Zenda 1: Zenda and the Gazing Ball
Grade 4-6–Zenda lives on Azureblue, a planet where each youth receives a gazing ball that reveals his or her lifelong magical skill. She participates in a scheme to peek at hers before the ceremony and it shatters. With sound guidance from her parents and a helpful psychic, she figures out how to start restoring it and finds the first of the 13 crystal fragments. Zenda is a likable yet flawed heroine, tending toward poor decisions and histrionics, but able to accept reasonable consequences. The authors set a brisk pace, keeping the focus on the protagonist and her story. Although this book doesn't have the dense atmosphere of many successful fantasies, it does have a lighthearted quality that affirms the girl's sense of intelligence and responsibility.Zendais for those who prefer a fantasy with a New Age bent.–Pat Leach, Lincoln City Libraries, NECopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.