** spoiler alert ** Just this morning I finished Airborn by Kenneth Oppel (who also wrote the Silverwing Trilogy). It was very enjoyable and sucked me in I had it finished almost as soon as I started reading. It is an easy read, mostly because it is geared towards children. It's kept in the Juvenile section at my local library, but can be enjoyed by anyone who loves classic steam punk adventure.

It's an American tale about a cabin boy on board the Aurora who recovers the balloon and body of a dying man who rants of mysterious beautiful sky beasts. A year later the same man's, very wealthy granddaughter, boards the Aurora intent on proving that her grandfather was not a lunatic. From there, their adventures take them to pirate hide outs on uncharted islands, and to see the sights of the mysterious flying cats.

There were not that many twists in the book, and any well-read reader would be able to predict what comes next. But what really drug me under was the characters. Matt Cruse: the poor, but intelligent cabin boy eager to see the skies; Kate de Vries: the rich girl who wants nothing to do with fashion and fripperies; and Bruce: the rich young man who's father wants to push him into the family business, but who really doesn't know where he belongs. And that's just the main cast - there's the kind captain, and the crazy cook, to name just two others - who all appear cliche at first, but as the story unfolds, each takes on new dimensions and aspects. I could tell you what they become, but that would be cheating.

Because it's for juveniles, and designed to reach both boys and girls, there is not a lot of romance in the story. But it is there, and made all the sweeter for the little hints it gives.

This story is certainly not a heavy thinking piece, but children can learn lessons from it, and children of all ages can enjoy it. I liked it so much that I have already begun the sequel, Skybreaker, which continues the events of the main characters.

Oppel's steampunk world doesn't have a definitive date, not even one so vague as "Victorian era." The clues they do give to when the story takes place are just as vague, and hidden. However, on a single read through I got that the main character who's fifteen now, was born during one of the great migrations from Europe to America. It was also done during the great trading age (the Aurora is on her way to Sydney), and after the Hawaiian islands have started to be cultivated. The destination of Sydney also implies that Australia is no longer a penal colony.

His science is built on a single additional element to the periodic table - hydrium, which is lighter than hydrogen. That's sort of where he lost me for a bit, but as long as I continued to think of it as Hydrogen I had no problem with it. I didn't really see the need for anything lighter than hydrogen in the book either, unless maybe it was to counter some of the weight on board the Aurora.

Of course there were also the ever present goggles and Orinthopters (for those of you unfamiliar with steam punk they're sort of like hovering motorcycles in most interpretations). Those amid other steam punk accessories.

Now of course I have to include my "If you like X try Y," part of the review. My immediate first suggestion is Leviathan, which is more historical, and has just as much steampunk. It's also told from the point of view of a cabinboy, and contains the tangles of the rich dealing with the poor.

If you like Kate de Vries willingness to go her own way you might try L.A. Meyer's Bloody Jack. Also, a cabin boy. However, this one has less steampunkery, and more historical tech, though it's not as obviously historical as Leviathan.

Though I did not finish the Kingdom Beyond the Waves, adult readers who enjoyed the mythical animals from here may find that they enjoy that series. It is heavier, larger, and more world-centric than character-centric. However, it contains the same plot like of "Looking for what everyone considers impossible to prove that a male in my family was right," by a young woman. (Although in Kingdom she is much older than fifteen).

One classic that you might like is Little Men. It involves lots of male characters, and girls who want to be more than just pretty wives and loving mothers, set historically during the same time period, but without the whole steam punk facet.

If you want to keep the male protagonist rising above his circumstances, but you want more fantastical elements you might Mercedes Lackey's Joust, which swaps steam punk for an Egyptian culture with magic. Or Dragon's Blood by Jane Yolen which is a futuristic version of that plot line.