The sequel to the best-selling The Girl Who Could Fly (2008) centers on Piper's friend Conrad Harrington, son of the soon-to-be president, whose special talent is that he is smarter than the average genius. Now living happily on Piper's family's farm, he is willing to let the bad times go, but, not surprisingly, trouble finds them both. This follow-up is less focused and more expansive than the previous title. There are oodles of characters to keep track of, and the second half, in which the children, now part of a larger prophecy, find themselves in a mysterious world, seems almost like another book. What keeps this centered when the action soars in many different directions om the farm, to the White House, to the secret world the firm friendship of Piper and Conrad. Even though this is mostly Conrad's story, it is Piper's steadfastness that keeps it from flying away. Both kids will need that anchor when they face a dangerous enemy in the next book.

Gr 5-8 The long-awaited follow-up to The Girl Who Could Fly (Feiwel &; Friends, 2008) finds Piper ("the girl who could fly") and Conrad ("the boy who knew everything") living in relative calm on Piper's family farm. Some time has passed since they and their fellow exceptional children escaped Dr. Hellion's prison of a school, yet the calm lasts only briefly as a few disparate events quickly unfold and turn everything upside down. In quick succession, the near death of Piper's beloved father, his father's election to the presidency, and a successful experiment in time-bending spurs Conrad to finally step up as leader of their band of misfit children. Under Conrad's tutelage, the kids carry out anonymous goodwill missions in response to fishy "natural" disasters. Yet their mission proves far from straightforward. Who is behind these disasters? Is there indeed a secret place where exceptional kids are free to be themselves? As in its predecessor, this installment straddles the real and the imagined. At times, this blend coalesces beautifully, but often it proves a bit clunky. The folksy colloquialisms uttered by Piper and her parents still feel out of place, leaving readers a little unsettled as to the setting. Its greatest strength emerges when the tale balances quiet moments of self-realization, identity, and friendship with an action-packed plot. VERDICT Fans of The Girl Who Could Fly will embrace this sequel. Jill Heritage Maza, Montclair Kimberley Academy, Montclair, NJ