A Traitor Among the Boys (Boy/Girl Battle)
Grade 4-6-The fifth installment in Naylor's series about two feuding families in small-town West Virginia. Strongly encouraged by their mother, the Hatford boys make a New Year's resolution to treat the Malloy girls like sisters. But the boys reason that brothers and sisters sometimes fight, don't they? Thus, the war resumes. However, this time it is complicated by the youngest Hatford brother, Peter, who is easily persuaded by homemade cookies and other sweets to reveal his brothers' plans. Snowball fights, lima-bean brownies, a community play featuring two members of each family, and a climactic blizzard that brings all seven children together follow in the next few weeks. Fans of the series and newcomers alike will enjoy this entertaining read and the mischievous pranks the two groups play on one another. The children are likable, full of energy, and evenly matched so that each side has its wins and losses. Those who enjoyed the girl/boy feuds in Gregory Maguire's Seven Spiders Spinning (Clarion, 1994), and Gary Greer's This Island Isn't Big Enough for the Four of Us (HarperCollins, 1989) will relish this series.Terrie Dorio, Santa Monica Public Library, CACopyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.