THE 7 PROFESSORS OF THE FAR NORTH

Sam Carnabie, 11, is not thrilled at the prospect of staying with his great aunt Roberta while his parents attend a conference on new developments in canned vegetable technology. He jumps at the chance, instead, to stay with one of his parents’ college professors, and his great niece and great nephew. What starts as a simple trip to Edinburgh ends with a frosty rescue mission to the frozen north that includes saving the world. An old enemy kidnaps Prof. Ampersand and five of his former colleagues. To save them, the children travel by secret underground railroad, ski boat and submarine. They arrive just in time to stop a madman from altering humanity’s genetic makeup. Fardell’s debut is Wonderful Flight to the Mushroom Planet without the space travel. The pacing is slow in places and the description thick. The amount of adult help that the children need might turn off some American audiences, but there is humor and a slam-bang finish. The author’s simple pen-and-ink illustrations are a definite plus. Large collections with well-read adventure seekers will want to add this to the shelf. (Fiction. 9-12)