A desperate teen-aged Mexican boy
crosses the U. S. border to find work

Fifteen-year-old Victor Flores had been working hard trying to raise enough corn to sell to feed his family. His father had been killed in a work-related accident in the U. S. a couple of years earlier. So Victor was now the only one earning money in his family. With the little money he could earn and the few things he could grow in the garden, they were still close to starvation.

When new trade agreements made it possible for North American corn to be sold for less than Mexican-grown corn, Victor no longer had a source of income. Even factories making U.S. cars and parts for them had been closing down because workers could be hired cheaper in Asia. There was just no other way to earn money in Mexico.

Victor didn't want to leave his family and illegally cross the U. S. border. For one thing, he didn't have the $1,000 American dollars that "coyotes" would charge to sneak him across the border. His friend Rico had money that his older brother had sent Rico to pay someone to help get into the U. S. If Victor tried, he would have to do it on his own. He knew he had no choice when he saw how desperate the money situation was for his family.

As Victor began the trip, he found out quickly that crossing the border was a dangerous and complicated venture. Even before he came close to the border, thieves were trying to rob him of the little money he had brought to buy food. The "coyotes" who were supposed to be helping people often stole their clients' money and left them to fend for themselves in the desert or in the mountains.

On his first try, Victor is caught by the border patrol and bussed back into Mexico. Does he have enough time to try it again and make it into the U. S. while there is still work to be found? You need to read the book to find out what kind of stress and dangers he endured on the second try. Could he get work once he did make it across the border? After reading "Crossing the Wire" by author Will Hobbs, you will have a much better understanding of the "illegal immigration problem" we are hearing about all the time.

In the year 1046 kids deal with extreme poverty
and illegal alchemy

The subtitle of "The Book without Words" by popular kids' author, Avi, is "A Fable of Medieval Magic." No question about it, it's a weird book. But that was the author's intent - to create an atmosphere that reflects the superstitions and beliefs of people of that era.

Sybil is a starving orphaned girl who has been purchased to be a servant to an old man named Thorston. Thorston is an alchemist, a person who is seeking to find two things through his experiments - how to create gold out of inexpensive materials and how to make himself immortal. Besides Sybil, the old man also has a raven named Odo living with him. Odo can talk like a human and he is mistrustful of Sybil and treats her badly.

Sybil's life with Thorston and Odo is not a happy one, but, at least, she now has enough food to keep from starving and a place to keep warm from the cold. Sybil's soon realizes she has some new problems. For one thing, alchemy is a crime and Bashcroft, the bloodthirsty town reeve, is determined to prove Thorston is practicing alchemy and to hang him for it. Also, Bashcroft is convinced Thorston has hidden gold that can be found before the old man is hanged. To be ready to carry out his intent he has built a gallows outside of Thorston's house.

Thorston knows time is running out, so he conducts an experiment to insure his immortality. In keeping with his secretive manner, he fails to communicate the steps of the experiment to Sybil and Odo. When he appears to be dead, Sybil with some help from Odo buries his body in the ground on the lower level beneath their living area. Naturally, they are shocked when they find him alive and back up stairs the next day. He looks years younger than he was when they buried him.

Actually, the plot is even more complicated than outlined here. There are numerous other characters that emerge, including a mysterious monk and the town apothecary. You've been told enough, however, for you to see what is meant by calling this a "weird" book. If interested enough in this weirdness, you need to read it yourself to find out how it all turns out.

A horse-loving girl lives amongst warring clans
in olden-days Ireland

When the story begins Lara O'Marchach is hiding from her bossy fourteen year old aunt, Fallon. Fallon is five years older than Lara and she seems to take pleasure in bullying Lara and Lara's brothers. Fallon is the sister of Lara's father. Because the father is leader of the clan, Fallon thinks she is entitled to boss others when he is away on raids or at war with the Normans. The Normans, of course, are trying to control all of Britain, including Ireland.

Lara has a great love of horses, especially the gray mare that her father had brought home after a raid. The mare had been wounded and Lara had taken great joy in nursing her back to health even if she did it secretly. Girls weren't supposed to be around horses. Girls were supposed to be working in the kitchen or doing things like sewing, spinning and weaving. Lara much preferred working with the horses, especially the gray mare. She's excited now because the mare is in foal - she is soon to have a colt.

Lara has girl cousins, Bebinn and Gerroc, who are about her same age. These younger girls get up early each morning to milk the cows. They also have to take care of the chickens. They are required to take the waste from the chicken yards and spread it on the fields. Sometimes they have to help spread the manure from the horses on the fields. Since that is a bigger job, the older boys help them with that task.

Having a successful harvest is important, because the winters are long and cold. Of course, the Norman landowners claim a share of the harvest for taxes. Worse yet, sometimes raiders from other clans will raid and steal food, leaving the family to go hungry through the winter. If the raiders are from an enemy clan, they sometimes will kill any men who are around and carry off the women and girls.

It is against this historical background that the story of Lara and her love for horses is told. "Hoofbeats: Lara and the Gray Mare" is the first in a series of four books by author, Kathleen Duey. The series is called the Lara quartet. As with any good series, the first book ends with Lara and the gray mare in trouble. A reader may want to read the next one to find out how Lara manages to save herself and her beloved mare from raiders.