The term "booktalk" refers to the summaries of current children's books that fill this volume. Each summary lists the book's title, author, publishing information, genre, related books, and the summary, with an inset box that describes why the book will particularly interest young readers. Littlejohn, a middle school librarian, and Thomas, an elementary school librarian, provide clear indexing by subject to the books, which are arranged alphabetically by author. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)