Against the Odds

Author: L.M. Montgomery.

Editor: Rea Wilmshurst.

Publisher: Bantam Books.

Price: $4.50.

Pages: 240.

Against the Odds by L.M. Montgomery is supposed to be a collection of 18 short stories. There are 18 stories but one plot. Against the Odds should have been called Eighteen Ways to Get Money. These stories are basically about earning money or acquiring possessions.

Montgomery tends to overdescribe. An average sentence: "Her hair, glossy and brown, with burnished red lights where the rays of the dull autumn sun struck on it through the window, was heaped on her head and held in place by a fillet of pearl beads." After the first few stories, this exaggeration gets extremely boring.

There are several stories on how to get money for college, one about getting a doll and another about begging a rich uncle for money.

This selection was taken from Dorinda's Desperate Deed.

"Who are you?" he said bluntly.

"I am your niece, Dorinda Page," said Dorinda steadily.

"And what does my niece, Dorinda Page, want with me?" demanded Uncle Eugene.

"I want you to do four things, Uncle Eugene," she said, as calmly as if she were making the most natural and ordinary request in the world. "I want you to lend us the money to send Leicester to Blue Hill Academy; he will pay you back when he gets through college. I want you to lend Jean the money for music lessons; she will pay you back when she gets far enough along to give lessons herself. And I want you to lend me the money to shingle our house and get mother a new dress and a fur coat for winter. I'll pay you back sometime for that because I am going to set up as a dressmaker pretty soon."

"Anything more?" said Uncle Eugene when Dorinda stopped.

I would not recommend this book for anyone of any age, especially those with a short attention span. It would be a waste of time and money.

By Andrea Cowden, 12

The Face on the Milk Carton

Author: Caroline B. Cooney.

Publisher: Bantam Doubleday Books for Young Readers.

Price: $3.99 (paperback).

Pages: 184.

Suspense, kidnapping, cults and an ordinary teen-age girl's life about to change permanently.

In short, Caroline B. Cooney's book The Face on the Milk Carton is the kind of mystery story loved by thousands of teen-agers, having an ordinary setting with a not-so-ordinary plot.

In this well-written book, Cooney presents the perfect blend of emotion with mystery. The situation is believable, although it probably would not happen, which only makes this book more fun. It's easy to get completely wrapped up in.

It's the kind of book that keeps you going like that little pink bunny that beats the drum on the battery commercials, and you'd better have your Energizers if you're even thinking about picking this book up, because once you start you won't stop.

The book tells the story of Janie Johnson, aka Jayyne Jonstone. Janie is allergic to milk, but she doesn't think picking up a milk carton will change her life. As she picks up a friend's carton, the picture of the little girl on the side catches her eye.

Something evil and thick settled on Janie, blocking her throat, dimming her eyes. . . . She remembered that dress, how the collar itched and the fabric itched in the wind. . . . Janie held Sarah-Charlotte's empty milk carton and stared at the photograph of the little girl.

I was kidnapped.

The mystery unfolds at a perfect pace, and every question answered brings up two more. The ending leaves you in suspense, begging for the sequel.

I recommend this book for anyone between the ages of 9 and 14.

Melissa Adams, 14