By the Grace of Todd

Gr 4–7—The premise of this middle school fantasy is a great hook for the right kind of reader: Twelve-year-old Todd is so messy that his "gagadocious" dirty laundry pile spawns sentient life: he discovers an entire civilization of about 50 ant-sized people living on his sweat sock. The "Toddlians" idolize the boy and count on him for protection, but Todd lets them down by bringing a popular but malicious kid in on the secret. Plenty of action follows as the mean-spirited Max abuses the amazing creatures and Todd, with help from a neighbor girl, finally figures out how to save them. The Toddlians are an amusing bunch, especially in the handful of chapters they narrate. They learn at an amazingly fast rate, absorbing knowledge from movies and television, resulting in some funny moments. Todd, on the other hand, is a hard kid to like for much of the book. He goes along with Max's schemes without much thought or regret and for the most part doesn't show all that much amazement or curiosity about the Toddlians's existence. Switches in perspective and frequent scenes of action keep the story moving, but twists involving a car break-in and a money-making scheme at a local fair feel contrived. The idea of people created spontaneously from grossness results in some fun but not enough to make up for the unappealing protagonist and a less than stellar plotline.—Steven Engelfried, Wilsonville Public Library, OR