"ninety percent of who you are is invisible." Amedeo Kaplan seems just like any other new kid who has moved into thetown of St. Malo, Florida, a navy town where new faces are the norm. ButAmedeo has a secret, a dream: More than anything in the world, he wantsto discover something -- a place, a process, even a fossil -- sometreasure that no one realizes is there until he finds it. And he wouldalso like to discover a true friend to share these things with. William Wilcox seems like an unlikely candidate for friendship: an aloofboy who is all edges and who owns silence the way other people own words.When Amedeo and William find themselves working together on a house salefor Amedeo's eccentric neighbor, Mrs. Zender, Amedeo has an inkling thatboth his wishes may come true. For Mrs. Zender's mansion is crammed withmemorabilia of her long life, and there is a story to go with everypiece. Soon the boys find themselves caught up in one particular story --a story that links a sketch, a young boy's life, an old man'sreminiscence, and a painful secret dating back to the outrages of NaziGermany. It's a story that will take them to the edge of what they knowabout heroism and the mystery of the human heart. Two-time Newbery winner E. L. Konigsburg spins a magnificent tale of art,discovery, friendship, history, and truth. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.

This complex work has all the trappings of vintage Konigsburg: unusually articulate children considering the adult world and trying to stake their claim on it; an art history-related mystery; a headlines-inspired story line; eccentric grown-ups; and, of course, incisive, often brilliant prose. Sad to say, the magic is missing. The action starts off promisingly. Amedeo Kaplan (son of characters met in The Outcasts of 19 Schuyler Place) has just moved to coastal Florida and made friends with William Wilcox, son of an estate sale manager (introduced in the story collection Throwing Shadows). As the boys help William's mother pack up the palatial home of Amedeo's next-door neighbor, a larger-than-life retired opera singer, Amedeo finds a signed Modigliani drawing. Because Amedeo has just returned from attending an art exhibit curated by another Outcasts alum, Peter Vanderwaal, on the subject of "degenerate" art (modern art criminalized by the Nazis), Amedeo is primed to uncover the history behind the drawing-a dark provenance that links the retired opera singer, the Vanderwaals and the Nazi occupation of Amsterdam. While the author's material and style prove as stimulating as ever, her repeated reliance on coincidence weakens the book's impact. Her tried-and-true fans will forgive these contrivances, but newcomers should not start here. Ages 9-12. (Sept.) Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information