by Lauren Oliver
for ages 9-12 years
(Children's New Books)(J Oliver)
Liesl and Po is a modern day fairy tale with all the classic elements. Of course there is the wicked step-mother who locks Liesl in the attic after her father passes away. Children are pests to the adults in this book. The only sympathetic adult is a lowly guard named Mo, who chases down a child to give him a hat to cover his ears.
Liesl has but one friend. An apparition comes to her and calls itself Po. Po has a companion named Bundle. They come from the "Other Side" where things become more indistinct. Po is neither a boy nor a girl, Bundle is neither a cat nor a dog. Po has seen Liesl's father on the other side.
Will is an orphan who is taken to apprentice for a mean old alchemist. He is poorly treated and overworked. He observes Liesl in the attic and wonders about her during his nightly deliveries. One night he accidentally switches two wooden boxes, one containing the ashes of Liesl's father and one containing the greatest magic in the world. The box was to go to a very important lady named Lady Premier.
Liesl escapes from the attic in order to deliver her father's ashes to a willow tree of her younger days. Will also escapes the alchemist when it is discovered he has delivered the wrong box to the wrong person. Miraculously they run into each other, after each has sneaked onto a train headed north. They band together to outwit the step-mother; the alchemist and the Lady Premiere; a policeman; and a nosey old woman on the train. Even Mo gets into the action when he finally gets to deliver that hat to Will.
The story is written at a good pace so the plot keeps moving along fast enough to keep the reader interested. The full page black and white illustrations sprinkled throughout the book add a nice touch to the story.-SC-
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