TRAPPED!

A collection of eclectic short stories by contemporary YA authors that address the theme of being trapped, literally or metaphorically. The resulting dozen tales are as varied as the contributors, ranging from David Skinner’s modern fairy tale about a princess frozen in a block of ice to Gary Crew’s eerie glimpse of a Vietnam veteran trapped within his own mind. Marc Talbert’s characters are physically trapped by a forest fire, then morally trapped when they realize they are responsible for the blaze. Should they tell? Walter Dean Myers’s contribution appears in two columns on the page, one recounting a young man’s conversation with his psychiatrist, the other revealing a very different narrative inside his mind. Francesca Lia Block explores the trap of anorexia and Rita Williams-Garcia pens a short play about a drive-by shooting. On the lighter side, Joan Bauer’s heroine, a perfectionist-waitress, comes unraveled trying to satisfy a Sunday morning crowd of pancake eaters all by herself. At the height of the frenzy she stands on a counter and shouts, “We’re out of sausage and it’s not my fault!” Although the theme provokes occasional forced or heavy-handed moments, this is a strong collection, thought-provoking and well worth reading. (Short stories. 12-14)