While I wasn't paying attention, December rolled around and with it, another Island Parent Magazine deadline! How the heck did that happen? So, off to have a look and see what might be good to review... I'm tempted to do Arthur Slade's Tribes and The Losers' Club, by John Lekich. Both books feature some quirky teens who don't quite fit in but who, nonetheless, manage to muddle through.

Another recent read that was rather good was Cornelia Funke's, The Thief Lord. Set in Venice, this is an intriguing tale of street children who take refuge in an abandoned movie theatre and are protected and cared for by the shadowy character, the Thief Lord. Funke's book has a fantasy element completely lacking in the first two, so I'm not sure if I can find a way to include all three in the same review... not that I need to be boring the rest of the world with my musings about what I might possibly include in my column. On the other hand, what good is a blog if it doesn't bore the world with musings?