Wooding, Chris.
POISON
New York : Orchard Books, 2005
IL YA
ISBN 0439755700

(2 booktalks)

Poison chose her own name.  Rebellious, quick on her feet, and brave, she has never quite fit in to her society.  It is located in a swamp and is full of people who accept a depressing life.  Since this community allows kids to choose their name once they reach a certain age, and her hateful stepmother told her that she was like poison, she chose that name out of spite.

When her baby sister is kidnapped by evil phaeries, Poison decides to venture out and rescue her, a brave act as people in her community rarely leave the marsh.  On her dangerous journey she encounters many horrifying characters like a witch who eats humans, a spider woman, and a mean-spirited scarecrow.  In this murderous realm where a few phaerie weeks can equal years in the human world, is her baby sister still even alive?  (Davinna Artibey, Denver Center for International Studies, DPS, CO)

Booktalk #2

Poison had never really fit in at the marsh. Whether it be with the other children or her family no one seems to understand her. Well except Fleet and her sister. But one night her sister is kidnapped and sent to the Realm of the Phaeries, she turns to the only person who can help her now:Fleet. Shes sent on a long journey running into many friends and many strange characters, she learns to appreciate the friends she has better and therefor getting farther and farther along. The Phaerie lord wont co operate though, he sends her on a task wanting an item from one of the other Realm Leaders, in return for her sister. However she gives his assistant, Scriddle, the item but she doesnt get her sister.  She overhears the Phaerie Lord talking, something about the Heirophant is writing again and he sounds scared. Whats going on and will she ever get her sister back?

A great read I absolutely loved it.  (Megan McGraw, student, spottedcalf@gmail.com)