THE MOSTLY INVISIBLE BOY

A boy and his little sister uncover an otherworldly woodland academy in Vanderhorst’s middle-grade debut.

Casey Grimes, 11, has been invisible for the last three months—ever since he and his family moved to Vintage Woods, Oregon. The invisibility is effective rather than literal. People tend not to notice him and forget about him after a few seconds. School has been difficult, but Casey’s life is about to change. First he discovers a gargantuan oak tree with a fortress in its uppermost branches. Then he learns that his 6-year-old sister, Gloria, has also been suffering the effects of invisibility. Casey and Gloria sleep out in the tree and meet Luci, a girl who not only can see them both, but who comes from another world. Luci lives in Sylvan Woods, an enchanted forest upon which the regular forest is overlaid. She attends Trickery School, where young Sylvans learn ways to combat the deadly monsters that threaten both the Sylvan and regular worlds. Casey desperately wants to attend Trickery School. But can he and Gloria fit in by pretending to be Luci’s cousins? Moreover, can they save Sylvan Woods from a killer infestation of Butcher Beasts? Vanderhorst employs a simple narrative style to good effect. Descriptions are sparing but sufficient. The dialogue is age-appropriate. The book comprises short chapters—71 in all!—and the reader is drawn ever forward, accompanying Casey and Gloria on a steppingstone path of small mysteries and action scenes. Sylvan Woods is a splendid conception, all the more so perhaps because it carries a magical feel even while its inhabitants judge magic itself to be passé. Vanderhorst has a real knack for characterization. Casey and Gloria share a beautifully realized brother-sister dynamic, and Luci has a strong-willed personality. The adult characters, too, are memorable in their brief appearances. If the writing has faults, they are that the interpersonal conflicts form and resolve somewhat abruptly and that the narrative drive occasionally rushes past moments that deserve a more lingering treatment (the fate of Old ThunderSnot the bloodhound, for instance). Such urgency has its upside, though. Young readers will be enthralled throughout.

Fast-moving and exuberant, packed with imagination.