THE SLIPPERY MAP

The author of The Anybodies series invites readers to use their imaginations and join ten-year-old Oyster R. Motel on a curious quest. Mysterious Temporary Disappearances (MTDs) are claiming local children in the town where orphaned Oyster has lived with a community of caring contemplative nuns (including Sister Mary Many Pockets and Sister Margaret of the Long Sighs and Withering Glare) since he was dumped at their gate as an infant. During a rare foray to the outside world, Oyster meets the Mapkeeper—caretaker of scrolls depicting Imagined Other Worlds (IOWs)—and learns that his parents long ago stole their shared map, slipped into the otherworld of stories they created as children and are trapped in that world, a miasma of Devil’s Snuff (powdered sugar) with Vicious Goggles, Whining Growsels and all manner of unusual beasts and beings. Someone—or something—seems to be calling Oyster to save them. Inventive and an awful lot of fun, “it’s all as real as you want it to be,” and it will surely be a catalyst for creative thinking. (Fiction. 8-12)