to life. --Stephanie Anderson, head of readers' advisory at Darien Library and blogger